Australians are flocking to play futsal, a sport that helped launch many elite soccer careers

It’s the next global sporting event on a busy 2024 calendar – the 10th FIFA Futsal World Cup is underway in Uzbekistan.

While the indoor soccer variant might be on your radar as a fun kids’ sport, or a high-energy weeknight hobby, proponents like Football Australia say the FIFA-governed game is actually one of the world’s fastest-growing sports.

Here’s a few reasons why it’s gaining players and fans – and might even be breeding our next Socceroo or Matilda.

What is futsal?

Futsal is a relatively modern sport. It was invented in Uruguay in the early 1930s with the name deriving from the Spanish words fútbol (football) and sala (hall) – indicating the sport is played indoors.

With two teams of five players (one goalkeeper and four outfield players), a game is two halves of 20 minutes of effective playing time (the clock stops every time the ball is out of play).

The fast pace is heightened by rolling player substitutions and no throw-ins or offside – key features of traditional soccer.

It is estimated that 12 million players are registered worldwide in official competitions and many more involved in amateur/social leagues.

It is growing healthily in Australia, too. In 2023, participation grew to 64,000, up 11% on 2022. This followed huge growth pre-pandemic – in 2019, the jump was 36% up on the previous year.

These statistics would place futsal in the top three activities by growth from 2022 to 2023 (note: futsal participation data is extracted from a different survey compared to the government’s official participation dataset).

The world at their feet

The pinnacle of the sport is the FIFA Futsal World Cup, with 24 nations competing.

The men’s World Cup commenced in 1989 in the Netherlands, while the inaugural women’s World Cup will be contested in 2025.

The Australian men’s national team, the Futsalroos, took part in the inaugural men’s World Cup, with six more appearances since but they have not qualified for the 2024 competition.

Interestingly, France, one of the world’s top soccer countries, is participating for the first time at the 2024 Futsal World Cup.

Futsal has also been part of the Olympic conversation for many years.

Advocates say the sport has all the necessary characteristics for inclusion in the summer Olympics program – excitement, grassroots popularity and growth potential.

While the Olympic sports roster is already crowded – 30 sports across 42 disciplines at Paris – a positive step forward was futsal joining the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires and scheduled for the Dakar 2026 event.

The Olympics have, in recent years, experimented with new sports and sport variants like 3x3 basketball (2020), which gives a template for futsal to be considered for the games without impacting the soccer competition.

A powerful breeding ground

Futsal is also emerging as a powerful developmental step for outdoor soccer.

Many world-class soccer players have credited futsal for their skill development.

Brazilian household names Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Neymar Jr, Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo, and former Barcelona midfielders Xavi and Iniesta have all attributed their exceptional ball control and passing skills to playing futsal as kids.

Christiano Ronaldo said:

During my childhood in Portugal, all we played was futsal. The small playing area helped me improve my close control, and whenever I played futsal I felt free.

In Australia, Matildas forward Mary Fowler started in futsal as child in Cairns (where the indoor game can avoid weather extremes), while recently retired Socceroo and Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic also represented Australia in futsal.

How futsal skills are linked to soccer

Research supports the anecdotal evidence for futsal’s development potential.

My colleagues and I investigated whether the characteristics of the futsal ball (less bounce) and the gameplay (more touches for competitors), makes it easier for players to control the ball. This, in turn, may enhance other technical skills (like passing) and tactical awareness.

We tested whether the difference in ball characteristics could explain differences in passing skill.

In our study, 24 adult novices were asked to perform the same passing skill either with a futsal or soccer ball over three sessions, and we assessed their accuracy as well as their gaze behaviour (how the eyes track objects and space).

Those who practised with a futsal ball showed more improvement with their passing performance and had larger changes in their gaze behaviour.

Applying the same idea to elite young soccer and futsal players during a standardised 6 v 6 game, we again found futsal players had higher scanning behaviour while receiving and controlling, while soccer players mainly scanned the environment when not in ball possession.

But can skills transfer from futsal to soccer?

In another study, we asked elite young futsal and soccer players to perform separate tasks – one similar to futsal, and the other similar to soccer.

The results showed the futsal group improved their passing accuracy from the futsal-like to the soccer-like task; they were also more accurate than soccer players.

The soccer group’s passing accuracy remained stable across the two tasks.

Your new favourite niche sport?

Futsal offers physical intensity, can be played on any indoor surface and in any weather conditions and those features can facilitate faster skill development than many traditional sports.

No wonder its popularity is on the rise.

If that’s what you’re looking for, maybe the Futsal World Cup can add some inspiration.