Futsal Fitness Manual

Fitness training aims to create a process-driven environment where sessions achieve multiple outcomes for developing fitness, technical skills and tactical understanding.

This resource consists of a wealth of fitness-related material. Its contents reflect the multi-faceted nature of physical conditioning in modern futsal, allowing those who use it to prepare their players in ways that will enable them to thrive in all aspects of the sport. The manual is structured as follows:

Chapter 1: Introduction
Chapter 2: Game description
Chapter 3: Playing positions
Chapter 4: Tactics in and out of possession
Chapter 5: Congested periods of competition
Chapter 6: Physiological demands
Chapter 7: Injury
Chapter 8: Session plans

Chapter 1: Introduction

What does fitness in futsal entail? The introduction of the manual shares several prominent figures’ reflections on the topic at hand, before explaining why understanding physical and physiological loads is crucial in elite futsal.

Chapter 2: Game description

To understand fitness demands it is first necessary to get to grips with the futsal format. This chapter provides a breakdown of the game to show how its specificities shape physical and physiological requirements.

Chapter 3: Playing positions

A player’s playing position can determine their physical output during a match in many ways. This section looks at futsal’s three outfield positions— defenders, pivots, and wingers —and how their fitness demands vary.

Chapter 4: Tactics in and out of possession

A team in possession of the ball must make different movements than a team without possession. Chapter 4 reveals the types of actions players execute with and without the ball in more detail and explains the consequences this has on fitness training.

Chapter 5: Congested periods of competition

What impact do multiple matches in a week have on players’ fitness regimes? The fifth chapter of the manual factors in the realities of match schedules when considering training loads.

Chapter 6: Physiological demands

The intense nature of futsal places high physiological demands on players. This chapter explains why a player’s cardiovascular capabilities, neuromuscular capacity, sprinting and strength are essential for playing the sport at the highest level.

Chapter 7: Injury

With plenty of sprinting, sharp changes of direction, and jumps, futsal at the elite level comes with the inevitable risk of injury. Chapter 7 analyses the type of injuries seen in recent competitions, revealing what parts of a player’s body futsal places the most strain on.

Chapter 8: Session plans

Factoring in the learnings from previous sections, the eighth chapter offers a range of fitness exercises to help develop players. Session plans consist of organisational tips, explanations, variations and links to corresponding articles on the FIFA Training Centre.