Developing Futsal in Denmark

The Danish Football Association hosted a FIFA Futsal Seminar on 22 September. The purpose of the day was to create a strong foundation for the development of Futsal in Denmark. The key message was simple: Building a structure is the key to an efficient implementation of Futsal in Denmark. Since 2008 Futsal has been the official version of indoor football supported by the Danish FA. However, it has been difficult and challenging to implement the technically-based sport, since the perception of indoor football in Denmark still is quite different in some regions from the one of Futsal. In Denmark indoor football is often with boards and an unpredictable jumping ball. Furthermore, indoor football is usually played in the winter when the weather does not allow outdoor play. That perception needs to change in order to create a successfull foundation for futsal in Denmark. Therefore, approximately 30 people, who either play or work with futsal, were gathered in the House of Football in Brondby, Denmark to get inspiration on how to successfully develop futsal in Denmark. FIFA instructor Graeme Dell shared his knowledge about implementing futsal in a country with a different culture of indoor football. “In Denmark you have been playing futsal for five to seven years without a structure," he said. "I think it has come a long way during those years without it. But now it is important to put a structure in place so everyone knows where we are going in the next five to ten years." A change in perception is necessary The common perception in Denmark is that indoor football is played by the ‘old’ and lazy, who do not have the physical condition or skill to play on a full field. Therefore, many perceive indoor football to be a cosy winter football activity. Players, coaches and clubs all have to understand that futsal is not just a form of indoor football. It is a specific form of indoor football, which also is a great tool in the development of both coaches, referees and, last but not least, players and that futsal is also a game of its own. One way to change the perception of futsal is to use facts instead of feelings. Dell shared lots of facts when he talked about the benefits of futsal. Player development was one of the most important things, and Dell showed plenty of evidence of how a footballer develops his skills by playing futsal. One of the examples was that in futsal you play 5 v 5 on a smaller field. To be accurate the size of the field and the number of players on a futsal fields corresponds to playing 37 v 37 on a normal pitch. It is obvious that you need better technical skills to get past the defence when they stand so much closer. “It is a journey that many other associations have been on, and unless you start now you get left further behind," continued Dell. "The important thing is to understand where futsal fits in as a part of the overall player development process.” Many other countries start playing futsal before they start playing normal outdoor football, and therefore develop a better technical and physical understanding for the game which can be harder to develop on a regular football pitch. This was a surprise to many of the people who were present. A rewarding day “Futsal is not just a game of its own, it is also a development tool which we can benefit from in the talentwork in regular football – and we have not thought about that before," said Ole Ladefoged, Chairman of the DBU Futsal Group. "It is definitely something that we need to take a closer look at. “The futsal seminar has given us more tools and documentation to go to the clubs and explain to them why futsal is important, and therefore we can motivate them to implement futsal. "Now it is about defining goals and projects so we can get started. It will take a lot of work and we need to have faith in the project for it to succeed." From Fifa