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The origins of futsal in Sweden date back to 2001. At that time, some indoor football enthusiasts contacted the Swedish Football Association (SvFF) and asked them for advice on how to play indoor soccer more seriously with futsal. [1] Also at that time, there was a proposal from the SvFF development group not to adapt to futsal and to remain with five-a-side. These indoor soccer enthusiasts aborted their proposal which led them into carrying out further investigations on futsal before taking any decision. [2] [3]
Futsal is a variant of association football played on a hard court, smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It can be considered a version of five-a-side football.
Sweden, officially the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Scandinavian Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north and Finland to the east, and is connected to Denmark in the southwest by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund, a strait at the Swedish-Danish border. At 450,295 square kilometres (173,860 sq mi), Sweden is the largest country in Northern Europe, the third-largest country in the European Union and the fifth largest country in Europe by area. Sweden has a total population of 10.2 million of which 2.4 million has a foreign background. It has a low population density of 22 inhabitants per square kilometre (57/sq mi). The highest concentration is in the southern half of the country.
Indoor soccer or arena soccer,, is a game derived from association football adapted for play in a walled indoor arena. Indoor soccer, as it is most often known in the United States and Canada, was originally developed in these two countries as a way to play soccer during the winter months, when snow would make outdoor play difficult. In those countries, gymnasiums are adapted for indoor soccer play. In other countries the game is played in either indoor or outdoor arenas surrounded by walls, and is referred to by different names.
These indoor football enthusiasts, now futsal enthusiasts, contacted FIFA and UEFA for advice. They arranged a meeting with UEFA and were advised not to do anything that the SvFF disliked. UEFA also advised them not to wait for the SvFF's approval and to proceed with their own ideas of development. With UEFAs help they got a "letter of recommendation" from FIFA that said the group was "certified" as Swedish futsal developers. This letter opened up many doors in the SvFF and other institutions.
The Fédération Internationale de Football Association is an organization which describes itself as an international governing body of association football, fútsal, beach soccer, and eFootball. FIFA is responsible for the organization of football's major international tournaments, notably the World Cup which commenced in 1930 and the Women's World Cup which commenced in 1991.
The Union of European Football Associations is the administrative body for association football, futsal and beach soccer in Europe, although several member states are primarily or entirely located in Asia. It is one of six continental confederations of world football's governing body FIFA. UEFA consists of 55 national association members.
The group approached clubs, authorities, manufacturers and media companies who could further benefit the development of futsal. They launched a website, futsal.se that would serve as a portal for all futsal matters in Sweden and at the same time to put more pressure on the SvFF to act. In 2002, they started the first Swedish futsal championship. They have got 12 soccer clubs from Stockholm of the 2-4th division to participate. It stirred up some dust in the SvFF who now had something to make a decision upon. As the football clubs increasingly liked futsal, SvFF made a proposal to the soccer movement to adapt to futsal in favour of five-a-side in 2006.
Stockholm is the capital of Sweden and the most populous urban area in the Nordic countries; 962,154 people live in the municipality, approximately 1.5 million in the urban area, and 2.3 million in the metropolitan area. The city stretches across fourteen islands where Lake Mälaren flows into the Baltic Sea. Just outside the city and along the coast is the island chain of the Stockholm archipelago. The area has been settled since the Stone Age, in the 6th millennium BC, and was founded as a city in 1252 by Swedish statesman Birger Jarl. It is also the capital of Stockholm County.
From 2008 SvFF rules futsal in Sweden with the network Swedish Futsal pushing on.
