There is no bigger name associated with the golden generation of American indoor soccer than Otto Orf. He is best known for his time with the Cleveland Crunch and Force as well as playing for the U.S. Men’s National Futsal Team. He is also the founder of Futsal Factory and director of Great Lakes Futsal.
Orf has been busy recently, promoting the game of futsal. He literally brought the sport to the Midwest and has been growing the game here in Ohio and across the United States. When news broke about the launch of the Professional Futsal League (PFL), we spoke to Otto about his thoughts on the league and other efforts to make futsal the next big thing.
1. What are your expectations for the PFL International Challenge? What does FC Barcelona bring to the event?
I am a full blown fan of the game and having played and spectated at numerous international events I am most excited to see how our young players stack against the experience of one of the best club teams in the world and the Mexican national side.
2. What is your role at this event? What are you hoping to accomplish?
My role at this event is to be one of the Team USA coaching staff. Those duties include assisting with player evaluations at the combine and guiding the Team USA players in any way I possibly can. I have also been happy to consult the event staff by sharing my experiences running and organizing leagues and events at various facilities over the past decade.
3. What are hoping to see from the PFL in 2016 and beyond?
There is a lot of work to be done for sure, but I am looking forward to seeing the real game of futsal being played here on U.S. soil. There will need to be a large international presence during the first few years of the league, but under the guidance of Commissioner Tozer the integration of young American talent will be steady from the start. Tozer, who has spent 17 years as a U.S. Men’s National Futsal Team coach, has been building toward this ‘perfect storm’ of futsal by working at the developmental level through US Youth Futsal Player ID Programs and Coaches Certification Courses for the past few years. The professional league is simply the next logical step.
4. Why is now the time for futsal at a youth and professional level?
Battling the comfort zone that indoor soccer has established has not been easy, but I have a strong belief that futsal is the answer to what ails the American developmental system. Advocates of the sport have been professing its benefits for years. The status quo of boarded indoor soccer and the playing on unboarded large indoor turf fields all year round as a way to help improve the quality of our best soccer players has simply not worked.
The professional indoor game that I played and loved for more than 20 years has experienced a steady decline since the late 1980’s. After a decade of true futsal play on courts with a futsal ball the proof is now being born out in the creative young players it produces. Combine these facts and there is no question in my mind that a move toward futsal is unquestionably a good decision across the board.
5. What kinds of skills can futsal help develop in young and veteran players alike?
The basic skill of accurate passing is possibly the most significant but the ability to take on players, to shield the ball, the transition from defense to offense and vise versa are all easily identified as major benefits to ALL players who take up the game of futsal.
My belief is that our main concern should be how do we attend to the superior soccer athlete and help take them to the level where they can compete internationally. I believe futsal is the answer to this enigmatic question. Brain training, solving problems, training on the edge of a players capability, training under pressure, and recreating these situations so they can be repeated regularly… this is what futsal provides.
6. How popular is futsal in the U.S. and worldwide? Where does futsal see the most support in the U.S.?
Futsal is most popular in Brazil and followed closely by Spain, but it is also hugely popular in Argentina, Portugal, the Middle East and it had a fanatical following in many Asian countries including Japan and Korea. Futsal in the U.S. in very strong on the East Coast and the West Coast where there are large ethnic pockets, but some of the largest leagues can now be found in the Boston area, in St Louis, Kansas City, in Dallas, and now right here in NE Ohio.
7. How can pro futsal be more successful than the current indoor leagues? Is there anyone else doing pro futsal in the U.S. or Canada?
In my opinion, pro futsal will be more sustainable than indoor soccer for many reasons, but at the end of the day the fact that simply playing the game by the rules on the proper surface with the proper ball will make players better is enough reason to change over to the game immediately.
There is another professional league starting this summer: Major League Futsal. I think that starting any league is good for the sport as long as the people who are organizing and governing the game have the best interest of futsal and its participants in mind and are willing to work to maintain that integrity. Greed, egos, and mismanagement have destroyed many soccer franchises and held back the progress of the indoor and outdoor games over the decades. Futsal provides us with a fresh start at a time when soccer is more popular than ever in the United States. I can only hope that we have learned from our mistakes.
8. What are other benefits or positives associated with futsal?
- The game is played internationally by the same rules and governed by FIFA.
- There are 12 professional leagues internationally.
- There is a Futsal World Cup.
- There is a U.S. Men’s National Futsal Team.
- There will soon be a Women’s World Cup; the precursor was held in Costa Rica in December 2014.
- The U.S. will soon have a Women’s National Futsal Team.
- Futsal is being considered for testing at the 2018 Olympics.
- US Youth Futsal Leagues can be found across the USA.
- There are USYF Youth National Teams for both boys and girls.
- The sport can be played inside or out.
- Futsal is easily adapted to inner city and street play.
- It is a very affordable sport to play, only requiring sports shoes and a futsal ball.
