Courtesy: The Beverly Review


Futsal star named captain of national team

by Tim O’Brien

Jan 10, 2017

While many young athletes his age were relaxing during the time off from school over Christmas break, 11-year-old Brooklyn Raines stayed busy.

A sixth-grader at Ridge Academy, Raines was named the captain of the U.S. Youth Futsal ’05 team that played three games in Toronto, Canada, on Dec. 28-30.

Futsal is a variation of soccer that is typically played indoors with four players and a goalkeeper on the field per team. The playing surface is about the size of a basketball court.

“It was fun, but it was nerve-wracking because I’ve never done anything like this before,” Raines said. “It’s a lot bigger. It was fun, and I got some new experience from losing some games, too. It was pretty cool to play in the games.”

According to U.S. Youth Futsal, it is the largest youth futsal organization in the U.S. with more than 100 leagues nationwide.

The losses were nothing to shake your head at because the ’05 team played Canada’s ’04 team whose players are a year older than their U.S. counterparts. Canada won all three matchups.

Raines definitely made his presence felt, scoring a goal and making several highlight-reel defensive saves. The soccer equivalent of a center midfielder, Raines played the fixo position.

“Playing futsal, it is new. I like to do new things, especially it if is soccer-related,” Raines said. “With futsal, you get more touches on the ball in a smaller space than soccer. Both sports are fun.”

Thousands of kids tried out this past summer for the team, starting with regionals around the country. Several hundred athletes were invited to a national competition where 12 finalists were selected for the ’05 National team, which was announced in late November.

Named the U.S. team captain, Raines was also named the team MVP of the tournament and was awarded a ball signed by all the U.S. coaches. The ’05 team coach is Otto Orf, a former professional futsal goalkeeper.

“It was very exciting to be named the captain,” Raines said. “The coaches picked it. On my goal, it was off a corner kick. My teammate’s shot hit off the goalie, and I was able to knock it in.”

For Brooklyn’s mother, Susie Raines, the experience was especially exciting as the sport continues to grow in popularity around the world, and she hopes it takes off in the United States.

“Futsal isn’t huge in the U.S., but this was really cool to see,” said Susie, who played soccer at Richards High School in Oak Lawn. “The first time you’re representing your country and at such a young age. Hopefully it has an impact because it shows what the hard work can lead to. The experience of playing, the National Anthem being played before a game, it makes it feel much more real.”

The Raines Family lives in Oak Lawn, and Brooklyn first got into soccer when he was 4 years old. He first played futsal three years ago and hasn’t looked back. He plays club soccer with a local team, Inter FC, based out of Bedford Park, and cheers for his favorite team, Barcelona in La Liga, and favorite player, Lionel Messi.

Still in elementary school, Raines has his goals set as high as possible.

“I want to keep playing. I want to play soccer professionally,” Brooklyn said with a smile. “I like scoring, and I like how I can express myself and have some fun playing the game.”

As a fan and parent, Susie could not have been more proud.

“Brooklyn just started playing futsal three years ago … and from there he really started liking it,” she said. “Playing in Toronto was a great experience for him, and hopefully he can keep going with it.”


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