Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

Futsal improves technical skills as well as processing a faster speed of play. All of that translates to to soccer. The tactics of high level futsal translate less to soccer but the speed of play and the technical skills certainly still translate and on top of it, futsal is a welcome and fun break from a long soccer season. Always money well spent.

If you don't play futsal then I suggest basketball in the winter. Helps with vision and works different muscle groups and it is both fun and a nice break from soccer as well.

But wouldn’t playing soccer be better for improving soccer? I understand some people may like futsal, but truth be told there is no end game for that activity. If my DC is focused on playing soccer at a higher level, it seems nonsensical to substitute futsal for soccer when DC is seeking to be a soccer player. As for a break, the physical stresses and movement patterns are too similar between the two sports to serve as a break. Also, given that they’ve turned futsal into a competitive (score trumps everything) environment, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of creativity or fun left in the kids (many of them appear to be playing angry) I’m not anti futsal, I just feel like I was sold a bunch of BS for more money. So what I gather from the earlier posts (leaving aside the rude and dismissive respondents) is that I should find a club with a true year round soccer program.

I think Futsal is great for midfielders looking to improve their speed of play. Anyway...I wholeheartedly disagree that there is no creativity or fun in futsal. I think it's the exact opposite. In futsal, I see kids trying rainbows, always trying to nutmeg opponents, scoop passes over the top so you get headers and volleys, lots and lots of one time finishes, goal keepers flying up for a one time shot on corner kicks from the half way line, you never know what's going to happen. Very little of this going on during a regular soccer game.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

Futsal improves technical skills as well as processing a faster speed of play. All of that translates to to soccer. The tactics of high level futsal translate less to soccer but the speed of play and the technical skills certainly still translate and on top of it, futsal is a welcome and fun break from a long soccer season. Always money well spent.

If you don't play futsal then I suggest basketball in the winter. Helps with vision and works different muscle groups and it is both fun and a nice break from soccer as well.

But wouldn’t playing soccer be better for improving soccer? I understand some people may like futsal, but truth be told there is no end game for that activity. If my DC is focused on playing soccer at a higher level, it seems nonsensical to substitute futsal for soccer when DC is seeking to be a soccer player. As for a break, the physical stresses and movement patterns are too similar between the two sports to serve as a break. Also, given that they’ve turned futsal into a competitive (score trumps everything) environment, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of creativity or fun left in the kids (many of them appear to be playing angry) I’m not anti futsal, I just feel like I was sold a bunch of BS for more money. So what I gather from the earlier posts (leaving aside the rude and dismissive respondents) is that I should find a club with a true year round soccer program.

Kids can walk and chew gum at the same time.

The amount of touches a player will have in a futsal game versus a soccer game is night and day. Futsal builds upon a technical base in a way that soccer alone cannot. Futsal is a enhancement to soccer and at the younger ages can make technical improvements more fun and engaging than straightforward technical training would.

Many of the worlds best soccer players grew up playing futsal in their youth, Ronaldo specifically credits futsal for his creativity and technical abilities. It is fast and fun and has many benefits for young soccer players. It isn't a scam and it is more fun over the winter than whatever traditional soccer practice without any games would offer.

Anonymous wrote:

Also, my son is in this futsal league but they don't train futsal AT ALL. They just play games...so how much is this really helping his outdoor game? Probably none but he loves it. My son does NOT play for Alexandria but I am glad that they put on a futsal tournament each year and are running this outdoor league this winter, otherwise, my son wouldn't have played at all this winter.

Would you mind saying which one? My son likes futsal, but will likely never make Alexandria's futsal ID, so we are looking at other options for next year. We considered NPC, because we heard good things about the training, but when you broke it down, even though the monthly cost did not sound bad, with uniforms and various fees, it was prohibitive cost-wise.

My son doesn't play for any "club" team. They formed their own team. Don't feel like you need to do Alexandria ID, NPC, DC HYPER, etc etc to play. One parent signed up the team, one parent collected the money, one parent did something else, and one parent stands on the sidelines and helps with keeping track of time and subs. The kids run the show. As for uniforms, have kids wear the same color socks and shorts and then you can have them wear white shirts and put numbers on with tape or draw the numbers on. The kids come up with the name "BallersRus", Liverpool Extreme", "Premier Elite Uber Select GOATS" and there you have it. Enter the team in the league. Sure you can have a parent seriously coach or not or even hire a coach. You can have a few practices (even just pick up) if you want at a basketball court (don't want to take up another tennis court. : ) etc.) When it's all said and done, you should be able to do everything for maybe $75 a kid. This doesn't have to be expensive. Now if you want to learn and train and all that, then sure, Alexandria ID, NPC, whatever.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

Futsal improves technical skills as well as processing a faster speed of play. All of that translates to to soccer. The tactics of high level futsal translate less to soccer but the speed of play and the technical skills certainly still translate and on top of it, futsal is a welcome and fun break from a long soccer season. Always money well spent.

