Posted to the BBC's Website Dec 18 2007 in response to an article recommending spending more money on youth football in England. England organized youth soccer tends to be full-field, outdoors and is considered a winter sport. Here in America and in Canada, we play 6v6-to-8v8 "indoor soccer" on converted hockey rinks. Futsal is something very different, and emphasizes small sides, ball control and footskills.

Original Article

FUTSAL - The answer to England's Problems.
International England
by coatsie 18 December 2007

Not enough investment in grass roots football?

You are having a laugh!! I'm sick and tired of people thinking that if you throw enough money at something the end product will inevitably get better.

If Brazil invested half of the money we throw at football then they would be unstoppable.

So why have they got it right and why have we got it so terribly wrong?

The answer - FUTEBOL DE SALAO (FUTSAL)

Forget open grassy fields, forget expensive equipment. All you need is a football and a good coach.

Never in a million years would you see young Brazilian kids playing football on what are near enough full size pitches. A football coach in Brazil would never have 7,8,9 year old running round a pitch exhausted after 10 minutes so that any technique or skill the kids may have totally goes out of the window.

The answer is to have younger kids playing futsal, played with a smaller ball on a smaller court (doesn't even have to be a pitch), so that they learn ball skills and control from an early age. Then when they are phisically strong enough to move onto a larger pitch, they already have the technique down. The transition then to a larger pitch with a larger ball is made much easier.

Please FA.... take a leaf out of Brazil's book and get the kids playing Futsal. In schools!!!!! Brazilians are fantastic at organising inter-school tournaments, go to them for advice.

YouTube Video of Ronaldinho playing futsal as a child and as an adult