Source fredericknewspost.com



THE 10 GIRLS, five on each team, raced up and down the gym at Trinity School in Frederick on a Sunday afternoon. They weren't dribbling the ball, but kicking it. They were playing Futsal or five-a-side indoor soccer.

About 20 people, mostly parents and siblings, sat on folding chairs and watched the U14 game between Epic Pride of West Virginia and a team from LUYAA.

The teams are members of the Frederick Futsal League which was founded by Jim Oman in November of 2007. There are 27 teams, almost all from Frederick County, and more than 300 players in the league.

It is a way they can continue to play soccer during the winter and especially develop their foot skills.

"My sister played last year and it seemed like fun," said 13-year-old Amber Spear, a member of the LUYAA team. "It was another game to play. It's different than outdoor soccer, I had to make some changes."

"I've played soccer for eight years and this is my first year of doing this," said 13-year-old Cindy Rockefeller, also a member of the LUYAA team. "It was kind of hard to learn. It took me about three games to get used to it."

But she said it helped her with her ball control and has made her a better passer.

"I will go right from this into my outdoor season," she said.

Brian Ferris is an assistant coach with the Red Venom LUYAA team. He has coached soccer for eight years, but this is only his second year as a Futsal coach.

"I didn't know what it was, I had to do some research on it," he said. "It took me three or four games to get comfortable."

Ilka Armstrong, another LUYUU coach, knows a lot about Futsal. She grew up in Brazil.

"It's huge in Brazil, almost as big as soccer," she said. "Most of the excellent players start in Futsal."

She said in her native Rio de Janeiro, Futsal is like Little League is in the United States.

The sport might be new to Frederick , but it has been around for years. It was started in Uruguay in 1930 as a five-a-side version of soccer for youth competing in YMCA soccer. The game is played by more than 12 million players in over 100 countries.

Futsal is played indoor on basketball courts without the use of sidewalls.

The name comes from the Spanish word for soccer 'FUTbol."

The sport has grown a great deal over the years. A World Championship was started in 1989 and the U.S. Championships in 1985. It is now under the auspices of FIFA, the governing body of soccer.