Gaining Turf

There was a deafening cheer when legendary FIFA World player Ronaldinho entered the NSCI stadium in Mumbai. And when Paul Scholes and Ryan Giggs joined in, the crowd went berserk. The second edition of Premier Futsal had all the fervour of an international tournament; except, it was being played on a smaller turf, for a shorter time and between domestic teams. Given the popularity of football in India, and the love for short format sports, futsal has hit a home run. The inaugural edition of the tournament was watched by 13 million viewers. And the passion is spreading on the ground, too.

"The futsal trend really picked up pace three four years ago as the Indian Super League (ISL) and the Premier Futsal League started getting popular," says Sudhakar Raja, CEO of Chennai based Howdy Ventures, a sports networking platform. These global football superstars signing up for such created a buzz among football enthusiasts in India. "The extra glamour helped futsal grab attention nationwide," Raja