If you don't play futsal then I suggest basketball in the winter. Helps with vision and works different muscle groups and it is both fun and a nice break from soccer as well.

But wouldn’t playing soccer be better for improving soccer? I understand some people may like futsal, but truth be told there is no end game for that activity. If my DC is focused on playing soccer at a higher level, it seems nonsensical to substitute futsal for soccer when DC is seeking to be a soccer player. As for a break, the physical stresses and movement patterns are too similar between the two sports to serve as a break. Also, given that they’ve turned futsal into a competitive (score trumps everything) environment, there doesn’t seem to be a lot of creativity or fun left in the kids (many of them appear to be playing angry) I’m not anti futsal, I just feel like I was sold a bunch of BS for more money. So what I gather from the earlier posts (leaving aside the rude and dismissive respondents) is that I should find a club with a true year round soccer program.

Also, my son is in this futsal league but they don't train futsal AT ALL. They just play games...so how much is this really helping his outdoor game? Probably none but he loves it. My son does NOT play for Alexandria but I am glad that they put on a futsal tournament each year and are running this outdoor league this winter, otherwise, my son wouldn't have played at all this winter.

Would you mind saying which one? My son likes futsal, but will likely never make Alexandria's futsal ID, so we are looking at other options for next year. We considered NPC, because we heard good things about the training, but when you broke it down, even though the monthly cost did not sound bad, with uniforms and various fees, it was prohibitive cost-wise.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

Futsal improves technical skills as well as processing a faster speed of play. All of that translates to to soccer. The tactics of high level futsal translate less to soccer but the speed of play and the technical skills certainly still translate and on top of it, futsal is a welcome and fun break from a long soccer season. Always money well spent.

If you don't play futsal then I suggest basketball in the winter. Helps with vision and works different muscle groups and it is both fun and a nice break from soccer as well.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

I do indeed suggest you take your money elsewhere - you are simply not going to understand that although the sports are different, the ability to understand and apply combination play and quick transitions may remain beyond a kid without a supportive parent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

You certainly have some good points and some of them have been discussed on this forum before. Such as...when does futsal stop being a benefit for the outdoor game. That in itself is it's own thread. I remember when my son was smaller, his futsal coach would teach him different rotations and stuff during practice and I would be upset because I didn't care about those things. I just wanted him to get more touches. Futsal is so much faster than outdoor. It exposes kids who can't dribble, shield the ball, make accurate passes, pass and move, etc. But I, personally, don't care about futsal tactics. However, my son came to really enjoy futsal so he wanted to play on better and better teams so, in order to do that, you need to learn the tactics and rotations. Anyway...lots of people praise the benefits of futsal but the jury is still out how much is helps if you don't play year round and only play it in the winter. Also, my son is in this futsal league but they don't train futsal AT ALL. They just play games...so how much is this really helping his outdoor game? Probably none but he loves it. My son does NOT play for Alexandria but I am glad that they put on a futsal tournament each year and are running this outdoor league this winter, otherwise, my son wouldn't have played at all this winter. Just like basketball and that's sad. Thank you to all the adults out there being understanding and letting the kids play for a few weeks and I also agree that these courts should be better/cleaner than they found them after each futsal session.

Futsal, at least as played by youth clubs in this area, existed to keep kids training over the winter when it was less than ideal to play outside. Plenty of clubs are just staying outside and practicing/playing on turf. I'm nit sure DD is worse off because she's playing soccer rather than futsal this winter.

Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.



This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

No one is forcing you to be in ASA or do any ancillary activities, and the other clubs in reasonable commuting area are easily found by searching this board. There is no club, ASA or otherwise, that is super interested in developing the lower level teams, however. Clubs care about the kids on the top teams, and the lower level teams are a money making enterprise. I don't care because I mainly want my child out of the house and getting exercise (we have money and only him to spend it on). He has improved, but he is not a star player, nor will he ever be, no matter what I spend or where he plays. That's fine.

