BENGALURU: The game of futsal that originated in the 1930s in Uruguay is becoming quite the craze among Bengalureans, thanks to the Premier Futsal League that took place in 2016 on the lines of the IPL.
With the advent of a team in Bengaluru, the city’s lesser-known futsal players and lovers have got a chance to come forth and make their name in the game. While futsal is fairly popular among football enthusiasts in the city, it is gradually gaining acceptance. The general public as of now seem to be unaware even of a term like futsal.
The city also has very few suitable arenas for the game and this is a reason why the sport is seen more commonly played on football grounds.
Delwyn Menezes, an MBA student in Bengaluru says, “I’ve been playing football since the age of 14. I later discovered futsal through YouTube, when I watched footballers performing stunts. It’s an extremely fun game. It is fast paced and you have no time to think. Also,you need a lot of stamina to play this game.”
He says the game is still not so popular as football and is given lesser importance in a nation that is mad about cricket. But he adds that the Futsal Premier League was a great attempt to bring this sport to the country. The branding of the league with legendary players also did the sport good. Dylan hopes to see matches scheduled in Bengaluru this year.
After the Premier Futsal League, held in July 2016 for the first time, in Goa and Chennai, the game has been receiving wider recognition in India, say experts. The league was conceptualised by a few Indian entrepreneurs under the Premier Futsal Management Pvt Ltd. It saw six teams battling for the champion’s crown, Kolkata 5s, Chennai 5s, Goa 5s,, Kochi 5s, Bengaluru 5s and Mumbai 5s. The Mumbai team won the league. Each team was headed by an international player such as Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Marcos Evangelista de Morais (popularly known as Cafu), Michel Salgado, Hernan Crespo and Radamel Falcao.
Futsal Coaching
Melvin Ebenezer, a futsal coach at the Bangalore Premier Soccer School (BPSS), has trained students up to the age of 13. He says, “In BPSS, we train the younger ones in futsal during the early stages of football coaching. This helps them improve their fitness, aims and shots as well as energy levels. We are also trying to spread the futsal culture through these kids.”
Melvin had also auditioned and made it into higher rounds of last year’s Premier Futsal Launchpad, but had to quit midway due to an injury. He adds that the league’s training and boot-camps were well organized, with professional and acclaimed fitness experts and coaches.
Local Futsal Tournaments
Despite the lack of proper arenas the sport continues to be played. Futsal tournaments are held during weekends across the city. Ananth Menon has been playing futsal for the past four years, and says that 32 teams gather for such tournaments with approximately 200 players. Many futsal arenas remain open overnight and have attracted a lot more players and larger crowds for matches. He says, “ Indoor stadium XLR8 used to organise futsal tournaments for under 16 and that’s how I began playing this sport.”
Origin of Futsal
The term Futsal is derived from Spanish/ Portuguese word for soccer ‘Futbol’ or ‘Futebol’ and French or Spanish word for indoor, ‘Salon’ or ‘Sala’. Played on a hard court, this version of football has five players on each side and is usually played indoors, with a slightly smaller ball. It consists of one half time in the 40-minute match.
Futsal Arenas in the City
Some of the popular arenas for Futsal in Bengaluru are Let’s Play in Rammurthy Nagar, Magnum Arena on Sarjapura road, The Football Arena on Hormavu Road, Play Factory in Electronic City, Game Changer in Mathikere and Bull Ring in Indiranagar.