Can Futsal Players Play Football – Should You?

Futsal and Soccer are kind of life chalk and cheese, they are so closely aligned yet so different at the same time. It’s a question that can often cause debate for hours on end, Futsal is a sport that is so unique in its own right yet is often seen as the poorer cousin of Soccer despite its many qualities and strong foundational skills. Let’s dive into the in’s and outs of this highly debated question.

So, Can Futsal Players Play Soccer/Football? Futsal players can play Soccer, in fact, many successful Soccer players got their start in Futsal. Futsal is played  heavily at youth levels in countries like Brazil and Spain and many successful Soccer players have put their success down to their early life involvement in Futsal.

Futsal has so many fundamental benefits that can be transitioned over to Soccer, although there are some skills that must be learnt in Soccer itself Futsal can teach players a lot about Soccer without ever leaving the court.

What Futsal Does For Soccer Skills

Futsal does a lot for Soccer, from fundamental skills to things like tactics and teamwork. There are many differences also, but they can be quickly put to one side to allow the benefits to flourish.

Let’s take a look at some of the critical benefits that players can obtain by spending time on and around the Futsal court:

Ball control, The Futsal ball is smaller and feels heavier than a normal soccer ball. It’s also got much less bounce (up to 60 percent according to FIFA). These differences in the ball allow it to be manipulated and controlled far more easier than a normal Soccer ball. Players are forced to think a little harder with the Futsal ball as it required more skill and thought when moving the ball around.

An example in point is that players cannot play long balls as much as Soccer with as much leeway and if they do they will often be encouraged to play short thought out passes to avoid turnover to opposition players.

Fitness Levels, Often debated are fitness levels of Futsal players when transitioning into Soccer. We have found in our personal experiences that Futsal players are often very fit and have good levels of cardio and rapid bursts of speed.

This can be attributed to the small size of the Futsal court and the fact that there is less “down time” on the court as Futsal players do touch the ball far more frequently in a game than their outdoor counterparts.

That’s not to say Futsal players have a superior level of fitness; Futsal is simply a sport that involves a lot of running and sprints which can only aid a Soccer players level of fitness particularly if played in the offseason.

Youth players, For youngsters starting out playing Futsal they can learn a lot about Soccer without playing it. For example, they will learn about:

Fair play, by playing Futsal they will get familiar with rules, sportsmanship and fairness/equality

Teamwork, players will understand that a team is a unit and learn the fundamentals of hard work and digging in deep to help their teammates

Tactics, they will be introduced to formations, substitutions, and positions.

These are just a few examples of the many benefits that youth players will experience in Futsal that can be transitional to Soccer.

Players Who Have Made The Transition To Soccer From Futsal

There are many examples worldwide of players who have given Futsal credit for their Soccer skills.

With so many high-level professional players stating this, isn’t it time aspiring Soccer players took a deeper look at Futsal?

Let’s take a look at some of the professionals and what they have to say about Futsal.

Lionel Messi, One of the best players that La Liga and the world has ever seen Messi has attributed playing Futsal from a young age in Argentina as being one of the most important factors in his forging of on the the all-time greats of world football.

Messi got his start in Futsal with Newell’s Old Boys in Argentina, and had this to say about Futsal as quoted on FIFA.com: “As a little boy in Argentina, I played futsal on the streets and for my club. It was tremendous fun, and it really helped me become who I am today,”.

As of writing, Messi has the following accolades to his name:

437 games for 402 goals

4 Champions Leagues Trophies

9 La Liga Trophies

5 FIFA Ballon d’Or/Ballon d’Or

Cristiano Ronaldo, Another one of the modern greats and a player that will undoubtedly go down in the history books as one of the greatest of all time Juventus player Ronaldo has also attributed Futsal to his success.

Quoted on FIFA.com Ronaldo has this to say: “During my childhood in Portugal, all we played was futsal,” he said. “The small playing area helped me improve my close control, and whenever I played Futsal I felt free. If it weren’t for futsal, I wouldn’t be the player I am today.”

Ronaldo has gone on to achieve the following since becoming a professional:

792 games for 590 goals

3 Premier League Trophies

5 Champions League Trophies

2 La Liga Trophies

1 European Championship Trophy

5 FIFA Ballon d’Or/Ballon d’Or

Ronaldo, No one can forget the original Ronaldo. Dominating the 90’s and early 2000’s before anyone had heard of Cristiano, Ronaldo was terrifying defenders and goalkeepers world over with flamboyant hairstyles and Brazilian swagger. He has this to say about Futsal:

“I needed extremely good feet, because you’re always attempting to beat opponents in the minimum of space. I loved the challenge of playing on such a small pitch,”

Ronaldo is the all-time goal scorer at FIFA World Cups. There you have it, folks, as they say, the proof is in the pudding.

Three of the best players of the last 20 years doesn’t lie, that’s bulletproof evidence that Futsal players can play Soccer and the transition isn’t that hard.

Check out our post on Futsal development for Soccer players.

Play Futsal And Soccer At The Same Time

You can opt to play but Futsal and Soccer at the same time and in fact many players do just that.

There are a few reasons that a player can opt to do this, these are:

Maintain fitness, Futsal involved a lot of running as mentioned earlier. With shorter breaks, players will build up and maintain a higher level of fitness. Be wary of burnout though.

Improve skills, perhaps you are not satisfied with two or three days of scheduled games/training a week. Combining both Soccer and Futsal will allow you to build a higher level of skill. As they say, practice makes perfect.

Enjoyment, If you love Soccer or Futsal, you’ll find that the passion knows no boundaries and you’ll enjoy double participation. Be careful again not to burn out.

If you do decide to play both, be sure to inform both clubs and gain consent if you are playing under contract or headed towards becoming a professional, i.e. semi-pro.

The last thing you would want to do is get an injury or burn out and not be able to play for your college/club that is paying or sponsoring you.

Related Questions

Can I Wear Cleats For Indoor Soccer? No, wearing cleats for Indoor Soccer is dangerous. Cleats are designed to grip turf and stop players slipping and injuring themselves.

Players must wear boots that are designed for use on indoor courts similar to Basketball courts. Wearing Cleats indoor will cause injury to players and damage the court.