body. It doesn't take a lot of time. "I don't think you'd
have a big argument that both sports benefit the
athlete overall."
Futsal - Estaban Mariel (City Futsal, TX)
As the son of a Brazilian mother and Argentinian
father, soccer has been part of Esteban's life since he
was a kid. "I grew up playing club soccer in Dallas," he
says. By no means was I a technical player.
He firmly believes in how futsal can help grow skills
for the outdoor game. He and his twin brother Manuel
went to Brazil at age 12 to improve his skills. "By no
means was I a technical player," he says.
It was there that he was
introduced to futsal. "I played
about 80 percent futsal and 20
percent soccer, and my game
increased incredibly. I came back
a different player."
Together, he and his brother
played soccer at Southern
Methodist University. After
graduating, they were recruited
to the U.S. National Futsal Team.
As soccer continues to develop
in the U.S., Esteban says we're
looking toward Brazil and Spain
to see how they're playing
the game at a young age and
producing talented players. "It's
not futsal versus indoor soccer.
It's just the natural progression
of soccer in the United States,"
he says. "We have more players,
we have more coaches. Now we
have better players, we have
better coaches, we have better
facilities."
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Esteban says some of the key differences between
futsal and arena soccer come down to the playing field
and equipment. The differences cause athletes' bodies
to be used in different ways.
"There are skill and technical differences in futsal
where you're using the sole of your foot," he says.
"You're using the smaller muscles in your back.
Because of the smaller space and obviously the court
- it's a hard court - you're using different muscles in
terms of change of direction."
Two futsal courts can fit in the space of one arena
soccer field, which increases the potential revenue per
square foot, and court space can be reused for other
court sports, like volleyball and basketball. It also lacks
