First AFC Women’s Futsal Championship kicks off

Women’s futsal in Asia took another historic step forward today with the first ever AFC Women’s Futsal Championship starting today in Nilai, Malaysia. The AFC Women’s Futsal Championship 2015 Malaysia is the first pan-Asian women’s futsal championship and the launch of the new tournament places the Asian Football Confederation at the forefront of global women’s futsal development.

Other confederations do not currently have continental women’s futsal championships. AFC President Shaikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa said: “I am proud to say that the AFC is playing a leading role in taking women’s futsal forward. Futsal is growing steadily in Asia and as an indoor sport it is particularly suitable to Asia’s demanding climates and urban areas with scarce outdoor space.”

The championship runs from 21 to 26 September in Nilai, outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Eight teams will take part: Group A: Malaysia, IR Iran, Hong Kong, Uzbekistan and Group B: Japan, China PR, Thailand and Vietnam. The match schedule is available on the-AFC.com here.

FIFA and AFC Executive Committee member and AFC Women’s Football Committee Chairwoman Moya Dodd said: “Women’s football is world class in Asia and there is no reason futsal cannot reach the same level. Futsal is a great sport in its own right but it can also be a good alternative to football for female players who prefer to play indoors.”

AFC supports the women’s game and has made the development of futsal a priority. It has been conducting and has certified a growing number of AFC women’s futsal level 1 and level 2 coaching courses since they began in 2011, and there are now a total of 400 certified women's futsal specific coaches in Asia. This number is set to rise.

AFC Women’s Futsal Championship 2015 Malaysia started today with three group stage match days, and the semi-finals are played on Friday September 25. The third-place match and final take place on the Saturday. Entry is free of charge.

Malaysian broadcaster Astro Arena televises the matches and they are streamed live on the-AFC.com here (click on red arrow next to fixtures), together with highlights of each match here (at the bottom of the page).



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