Dubai: Sixteen teams have confirmed their participation in the open category of the First Dubai Futsal Championship to be held at Hayya! Club on Friday.
The open competition is meant for players above 18 years, while there are separate competitions for juniors under-15 for both boys and girls.
The teams in the open category will be competing for a total prize fund of Dh6,500.
All participating players are required to have a valid UAE resident status.
Hayya! Sports Club is located in the Meadows Village.
The event is organised by Delwood Sports Marketing with the aim of stimulating the sports and entertainment scene in the UAE.
The entry fee for the open category is Dh500, and Dh50 per junior player in the under-15 competition.
The round-robin group stages will be played from 10 am on June 30 with the top teams advancing to the afternoon knock-out stages.
Competitions feature teams with five players of which one is a goalkeeper. The court is the size of a handball field with two 3x2m goals.
The ball is similar to a regular size 4 soccer ball. Technically demanding, fast paced and featuring lots of scoring opportunities, Futsal has quickly developed into one of the most popular sporting games around the globe.
"We have big plans for indoor football in this country," said Eric Gottschalk, General Manager of Delwood.
"This will be our trial event for a competitive indoor football league which will kick-off in September/October this year. The winners of this league will get a chance to compete in a professional Futsal tournament in early 2007," he added.
Gottschalk further disclosed that Delwood Sports Marketing is to enter into an agreement with the League National Futbal Sala from Spain, the strongest professional indoor football league in the world, to have their best teams come to Dubai in the near future.
Entry is free for spectators and fans. Further details may be obtained from the website www.delwoodsportsmarketing.com.
