A futsal tournament with twelve teams, one hall,and the last whistle at eleven
Futsal is the clock. A district match is two halves of 25 minutes on a running clock, and almost nobody plays that long on a tournament night. You pick the half length that fits the hours you booked, and the schedule stays inside them.
What makes a futsal tournament its own thing
Three things that make a futsal tournament its own thing, and how PlayTour handles them.
The half length that fits your hall hours
The ordinary Dutch match is two halves of 25 minutes on a running clock that is stopped only in the last minute of each half, as the Topklasse and below play and as the youth play from under-15s upwards. Nationally it is two halves of 20 minutes of stopped-clock playing time. Both are ready, with three shorter forms below them.
- Two halves of 25 minutes, the district playing time
- Two halves of 20 minutes, national and youngest youth
- Two of 15 and two of ten for a busy tournament day
- A single period of 15 minutes with no change of ends
Any score goes in, however it reads
Futsal counts goals until the last whistle and draws the line nowhere. A 14-3 is an ordinary Thursday evening in the hall and a draw is an ordinary result, so there is no maximum, no required margin and no check that refuses a high score.
- Any number of goals is simply accepted
- A draw is a result, not a mistake
- Results entered at the desk
- The pool table keeps up while play continues
Teams level: goal difference decides
In futsal the points and then the goal difference set the order, and anything still level goes to a play-off. That is one rung shorter than field football under the same federation, where goals scored and the head to head follow. The order is set per tournament, so you do not inherit the outdoor version by accident.
- Points first, then goal difference
- After that a fixture decides, not a formula
- Three points for a win and one for a draw
- The order of the tiebreaks is yours to set
From booked hours to a schedule that fits
A futsal tournament is matches times match length divided by the halls you have. PlayTour does that sum for you and lets you adjust it before you publish.
- 1
Pick your half length
Two halves of 25 minutes if you are playing the league fixture, two of ten when twenty teams have to get through one evening. What you enter is playing time: the interval and the changeover go on top of it in the schedule.
- 2
Let teams enter themselves
The team manager enters the team and invites the players, who confirm for themselves. You set the minimum and maximum squad size per event. Collecting the entry fee online is coming soon.
- 3
Draw the pools
Pools, pools into a knockout, or a straight bracket. The schedule stays inside the hours you gave for the hall, and a clash is flagged before the poster goes out.
- 4
Play, count and decide
Results come in from the desk and the table keeps up. Two teams level means goal difference decides, and after that the order you set yourself.
Futsal tournament questions
How long is a futsal match here?+
In the districts two halves of 25 minutes, for seniors and for youth from under-15s upwards, on a clock that runs and is stopped only in the last minute of each half. Nationally it is two halves of 20 minutes of stopped-clock playing time. Both are ready as formats, with shorter ones beside them for a tournament.
Why do two halves of 20 minutes cost more hall time than two of 25?+
Because they are two different clocks. With stopped-clock playing time the clock halts at every interruption, so forty minutes of play occupies the hall considerably longer than forty minutes. The minutes shown against a format in PlayTour are playing time, so book your hall against the clock you are actually playing.
What happens when two teams finish level in a pool?+
Points first, then goal difference. Anything still level after that goes to a play-off in futsal rather than on to another comparison. In field football the same federation goes on to goals scored and the head to head, so the difference is real, and you set per tournament which order you follow.
We take penalties in the knockout, how does that reach the result?+
The Laws place the shoot-out after the match has ended and say in as many words that it is not part of the match. The result therefore stays the draw that was played. If you play extra time instead, that is two periods of at most five minutes, and the room for it is best kept in your changeover time.
A team withdraws, what happens to the table?+
In futsal every match that team has played is treated as not played, with no threshold and no matter how far the pool has run. The table is then rebuilt as though those matches had never happened.
Put your futsal tournament online and let the teams come in
A free account, your pools laid out, the link shared with the clubs nearby. Entries arrive without you keeping a list. Publishing and taking entries are part of the free plan; the draw, the playing schedule and live results come with a paid plan.