What is Futsal?
Futsal is a modified form of soccer that is played with five players per team (one of which is a goalkeeper); and it is played on a basketball size field (typically indoors).
Flying substitution is used; substitutions are unlimited. Unlike regular soccer or some other forms of indoor soccer, Futsal is played on a hard-court surface defined by lines; walls or boards are not used. Futsal is also played with a smaller ball with less bounce than a regular soccer ball.
Futsal is a self-teaching game. Players are constantly put in situations where they must pass, receive, dribble and move, while under pressure, in a confined space.
History of Futsal
In 1930, Juan Carlos Ceriani, a YMCA Director from Argentina working in Uruguay, created a small-sided derivative of soccer to be played on a basketball court borrowing rules and equipment from soccer, basketball, team handball and water polo. Ceriani was a graduate of Springfield College (then known as the International YMCA College), whose earlier graduates are likewise credited with the creation of basketball and volleyball. The sport spread throughout South America and ultimately internationally via the YMCA network.
The term “futsal” was adopted in the 1980’s as a contraction of “fútbol de salón”, literally translated as “Hall” or “Lounge” soccer. After years of organic growth, the first international rules and confederations were recognized in the 1950’s, culminating in FIFA’s recognition, sanctioning and governance of the sport in 1989, presenting the first FIFA Futsal World Cup in that year.
Futsal has been recognized throughout the world as a preferred off-season format to encourage player development, as well as a stand-alone sport with professional leagues in South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and the United States. Futsal debuted in the 2018 Buenos Aires Youth Olympic Games and will again feature at the 2022 event in Dakar.
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