Futsal great urban substitute for soccer

Futsal great urban substitute for soccer

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

It is difficult enough trying to spot a small patch of
greenery in the capital's concrete jungle, but locating a grassed
area the size of a soccer field is becomoing impossible for
players of the world's biggest spectator sport.

"That's why everybody I know now plays futsal, instead of
soccer," said Edi, 30, who has been playing soccer since he was a
toddler.

"Finding a soccer field in Jakarta is hard and expensive. Even
the ones that are available are not well-maintained, which can
lead to serious injuries."

The lack of adequate and affordable green space to play soccer
is the main reason why futsal, an indoor variation of soccer, has
been gaining popularity in big cities during the past few years.

Futsal, an acronym derived from the Portugese or Spanish
phrase for indoor soccer, requires a playing field of at least 15
meters wide and 25 meters long, smaller compared to soccer's 45
by 90-meter minimum.

The smaller field also means that fewer players are involved
during a match, five on each side compared to soccer's standard
of 11.

"The smaller size also makes it more fun, everybody gets a
chance to touch the ball," said Edi, who plays twice a week after
work hours with his friends.

He added that because futsal was played indoors, it fit his
schedule better since he often worked until the evening.

"It also makes it possible to play at any time in any
condition, rain or shine," he said.

He said that futsal players developed their ball handling and
passing skills faster because of the increased ball touches,
which he estimated could reach 10 times more than in conventional
soccer.

"In soccer, defenders often just linger around doing nothing,
in futsal everybody is actively moving and gets a share of the
ball," said Edi.

He said that the prices of renting a futsal field, which runs
anywhere between Rp 75,000 to Rp 300,000 per hour depending on
the facility, was reasonable, especially since it was shared
jointly by the players.

"We all split it up equally and end up paying Rp 15,000 for
each session, to me its cheap considering the amount of exercise
I get and the camaraderie between friends," said Edi.

Currently there are futsal fields all around the city
including those in Pejaten, South Jakarta, Tanjung Duren, West
Jakarta, Senayan, South Jakarta and Kelapa Gading, North Jakarta.

Edi said that currently the best playing field was Planet
Futsal in Kelapa Gading.

"It's the priciest one, but the field's turf is from synthetic
grass and is well maintained," said Edi.

Planet Futsal's center manager Damianus Nono said that
nowadays interest in futsal has reached a crescendo, at times
causing headaches to his staff.

"Even though we officially open at 8 a.m., sometimes people
bang at our doors at 7 a.m., others want to play until past
midnight," said.

Damianus, who has been with the center since it opened last
year.

"When we first opened, we didn't know the demand would be like
this," said Damianus, whose center has three fields. "I guess
finding an adequate playing field is a real problem in Jakarta."

He estimated that 60 percent of those who played at Planet
Futsal were students and 40 percent were adults, most of which
came to play directly after work.

He said that the reason aside from the lack of space, the
reason that futsal has gained popularity was because it required
less people and less equipment.

"You only need to call up four friends to play instead of 10
and you don't really need special shoes to play," he said.

He said that because of the high enthusiasm for futsal, his
company would be opening locations in Kuningan, South Jakarta,
Sunter, North Jakarta, Medan, North Sumatera, Balikpapan, East
Kalimantan, Pontianak, West Kalimantan and Malang, East Java.

Edi said that the addition of more futsal fields in the city
was a positive development.

"Sometimes, because of the high demand, it is hard to reserve
a futsal field," said Edi. "Even bribing to get a field doesn't
work."