Kawika Del Rosario, Director of 808 Futsal, explains what futsal is and what makes 808 Futsal special.
Futsal is the short-sided version of soccer and comes from the Spanish term “Futbol Sala.” The biggest difference between futsal and soccer, however, is the speed. “Everything in futsal is designed to be faster and quicker,” says Rosario. The ball has a foam core to help it stay on the ground and to keep it from bouncing. The ball, the court, and the goals are smaller than regular soccer balls, fields, and goals, and the court’s surface is smooth. The increase of quick movement leads to more robust for training kids.
808 Futsal offers programs that go into a lot of depth on technique, but also offer many opportunities to compete, play, and have fun. They have a Futsal School 4 days a week and an “Expression Session” that allows kids to play for an hour then train their futsal technique. Rosario designed their technique training to teach players how to dribble the ball using different parts of the foot, to practice scoring on a smaller goal, and to control the ball on the smooth surface. As their skills improve and become more advanced, they begin to teach the dynamics of team movement and rotation. However, they need to have a strong technical base before they can learn any of that, so 808 Futsal breaks their programs up into levels based on difficulty and content that sharpen their technique before they move on. On Wednesdays and Thursdays, from 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM, they have two levels that train on those days, and Monday they have expression session.
When it comes to playing games, 808 Futsal has a contract with HYSA & Oahu League, allowing a weekend league for kids and clubs to play during prime-time hours, while adults have their own league on Monday nights. Rosario explains that they have so many players now that they have enough for an in-house league for players that train at 808 Futsal. Their Inhouse/InterLeague is in between seasons and they record stats, standings, and pictures that go up on their website.
What makes 808 Futsal special is their unique training philosophy and opportunities to play futsal. Their philosophy is to break up their players into age groups and focus in on specific training but also focus on fun. They have a 12 and under program play a lot but teach a lot of technique but also allow them to play a lot. Rosario explains, “It’s very important that they play, play, play, and have a lot of fun, and they grow the joy. When a player has a lot of joy when they play, they have a passion for the sport and will train harder than a player that is forced to.” For older players, they continue a more focused, technical training for kids that really want to attain and play at a high level. In addition to the training that already exists, players get a set training day, an expression session, and access to their Inhouse League. 808 Futsal also offers camps every two months and plan on doing a lot of travel. Rosario says they have planned about six or seven different destinations that players have the option to go to, to play and train, destinations such as California, Europe, or South America.
Pricing has changed to a monthly fee due to the various opportunities and programs they offer to their members. For more information or to sign up for their programs, visit their website and someone from 808 Futsal will reach out to you.