Courtesy: The Orange County Register


Best in futsal indoor soccer compete in Anaheim

July 14, 2012

The U.S. national championships run through Sunday in the sport that is gaining popularity in the United States after flourishing in Europe and South America.

by Eric Carpenter

ANAHEIM – In one hall of the Convention Center, eight padded soccer pitches come alive with fancy footwork, precision passing, flying soccer balls and deafening cheering from the sidelines. These are the best in American futsal.

American what, you say?

Futsal is a type of indoor soccer with five players on each side, founded in Uruguay in the 1930 as a way for youth players in local YMCAs to play soccer indoors. It flourished in Brazil. The name futsal is derived from the Portuguese "futebol de salão," roughly translated as "hall football."

The great soccer players, such as Pelé and Lionel Messi, learned to play futsal before they played outdoor soccer. It's a popular sport in South America and Europe.

But it's only recently gaining popularity in the United States.

This weekend – Friday through Sunday – the Anaheim Convention Center is playing host to 144 of the nation's best teams in the U.S. Futsal National Championships.

The best teams, from 8 and under to 35 and under, are competing for trophies and a chance to represent the U.S. in international play in October.

Zev Fayer, 18, said he's accustomed to the blank stares when he tells people he plays on a futsal team.

"I started out playing soccer, but I got into futsal about four years ago. I really like the footwork and the speed," said Fayer, on a team from New Jersey.

Unlike indoor soccer, there are no side boards to play the ball off, so it requires greater technical skills and precision passing; in short it's "less sloppy," said Anthony Matteucci, the player representative for U.S. Futsal.

And unlike outdoor soccer, there's typically plenty of scoring in the 40-minute matches. Whereas, international soccer produces an average of 2.7 goals per game, futsal produces an average of 8.7 goals – and in less time.

"A lot of parents get their children involved in soccer and they're happy that they are out there running. But the truth is that they are bored," said Alex Para, president of U.S. Futsal. "With our sport, they get to touch the ball a lot more and they remain very interested during the games."

The teams represented at the national tournament in Anaheim qualified by winning one of six regional tournaments. They come from as far as Maryland in the east and Hawaii in the west.

Trisha and Shawn Arakawa brought their daughter, Tiara, 14, from Hawaii to compete in the tournament.

"We had her in soccer, then the coach came to the team with the idea of playing futsal," Trisha Arakawa said. "We had no idea what that was at first. But after seeing all the technical skills that it's helped develop, we've grown to like it a lot."

The matches, in Hall D of the Convention Center, 800 W. Katella Ave., are open to the public. Admission to the tournament is $10 per day or $20 for the weekend. Play continues from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.




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