Football Federation Victoria was the first member federation to hold a course for the groundbreaking FFA Futsal Licence, with a session being held on Wednesday 20 June at the Derrimut YMCA.

FFV’s Zone Development Officers (ZDOs), who oversee the growth of football across Victoria, made up the majority of the class, which provides them with the knowledge and expertise they need to instruct community Futsal coaches across the state.

As well as the Licence, all attendees took part in the FFA Futsal Certificate, which is an introductory course.

The new Futsal coaching accreditations were developed by FFA in consultation with FIFA, AFC and a selection of Australia’s leading Futsal coaches.

The Licence was run by Jaime Amendolia, who is the head coach of East Coast Heat in the Hummel F League and NSW Thunder at the National Championships. As well as being one of the top Futsal coaches in Australia, he represented Australia at the 1996 and 2000 Futsal World Cups.

Amendolia said that he was thrilled to see Victoria taking the lead in Futsal education.

“I think it was really positive and good to see that Victoria is taking that step forward and realising the importance of coach education,” he said.

“From what I can see there is a lot of passion coming out of Victoria when it comes to Futsal. There are a lot of people trying to develop the sport and that looks good for the future.”

He also commented on how receptive his pupils were and how excited he was to see the game spread to all corners of Victoria.

“There was a lot to take in yesterday and everyone was enthusiastic and wanted to learn,” he said.

“Short term it’s about trying to get some of the ZDOs assessment credentials so they can start going out and teaching people. 

“In the long term I think it’s important that each region’s ZDO has this knowledge so they can pass it on. We then get a core group of coaches that understand the way the game needs to be played and taught.”

Zone Development Officer Geelong and Colac Foddy Kyprian said that the coaching was well received by the group.

“I’ve always been a fan of Futsal, so I am very happy that once I am certified I can run some courses in Geelong to cater for our 1000 plus players,” he said.

“There are a lot of people who are new to Futsal and don’t know where to start, so being able to attend a course in their own region will be a great starting point for them.”

While the Futsalroos have qualified for the 2012 Futsal World Cup in Thailand, Amendolia stressed the importance of continued coach education to keep pace with our AFC neighbours.

“The game is really moving forward in Asia and even the weaker nations of five of six years ago like Indonesia and Vietnam have all now become very strong,” he said.

“I think we need to set down some pathways for our National development for our players and the new coaching courses are a good start.”

Click here for more information on Futsal coaching courses.

The Derrimut YMCA will be the venue for new FFV social Futsal competitions starting in July. Contact futsal@footballfedvic.com.au or 9474 1800 for more information or to express your interest.