A new intramural sport being offered this semester is Futsal. Futsal is very similar to soccer, except with a few variations. The game of futsal is much more fast-paced than soccer and allows for more scoring within the confined area. Trent McKenzie, the Intramural Supervisor at UWS for futsal said, “I don’t like watching regular soccer, but futsal is so fast-paced, a lot more scoring is possible, which makes it fun to watch.”

Futsal is primarily played indoors on a hard court surface. The game is played between two teams, which consist of five players each, one of which is the goalie. Futsal is played with a smaller, heavier ball, which has less bounce compared to a soccer ball. One of the UWS players, Caio Santos, who prefers to play futsal over soccer, stated, “The ball comes to me more often. The game is more dynamic because the field is smaller.”

Futsal is played by more than 30 million people in over 100 different countries worldwide. Alex Johnson, who was playing on one of the intramural teams, commented, “I’ve never heard of futsal before, but I’m not surprised it’s so popular because it’s so similar to soccer.”

Another intramural player, Gabriel Mozzini, commented on this unique game of futsal, “In Brazil, futsal is really common. We have futsal courts all over. I like the control of the smaller, heavier ball. The ball doesn’t bounce off your foot as much. The game is not as much about running, more about skills and passing.”

There are a variety of people who are involved in playing futsal this block. Ben Mooney, a former varsity soccer player for UWS, has played on an intramural futsal team in the Marcovich Wellness Center (MWC). “You commit so much time to soccer as an athlete,” Mooney said. “It’s a lot more fun to come in here and play. It is a lot more relaxed of an environment and you get to hang out with a lot of great guys.”

Futsal is played every Wednesday in the MWC, starting around 8 p.m.