Dimensions

The playing court must be rectangular. The length of the touchline must be greater than the length of the goal line.

Length: minimum 25 m
maximum 42 m

Width: minimum 15 m
maximum 25 m

International Games

Length: minimum 38 m
maximum 42 m

Width: minimum 18 m
maximum 22 m

Playing Court Markings

The playing court is marked with lines. These lines belong to the areas of which they are boundaries.

The two longer boundary lines are called touchlines. The two shorter lines are called goal lines.

All lines are 8 cm. wide.

The Playing Court is divided into two halves by the halfway line.

The center spot is indicated at the midpoint of the halfway line. A circle with a radius of 3 m is marked around it.

The Penalty Area

A penalty area is defined at each end of the playing court as follows:

Quarter circles, with 6 m radius, are drawn centered on the outside of each goal post. The quarter circles are drawn from the goal line to meet imaginary lines drawn at right angles to the goal line from the outside of the goal post. The upper part of each quarter circle is joined by a 3.16 m line running parallel to the goal line between the goal post.

Penalty Spot

A penalty spot is drawn 6 m from the midpoint between the goal posts and equidistant from them.

Second Penalty Spot

A second penalty spot is drawn on the playing court 10 m from the midpoint between the goal posts and equidistant from them.

The Corner Arc

A quarter circle with a radius of 25cm from each corner is drawn inside the playing court.

Substitution Zone

The substitution zone is situated on the same side of the playing court as the teams’ benches and directly in front of them and is where the players enter and leave the playing court for substitutions.

The substitution zones are situated directly in front of the teams’ benches and are each at least 3 m in length.
They are marked on each side by a line, at right angles to the touch line, 8 cm wide and 80 cm in length, 40 cm of which is drawn on the inside of the playing court and 40 cm on the outside of the playing court.

There is a distance of 3 m between the closest end of each substitution zone and the intersection of the halfway
line and the touchline. This free space, directly in front of the timekeeper’s table, is kept clear.

Goals

Goals must be placed on the center of each goal line.

They consist of two upright posts equidistant from each corner and joined at the top by a horizontal crossbar.

The distance (inside measurement) between the posts is 3 m and the distance from the lower edge of the crossbar to the ground is 2 m.

Both goal posts and the crossbar have the same width and depth of 8 cm. Nets, made of hemp, jute or nylon, are attached to the posts and crossbars behind the goals. The lower part is supported by curved bars or some other adequate support.

The depth of the goal, described as the distance from the inside edge of the goal posts towards the outside of the playing court, is at least 80 cm (in) at the top and 100 cm (in) at ground level.

Safety

The goals may be portable but they must be anchored securely to the ground during play.

The Playing Court Surface.

The surface is smooth and flat and non-ab­rasive. The use of wood or artificial material is recommended. Concrete or tarmac should be avoided.

Decisions

· Decision 1

In the event that the goal lines measure between 15 to 16 m, the radius of the centre circle measures only 4 m. In this case the penalty mark is no longer situated on the line defining the penalty area but remains at a distance of 6 m from the midpoint between the goal posts and equidistant from them.

· Decision 2

The use of natural turf, artificial turf or soil is permitted for league games but not for international games.

· Decision 3

A mark may be drawn outside the playing court, 5m from the corner arc and at right angles to the goal line to ensure that this distance is observed when a corner kick is being taken. The width of this mark is 8 cm.

· Decision 4

The teams' benches are situated behind the touch lines directly next to the space beside the timekeepers table, but no closer that 3 meters.
 

The origin of Futsal can be traced back to Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1930 when Juan Carlos Ceriani devised a five-a-side version of soccer for youth competition in YMCAs. The game is played on basketball-sized courts, both indoors and out without the use of sidewalls.

The term FUTSAL is the international term used for the game. It is derived from the Spanish or Portuguese word for "soccer", FUTbol or FUTebol, and the French or Spanish word for "indoor", SALon or SALa.

The game is frequently referred to as Five-A-Side. Once Ceriani got the ball rolling, Futsal gained rapid popularity throughout South America, particularly in Brazil. The skill developed in this game is visible in the world-famous style the Brazilians display outdoors on the full-sized field. Pele, Zico, Socrates, Bebeto and other Brazilian superstars developed their skill playing Futsal. While Brazil continues to be the Futsal hub of the world, the game is now played, under the auspices of FIFA, all over the world, from Europe to North and Central America and the Caribbean, South America, Africa, and Asia and Oceania.

The first international competition took place in 1965, when Paraguay won the first South American Cup. Six more South American Cups were held through 1979, with Brazil winning all of them. Brazil continued its dominance with a victory in the first Pan American Cup in 1980 and won it again the next time it was played in 1984. A U.S. team took part in the 1984 cup, but finished out of the running.

The U.S. Futsal Federation was incorporated in January, 1983. Osvaldo Garcia was it's first president The game originally was referred to as Minisoccer and then became known by its official international name, Futsal. The current federation president is Alex J.C. Para.

The first Futsal World Championship conducted under the auspices of FIFUSA (before its members integrated into FIFA in 1989) was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, in 1982, with Brazil finishing in first place. The Brazilians repeated as champions at the second World Championship in 1985 in Spain, but lost in the third World Championship in 1988 in Australia to Paraguay. FIFA took over direct sponsorship of the event in 1989 in Holland and 1992 in Hong Kong. Brazil won both times. The U.S. Futsal (Indoor Team), finished third in 1989 and second in 1992. The highest showing by any team from the United States in a FIFA tournament until the U.S. Womens team won the gold medal in China for outdoor soccer. The Third FIFA World Futsal Championship was held November 24 through December 11, 1996, in Spain. The Fourth FIFA Futsal World Championship was held in Guatemala between November 18 to December 4th, 2000. The fifth Futsal World Championship was held in Taipei in December 2004

The first international Futsal match played by the U.S. Futsal National Team was in May 1984 in Nanaimo, Canada, and the United States won 6-5. The first international Futsal match in the United States was held in December, 1985, at Sonoma State University in Rohnert Park, Calif. The U.S. select team, defeated Australia, 9-5.

U.S. Futsal has conducted a National Championship each year since 1985

. Futsal is establishing itself at the youth level in the U.S.. The Boys and Girls Clubs of America took a strong interest after the Columbia Park Club in San Francisco asked the Federation to give a demonstration. The national organization adopted the sport, and it is now played at about 1,100 Boys and Girls Clubs throughout the U.S. The American Youth Soccer Organization (AYSO) also plays the sport in a close working relationship with U.S. Futsal since 1988.

The U.S. Youth Soccer Association (USYSA) and U.S. Futsal signed an agreement in August of 1995 and in 1999, to promote futsal in all their National State Association as their game of choice for indoor soccer under the auspices of U.S. Futsal.