Courtesy: The FA.com


The FA Futsal Fives

Friday, 12 August, 2011

The FA launch series of indoor adult Futsal leagues around England.

Do you like five-a-side football, but fancy a bit of a change?

Have you heard of Futsal, but you’re not quite sure what it actually is?

Do you fancy playing in a league that is organised and run to the highest standards by The FA?

Through The FA Futsal Fives, The FA is launching a series of indoor adult Futsal leagues across the country to encourage more players and teams to play this exciting format of five-a-side football.

The FA are looking for new teams to sign-up and get involved in these Futsal leagues which will begin to pop up across the country from September 2011.

Don’t worry if you’ve never played Futsal before, or you’re not even sure what it actually is – The FA Futsal Fives is aimed at offering local opportunities for players of all standards to experience the game for the first time in a fun league setting.

Similar to five-a-side: all you need is a bunch of mates to form a team and turn up at the right time each week. We’ll sort out the rest!

What is Futsal?

Futsal is an exciting, fast-paced small sided football game that is widely played across the world and is officially recognised by both UEFA and FIFA. The FA have established an England Futsal team, an FA National Futsal League, along with a number of other FA national competitions including The FA Futsal Cup.

The FA considers Futsal to be the premium format of five-a-side football due to the skill-based technical merits that the game helps to nurture and develop. When the likes of Pele claim that the game had a significant impact on his development, who are we to argue!

“Futsal was important in helping to develop my ball control, quick thinking, passing….also for dribbling, balance, concentration…. Futsal was very, very important, no doubt” – Pele, World Cup Winner in 1958, 1962 and 1970.

Futsal is a five-a-side game, normally played on a flat indoor pitch with hockey sized goals and a size four ball with a reduced bounce. It is played to touchlines and all players are free to enter the penalty area and play the ball over head-height.

There are a number of differences to our traditional version of small sided football, but the dominant elements are the absence of rebound boards and amendments in the laws that encourage and foster skilful, creative play above the physical contact that tends to be a feature of traditional English five-a-side.

Download the Futsal FIFA Laws of the Game (pdf)


Format of The FA Futsal Fives Leagues

Each FA Futsal Fives league has eight teams that play each other twice over the course of a 14 week season. Leagues will typically be played on a midweek evening at the same indoor venue each week, and each team will play one game per week.

Matches will be 20 minutes each half on a running clock (i.e. the clock won’t be stopped every time there is a break in play like full Futsal rules), and FA qualified Futsal referees will officiate each game.

On each league night an FA Futsal Fives league coordinator will be in attendance to liaise with the teams and ensure the evening’s matches proceed smoothly and in line with The FA's high standards.

Within 24 hours of playing each match, the score of your match, the league table along with scorers and other vital match information will be updated on The FA Futsal Fives League website.


FA Futsal Fives Team Fees

The cost for teams to play in the FA Futsal Fives leagues will vary across the country, but typically it will be between £25 - £40 per match (contact your local FA Futsal Fives league organiser to find out more regarding prices for your area).

On signing up for a 14 week season, each team will be required to pay a refundable deposit that amounts to one week’s match fee in advance to The FA. At the completion of the 14 week season the deposit will be returned to the team unless they have any outstanding and remaining debts with the league.

Teams will be required to pay for their matches either in advance or on the evening of the match. Failure to pay on the evening could result in your team being removed from the league. Teams can pay in advance via debit/credit card if they wish.

Failure to show-up for a match will result in the team being charged the full match-fee and could result in a fine being imposed in line with the league’s rules and regulations.


Where Can I Play?

The FA Futsal Fives Leagues are all played at indoor venues.

Details of leagues will appear here shortly

If you would like to register a team for any of these leagues or to find out further information then please use the contact details listed next to the league you are interested in.

If you are interested in playing in an FA Futsal Fives league but there isn’t one near you, keep checking out this page as The FA will be launching more leagues across the country over the coming months.




Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com