Abbreviation | ISF |
---|---|
Formation | 2017 |
Founded at | Birmingham, England, United Kingdom |
Headquarters | Birmingham, United Kingdom |
Region | Worldwide |
Official language | English |
Honorary vice president | Tim Ollerenshaw |
Honorary vice president | Shahzeb Mehmood Trunkwala |
CEO | Thanos Papadopoulos |
Head of sponsorship | Christoph Köchy |
Affiliations | Leisure Leagues (some members) |
Website | soccafederation.com |
The International Socca Federation (ISF) is a governing body for socca. [1]
This organization sets up the Socca World Cup, a world championship in socca, and more 5, 6, 7 or 8-sided tournaments for professional teams. [2]
The ISF was formed in late 2017 by small-sided football teams across Europe and the rest of the world. It was launched at a ceremony in Birmingham in February 2018, with guests of honour including World Cup and EURO referee Mark Clattenburg. [3] [4] 51 countries invited to the launch. [5]
Eligibility criteria are minimal. Anyone who wants to run a national 6-a-side team in their country can register with the ISF if no such team already exists, subject to an approval process. [6]
The governance structure announced involves a number of top figures from the Socca world. Pakistani businessman Shahzeb Mehmood Trunkwala of World Group [7] was elected as Honorary Vice President, along with English solicitor and charity founder Tim Ollerenshaw. [8]
Greek businessman Thanos Papadopoulos [9] took over as CEO, and German events mogul Christoph Köchy [10] became Head Of Sponsorship. [11] Stuart Winton, a socca referee, was appointed tournament director. [12] [13]
Popular football figures were signed on to be ambassadors, led by Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldinho, who has played in socca exhibition games in Pakistan in summer 2017. [14] [15] Other players that signed up to be ambassadors included Robert Pires and Ryan Giggs. [16]
62 nations sorted by 2023 full men ranking: [17]
|
|
|
|
The inaugural 2018 Socca World Cup took place in Lisbon, Portugal, at the Trunkwala Stadium. It was refereed by Clattenburg. [18] [19] [20] Successive World Cups were held in Rethymno, Crete [21] (2019), Budapest, Hungary [22] (2022), and Essen, Germany [23] (2023).
A Socca Champions League was held in October 2018 in Porec, Croatia. Dynamik Toruń from Poland emerged as champions. [24] A second Champions League was held in Maribor, Slovenia in September 2019. Slovenian side ARKO Kljucarovci beat Dynamik Toruń 4–2 in overtime. [25]
In 2023, The first Socca EuroCup took place in Chișinău, Moldova. Kazakhstan won 2-1 on penalties against Romania. [26] 13 teams participated.
In 2024, the second Socca EuroCup took place in Chișinău, Moldova. Kazakhstan won against Croatia.
Indoor soccer or arena soccer is a five-a-side or six-a-side version of minifootball, derived from association football and adapted to be played in walled hardcourt 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.
Ronaldo de Assis Moreira, commonly known as Ronaldinho Gaúcho or simply Ronaldinho, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he won two FIFA World Player of the Year awards and a Ballon d'Or. He is the only player ever to have won a World Cup, a Copa América, a Confederations Cup, a Champions League, a Copa Libertadores and a Ballon d'Or. A global icon of the sport, Ronaldinho was renowned for his technical skills, creativity, dribbling ability and accuracy from free-kicks, his use of tricks, feints, no-look passes and overhead kicks, as well as his ability to score and create goals, all prominent characteristics of his early-age background playing futsal. He is known by the nickname "O Bruxo".
Five-a-side football is a version of minifootball, in which each team fields five players. Other differences from association football include a smaller pitch, smaller goals, and a reduced game duration. Matches are played indoors, or outdoors on artificial grass pitches that may be enclosed within a barrier or "cage" to prevent the ball from leaving the playing area and keep the game constantly flowing.
Socca is a team sports game with a ball, a variant of football in the 6x6 format.
Mark Clattenburg is an English former professional football referee.
