Futsal Briefs ... World Cup, No Olympic Futsal, Wisconsin University includes futsal in training lineup

A little bit about some of this, some of that, all things futsal …

Thailand 2012 field set

The lineup for the FIFA Futsal World Cup, Nov. 1-18 in Thailand, has been set for weeks. But as of Aug. 24, the official draw and six groups of four teams were made public.

Qualifiers for the World Cup include teams from the following confederations: AFC (Asia) – Australia, Japan, Iran, Kuwait; Africa (CAF) – Egypt, Morocco, Libya; Europe (UEFA) – Czech Republic, Portugal, Serbia, Ukraine, Italy, Russia, Spain; Central America and Caribbean (CONCACAF) – Costa Rica, Mexico, Guatemala, Panama; Oceania – Solomon Islands; South America (CONMEBOL) – Argentina, Colombia, Brazil, Paraguay.

The official draw for the Cup took place in Bankok.

This is the seventh FIFA Futsal World Cup with 24 teams split into six groups. Hosts Thailand are in Group A and will be hoping to overcome Costa Rica, Ukraine and Paraguay to make it through to the Round of 16.

Some of the details on the groups from www.fifa.com:

Reigning FIFA Futsal World Cup winners Brazil were the first team drawn in Group C and will face experienced opponents from three different continents: Japan, Libya and Portugal. Spain meanwhile, who on paper are the team most likely to dent the South American title-holder's chances of defending the cup, find themselves in Group B alongside Iran, Panama and Morocco.

Group D looks to be the most balanced of the six, with Argentina, Mexico, Italy and Australia all having the potential to make it through to the knock-out stages. Group E includes Egypt, Serbia, Czech Republic and Kuwait. The final group of four teams, Group F, pairs Russia, Solomon Islands, Colombia and CONCACAF’s Guatemala.

Thailand coach Vic Hermans gave his reaction to the draw, expressing confidence in his team's ability to reach the knockout stage. "Of course I’m confident," he said. "When you look at Ukraine, Paraguay and Costa Rica, the first reaction is, 'That’s tough'. But we have a good young team and we beat Iran at the AFC Championship in Dubai, which was not expected of us. Based on our performances there, I’m 100 per cent confident we can progress to the second round."

Miguel Rodrigo, coach of the AFC Futsal Championship winners Japan,  was cautiously optimistic about the draw. "We're playing in a really difficult group. I have hope and I trust in my team to move on to the second round. The latest results against Portugal and Brazil and our win in the Asian Championships this year make me optimistic."

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The World Cup is still a couple of months away, but the following may jump start your appetite:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9uzY1sxHQU&feature=fvwrel

No futsal in 2016 Olympics

There were two open spots for sports and initially seven sports began the bidding to be included in the 2016 games. Baseball and softball, which were dropped from the program in 2005, karate, squash, golf, roller sports and rugby union all applied to be included. 

Leaders of the seven sports held presentations in front of the IOC executive board in June 2009.

Futsal has been discussed as an Olympic sport, but it was not among those considered for 2016.

In August, the Olympics executive board initially gave its approval to rugby sevens  — a seven-man version of rugby union — by a majority vote and removed baseball, roller sports and squash from the running. Of the other three, golf, karate, and softball, the board approved golf for the 2016 Olympics.

In May 2012, the International Sailing Federation announced that windsurfing would be removed from the 2016 Olympics and be replaced by kitesurfing.

The 2016 Summer Olympics will feature 28 sports.

Marquette joins trend of colleges, universities offering futsal

The trend of American and Canadian colleges and universities using futsal leagues and camps as a fundraiser for intercollegiate programs is alive and well in Milwaukee.

Marquette University recently announced its 2012-13 Youth Futsal Leagues, which begin Nov. 10 for boys and girls ages U8-U14. The league is coordinated by the Marquette University Soccer School and all futsal matches will be played on campus in the school gym.

Games will be played weekly through the final day of playoffs in February. The contact listed is Coach Marcelo Santos at 414-288-4503. Marquette hosts soccer and futsal camps year-round in a number of formats.

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