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European Futsal Championship kicks off in Amsterdam tonight
The Dutch capital Amsterdam, led by mayor Femke Halsema, will host the opening games of the 2022 UEFA Futsal Championship tonight. It will be the championships’ largest edition yet, with 16 teams competing at the final stage of the tournament for the first time.
The event, jointly hosted by the Dutch cities of Amsterdam and Groningen, is the first one since the format of the competition was modified. The European Championship now takes place every four years and features 16 national times, as opposed to it previously being a biennial 12-team event.
Futsal is thought to have been created in the early 20th century by Uruguayan instructor Juan Carlos Ceriani in reaction to his students’ inability to play football due to the constant flooding of outdoor football pitches during the country’s rainy season. Thanks to South American immigrants who brought it to Portugal and Spain, futsal eventually made its way to Europe.
The games in Amsterdam will be played in the famous indoor arena Ziggo Dome. Due to the coronavirus pandemic, all matches will have to be played without the live audience. In Groningen, MartiniPlaza has been selected as the host venue where some of the group stage games will take place.
This year’s edition of the event will also see four countries making their debut in the competition – Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland, Georgia and Slovakia. The tournament begins with the defending champions Portugal taking on Serbia in the opening game and the Netherlands facing Ukraine later today. The final match of the tournament is scheduled to take place on February 6th in Amsterdam.
Later this year, the Portuguese city of Porto will host the final stage of the European Women’s Futsal Championship, where Spain will be defending the title. This event will be taking place at the end of March. (photo credit: wikimedia)