Seven-a-side football is one of the minifootball variations of football, which is played among seven players in each team. In the game consists of one goalkeeper and six outfield players. The pitch of seven-a-side football is bigger than that of five-a-side football, ranging from 50-65 yards in length and 25-50 yards in width respectively.
Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, also known as Neymar Júnior, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a attacking midfielder for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Brazil national team. Regarded as one of the greatest players of all time, he is renowned for his flamboyant style of play, passing abilities, and two-footedness. Neymar has scored at least 100 goals for three different clubs, being one of a few players to do so, and is the highest-scoring Brazilian player in Champions League history. Neymar is also the top goalscorer of all time for Brazil's National Football Team eclipsing Pelé.
Leisure Leagues is an franchise of five and six-a-side football leagues primarily in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. As of April 2017, the Leisure Leagues network had more than 3,000 leagues in the UK alone, which made it the largest independent network of leagues in the world.
The history of football in India is a long and detailed one, as it was the national sport at one time. The impetus for this was to unify the Indian Army. There is evidence of football games being played in the army since at least 1949. India is home to some of the oldest football clubs in the world, and the world's third oldest competition, the Durand Cup. There was a time when football in India was highly celebrated. The Indian football outfit was called the "Brazilians of Asia".
The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup final was a football match to determine the winners of the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup. The match was held at the Estádio do Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on 30 June 2013 and was contested by the winners of the semi-finals, Brazil and Spain. Brazil defeated Spain 3–0 with goals from Fred and Neymar, thus breaking Spain's record of 29 competitive games without a defeat.
Milorad Mažić is a former Serbian international association football referee. He became a FIFA referee in 2009. Beside working in the Serbian football league system, Mažić officiated numerous matches in the UEFA Champions League and the Europa League, as well as the 2016 UEFA Super Cup. He refereed matches at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016, 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup. He was selected as a referee for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He was awarded a Silver Medal for Merits of the Republic of Serbia. He was selected the best Serbian referee nine times in a row.
UK Socca, previously known as United Kingdom Minifootball Association (UKMA), is the license holder for International Socca Federation in the United Kingdom.
The 2015 UEFA Champions League final was the final match of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League, the 60th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 23rd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. It was played at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany, on 6 June 2015, between Italian side Juventus and Spanish side Barcelona.
The World Minifootball Federation (WMF) is the global amateur body for 6-a-side and other versions of minifootball. WMF exists to promote, supervise and direct minifootball growth. Its members are worldwide national minifootball teams and continental minifootball federations.
The 2016 UEFA Champions League final was the final match of the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League, the 61st season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 24th season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. It was played at the San Siro stadium in Milan, Italy, on 28 May 2016, between Spanish teams Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid, in a repeat of the 2014 final. It was the second time in the tournament's history that both finalists were from the same city. Real Madrid won 5–3 on a penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw at the end of extra time, securing a record-extending 11th title in the competition.
Minifootball is a small-sided variation of football.
The 2018 CONIFA World Football Cup was the third edition of the CONIFA World Football Cup, an international football tournament for states, minorities, stateless peoples and regions unaffiliated with FIFA organised by CONIFA. The tournament was hosted by Barawa Football Association, with all games held in and around London. The tournament was sponsored by Irish bookmaker Paddy Power. After being a late entry to the tournament, Kárpátalja won their first title on 9 June 2018, defeating Northern Cyprus 3–2 on penalties in the final.
The African Minifootball Cup (AMC) is a continental indoor minifootball competition contested by the senior men's national teams of African Minifootball Federation (AMF). The first edition was held in Libya in May 2018.
The 2021 African Minifootball Cup(CAN minifoot) (Arabic: 2021 كأس أمم إفريقيا لكرة القدم المصغرة, French: CAN mini-foot 2021) is the second edition of the African Minifootball Cup held by the African Minifootball Federation (AMF). The tournament was held in Nigeria. Initially set to hold in 2020, it was postponed to 2021 due to COVID-19. It was huge success even with covid situation in Nigeria.
The Socca World Cup is an international socca competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of International Socca Federation.