“Pass, pass! Shoot! Oh~ too bad.”
On Sunday, 25th at 2 p.m., an outdoor futsal field on the fourth floor of Mario Outlet in Gasan-dong, Seoul hosted a 5-on-5 futsal game among men in their 20s to 40s. "Back, back! Oh, not there, this way. Oh~ nice shot!" While their skills were amateur, their passion was at the level of national representatives.
They challenged "social futsal." Social futsal refers to people who do not know each other gathering to enjoy futsal games for a set fee. Startups like Flapfootball and Puzzlefootball rent futsal fields set up in large marts, shopping malls, or on the rooftops of large buildings nationwide, such as Yongsan I-Park Mall and Lotte Mart, to gather participants and conduct games.
◇ Skills are amateur, passion is that of a national representative
The participants in this game varied from mid-to-late 20s university students to early 30s office workers. Everyone was unfamiliar with each other, holding no knowledge about each other's ages or soccer skills. However, they all shared the same desire to score goals and enjoy futsal.
A participant in his 30s said, "Until my late 20s, I played soccer in clubs, but after getting married, it became hard to find time, so I enjoy social futsal when I have some free time on weekends." A university student in his late 20s noted, "I came out today to relieve stress by playing futsal."
The game that day was conducted through Flapfootball, with an expense of 12,000 won per participant. Social futsal allows customers to apply freely on preferred dates, locations, and times. This flexibility is an advantage of social futsal compared to football and futsal clubs, which require annual fees and schedule management for regular games. This strategy has been a key focus for startups like Flapfootball in penetrating the domestic futsal market.
The domestic social futsal market has been taking shape since around 2019. Following the airing of TV entertainment programs like "Goal Diggers" and "Ballunteers," it has gained popularity among the general public. Startups including Flapfootball, Puzzlefootball, IM, Urbanfootball, and Withfutsal are leading the way, and the market has grown to the point where approximately 3,500 social futsal games are held nationwide each month.
Each social futsal game lasts for 2 hours and is conducted in trilateral matches. Each game is about 12 to 13 minutes long, allowing each team to play a total of 6 games. Team sizes can consist of either 5 or 6 players, depending on the size of the futsal field. The Gasan-dong Mario Outlet futsal field is 30 meters wide and 15 meters long, accommodating 5-on-5 games, while the Yongsan I-Park Mall futsal field, emerging as "the Mecca of social futsal," is 40 meters wide and 20 meters long, accommodating 6-on-6 games.
That day's game was filled with the participants' enthusiasm. Right from the start, they kept shouting "Fighting" to uplift each other. The first game ended with a 6-0 loss for the team I was in. I felt a sense of regret, thinking, "Did I perform poorly?" However, refreshing my mindset, the next game finished 4-1 in victory.
However, after keeping score through the second game, they began to enjoy the game afterward. Social futsal typically does not keep score.
The game manners were also commendable. As people who met for the first time, any mistakes were met with apologies, creating a positive atmosphere. Although there were instances of somewhat rough physical contests toward opposing team members, whenever fouls occurred or players fell down, they stopped the game to acknowledge and apologize.
◇ Social futsal also faces challenges like noise
Nevertheless, there were occurrences of heated moments between opposing teams due to retaliatory tackles. This happened when an opposing player stepped on or kicked another's foot, and without saying "I'm sorry," continued with the game. I personally faced kicks from opposing team members 2 to 3 times, but I let it go, feeling internally that there was a lack of manners.
Social futsal has also been criticized for causing disturbances due to noise, as participants sometimes shout during games, leading to complaints from customers in large marts or nearby residents.
Additionally, it has been pointed out that it deprives the general public of opportunities to use futsal fields. Startups reserve popular futsal fields like Yongsan I-Park Mall during specific time slots, making it practically impossible for regular people to book these futsal fields in places like Seoul. For instance, reservations for fields at Yongsan I-Park Mall and similar venues are structured so that they can only be booked on the 1st of each month, leading to a "reservation war" on that day.
Professor Park Sung-bae from Hanyang University's Department of Sports Management said, "I expect that the social gaming market, whether for soccer or futsal, will continue to grow. However, the number of fields available for games is limited, so a system that can reduce conflicts between individuals and between individuals and corporations needs to be established within a self-competitive framework."