Indoor Soccer is a type of five-a-side football, a variation of Association Football. Around the world it is also called arena soccer, indoor football, minifootball, fast football, floorballor showball. The sport was developed in the United States and Canada to provide an option to play soccer during winter. Though the sport was derived from Association football, certain modifications were adopted to better suit playing indoors, including surrounding the play area by walls to keep the ball in play.
The sport is played in indoor arenas, on a rectangular shaped court with an artificial turf surface. The play area is fully surrounded by walls. Some of the major changes from association football are, there are no offsides, and no out-of-bounds; the ball can be bounced off the walls without stoppage of play.
A match is played between two teams, in four 15 minute quarters. Each team has six players, including the goalkeeper. The objective of the sport is to score as many goals as possible.
During the match unlimited number of substitutions are permitted. At the end of the match the team with the most goals wins the match. If both teams are tied at the end of the match, an extra 15 minutes is played with the golden-goal rule.
Indoor football is a popular minor sport in the UK, USA, Mexico, and Brazil. The sport is played in these countries in league competitions.
Similar Sports
- Association Football — the world's most popular sport, played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball, on a rectangular field with a goal at each end.
- Futsal — a variant of association football played on a smaller field and usually indoors.
- 5-a-side Football — each team fields five players on a smaller pitch, with smaller goals and a reduced game duration.
- Jorkyball — a variation of indoor soccer played between teams of two on a small rectangular field surrounded by glass walls.
- Cageball — a type of indoor football (soccer) played on a small rectangular field surrounded by high walls.
- Beach Soccer — similar to association football but played on a beach or sand.
Related Pages
- About football (general)
- Football Decoder — what is called football around the world?
- Complete list of sports
- The Encyclopedia of Sports