After years of running successful playdates, events that bring teams from all across the state to play three different opponents in one day, NorCal Premier Soccer hosted its first-ever futsal playdate this past weekend at the Universal Sports Academy in Martinez.

Overall, 54 teams from 29 different clubs participated in the event, which featured 10 different divisions from the U9-U15 age groups, with teams playing all three of their matches on either Saturday or Sunday.

“It was an exciting weekend to host our first-ever futsal playdate as we strive to offer more futsal programming to our member clubs,” said NorCal State Cup Coordinator Brian Voltattorni. “The biggest challenge for all of these teams and coaches who want to participate in futsal is to find something that’s at an appropriate competitive level. Finding the right event to get that exposure can be a challenge so we want to make it as easy as possible for all of the players in Northern California.”

Ever since the launch of NorCal’s Futsal State Cup in 2023, NorCal Premier Soccer has strived to continue offering futsal programming for its nearly 300 member clubs with the aim of creating a futsal season for all teams who want to make futsal a part of their competition calendar.

A five-on-five, fast-paced variation on soccer, futsal was first invented in South America in the 1930s.

The sport uses a heavier and smaller ball and is played on a hard surface roughly the size of a basketball court. Unlike indoor soccer, there are no walls with futsal and the ball can travel out of bounds, forcing players into a more game-like situation in the small confines provided.

For decades youth players in South America got their start in soccer by playing futsal, the game has spread globally in the past few decades, with FIFA staging the first men’s Futsal World Cup in 1989 and the first Women’s Futsal World Tournament in 2010.

Proponents of the sport credit it for helping develop close control, dribbling, and quick passing skills thanks to the conditions the sport is played under.

Last weekend’s playdate was the first of what NorCal hopes will be a series of futsal events on the calendar in addition to the Futsal State Cup, with the idea to offer playdates as an introduction to the sport and a way to include cost-effective events into the season.

“We want to get to the point where we have a viable futsal season for any clubs and teams who want to participate,” Voltattorni said. “This was just the first of what will be many futsal playdates that we hope to include on our calendar each year.”

For more information on futsal, click here.