New York Futsal Celebrates a Decade of Player Development
New York Youth Soccer News: New York Futsal has grown exponentially and kicks off its 10th season in December
Are you ready for some futsal? With the weather having turned colder, soccer fields will soon become unplayable so the winter is the time for players to continue to improve on their ball control skills by playing the developmental game of futsal.
Having kicked off in 2010 with 24 teams, New York Futsal has grown exponentially and enters its 10th season this winter expecting nearly 200 youth soccer teams to register once again under the umbrella of the Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA). Officially, New York Futsal is a recreational club of the Long Island Junior Soccer League (LIJSL). New this year are the Rec and Plus Divisions and with teams from US Soccer’s Development Academy taking part, New York Futsal is arguably the most competitive futsal league in all of New York State.
Part of the popularity of futsal is it only takes five to play and the league kicks off on Saturday, December 1 and concludes on the first weekend in March. Venues include the Joan of Arc Elementary School, the Sarah Anderson School and PS87 on the Upper West Side, the Dwight School on the Upper East Side plus the Tito Puente Education Complex in Spanish Harlem. In a sign of the growth of the game, Tito Puente is the first school in New York City with permanent futsal lines on the gym floor.
Futsal promotes quality touches and ball control in tight spaces and players utilize those skills when they return to playing soccer outdoors in March. Many of Brazil’s best players ever such as Pelé, Zico, Socrates, Bebeto, Ronaldinho and Marta all played a version of futsal as children.
International futsal coaches Maciej Woloszy and Pablo Guere, Red Bulls coaches Sebastian Gonzalez and Steven Steadham plus New York Futsal’s own Jaime Arias will be giving expert training to the players.
The registration fee per team is $1,600, which includes 10 weeks of league play plus playoffs. If a family registers a child as an individual, it’s $275 and New York Futsal puts the player on a team and gives him or her a uniform and a coach. Click here to register to play futsal this winter.
Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association: With over 100,000 youth soccer players–both boys and girls–and more than 25,000 volunteers, the non-profit Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association (ENYYSA) reaches from Montauk Point, Long Island to the Canadian border. Members are affiliated with nine leagues throughout the association, which covers the entire state of New York east of Route 81. ENYYSA exists to promote and enhance the game of soccer for children and teenagers between the ages of 5 and 19 years old and to encourage the healthy development of youth players, coaches, referees, and administrators.