Based on my knowledge, futsal has helped him as a midfielder. It helps with decision making, and technical skills and tactics to get around opponents. I am not sure it would be as helpful in all other positions. It will not help with things like avoiding being shouldered off the ball, because shouldering and tackling are not permitted in futsal. Futsal is also a sport where you can have somewhat less stamina - you run a lot over a shorter distance, vs. the distances you need to cover in 11 a side soccer on a full field. Some skills and abilities transfer over, and some do not.

Anonymous wrote:Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.

This is funny. I was told by my kids coach that futsal was used to improve my kids soccer game when my DC couldn’t get out on the soccer field. Now that I think about it, that is in accurate. If my golf pro told me that for $500 I should play mini-golf next to an empty golf course I would have laughed her out of the room. If my tennis pro said (for $500) I should play table tennis next to an empty tennis court to improve my tennis game, she wouldn’t be my tennis coach. So now I ask myself, if my DC’s soccer coach is saying I should pay extra to play futsal instead of playing soccer in order to improve my DC’s soccer game, should I be listening to this guy? None of this is about developing my DC’s soccer playing skills, just about me paying more money. Can someone give me recommendations on where to move to to find a club that is more focused on soccer player development and less so on money-making ancillary activities?

A lot of odd attacks on tennis in this thread - tennis is actually thriving in this area. I imagine that none of you have heard of the AA tennis league or the LGBTQ tennis league that exist in this area. Tennis is a pretty diverse sport around here, and easily accessible with a $20 racquet and can of balls.

That being said, if they are taking over Nannie Lee, those courts are in bad shape anyway and not a big loss. Which courts exactly are being used?


Minnie Howard for one (one of the most popular courts in the city). As I drove by it this morning it still had goals, cones and trash left on the courts. Apparently, they get exclusive use to store their stuff on the court and leave their trash so no one else can use it.

I don't agree that it is one of the most popular courts in the city (Chinquapin and Montgomery St. are used more often, in my experience), but I 100 percent agree that citizens have the right to have it clean and not covered in trash. I am not sure where the trash would come from, as you cannot eat or drink during futsal games, and spectators currently cannot come within the court area. I am also not sure why cones are there, as they are generally not used during futsal games. However, if you say that this is the condition, I won't argue that it isn't. I would recommend contacting the city and ASA to ask that the courts be left clean after use.

Anonymous wrote:A lot of odd attacks on tennis in this thread - tennis is actually thriving in this area. I imagine that none of you have heard of the AA tennis league or the LGBTQ tennis league that exist in this area. Tennis is a pretty diverse sport around here, and easily accessible with a $20 racquet and can of balls.

That being said, if they are taking over Nannie Lee, those courts are in bad shape anyway and not a big loss. Which courts exactly are being used?

Minnie Howard for one (one of the most popular courts in the city). As I drove by it this morning it still had goals, cones and trash left on the courts. Apparently, they get exclusive use to store their stuff on the court and leave their trash so no one else can use it.

A lot of odd attacks on tennis in this thread - tennis is actually thriving in this area. I imagine that none of you have heard of the AA tennis league or the LGBTQ tennis league that exist in this area. Tennis is a pretty diverse sport around here, and easily accessible with a $20 racquet and can of balls.

Nothing against tennis at all - my child plays. It may be a sport that a diverse group of adults enjoys playing in some sense, but it is a sport that has a rather high $ entry barrier - you can't get good at it by taking lessons through the city etc. (beyond very intro lessons) or on your own. You really need to pay for a good instructor. Maybe that is why some people are down on it.

That being said, we have never had a problem finding a court for him to play on in the city. On a few occasions, futsal was happening on our most desired court (GW), but we just moved over to the one by the Mount Vernon Rec center or Potomac Yards and it was fine.

Outdoor tennis is not a winter sport anyway. We have been lucky to find a few weekends when it was warm enough and the wind was not too strong, but were not expecting to.

Futsal is not Soccer

Field of play is smaller
Ball is smaller, heavier
the goal is smaller and sized very differently
the amount of players is 5 versus 11 per team
The surface must be a hard surface not a soft grass or turf surface

now that we have established that a soccer field is not an appropriate field for futsal maybe it will make sense to you when i suggest you and your tennis racket go play tennis on a ping pong table or badminton court. Plenty of those around and based on your premise they should suit your tennis game as well as a soccer field will suit a futsal game.