The World at Their Feet: A Combined Historical Ranking of Nations Competing in Football and Futsal

Richard Moore^1, , Dr Girish Ramchandani¹, Steve Bullough¹, Simon Goldsmith¹, Lee Edmondson¹ and Dr Daniel Berdejo-del-Fresno²

¹Sport Industry Research Centre, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England

²Bay Area Futsal Club, San Francisco, United States of America

Cite this paper:
Richard Moore, Dr Girish Ramchandani, Steve Bullough, Simon Goldsmith, Lee Edmondson and Dr Daniel Berdejo-del-Fresno. The World at Their Feet: A Combined Historical Ranking of Nations Competing in Football and Futsal. American Journal of Sports Science and Medicine. 2018; 6(2):49-59. doi: 10.12691/ajssm-6-2-3

Abstract

Some elite football players (e.g. Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Neymar and Andres Iniesta) endorse the benefits of futsal and express how it has helped them to develop as football players. This has contributed to an increase in futsal development activity, in some countries, leading to interest into the relationship between the two sports. A lack of research exists to explain the developmental relationship between the two sports, aside from anecdotal evidence from players, coaches and media commentators, some of whom acclaim futsal for its role in developing elite footballers. This study investigates the relationship which exists between the two sports, by providing the first ever combined historical rank of nations competing in futsal and football. The results highlight the most successful nations as well as a 'select group' that appear to be in an advantageous position to develop in future. It also provides indicative evidence as to the relationship between the two sports and recommends that both sports may be able to benefit from a more collaborative approach to development.

Keywords:
futsal football development ranking success FIFA UEFA AFC OFC CONMEBOL CONCACAF CAF World Cup European Championships Copa America

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

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