International Socca Federation

The International Socca Federation (ISF) is a governing body for socca.[1]

International Socca Federation
AbbreviationISF
Formation2017; 7 years ago (2017)
Founded atBirmingham, England, United Kingdom
HeadquartersBirmingham, United Kingdom
Region
Worldwide
Official language
English
Honorary vice president
Tim Ollerenshaw
Honorary vice president
Shahzeb Mehmood Trunkwala
CEO
Thanos Papadopoulos
Head of sponsorship
Christoph Köchy
AffiliationsLeisure Leagues (some members)
Websitesoccafederation.com

This organization sets up the Socca World Cup, a world championship in socca, and more 5, 6, 7 or 8-sided tournaments for professional teams.[2]

History

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Formation

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The ISF was formed in late 2017 by small-sided football teams across Europe and the rest of the world. It was launched at a ceremony in Birmingham in February 2018, with guests of honour including World Cup and EURO referee Mark Clattenburg.[3][4] 51 countries invited to the launch.[5]

Eligibility criteria are minimal. Anyone who wants to run a national 6-a-side team in their country can register with the ISF if no such team already exists, subject to an approval process.[6]

Governance

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The governance structure announced involves a number of top figures from the Socca world. Pakistani businessman Shahzeb Mehmood Trunkwala of World Group[7] was elected as Honorary Vice President, along with English solicitor and charity founder Tim Ollerenshaw.[8]

Greek businessman Thanos Papadopoulos[9] took over as CEO, and German events mogul Christoph Köchy[10] became Head Of Sponsorship.[11] Stuart Winton, a socca referee, was appointed tournament director.[12][13]

Ambassadors

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Popular football figures were signed on to be ambassadors, led by Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldinho, who has played in socca exhibition games in Pakistan in summer 2017.[14][15] Other players that signed up to be ambassadors included Robert Pires and Ryan Giggs.[16]

Members

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62 nations sorted by 2023 full men ranking: [17]

Socca World Cup

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The inaugural 2018 Socca World Cup took place in Lisbon, Portugal, at the Trunkwala Stadium. It was refereed by Clattenburg.[18][19][20] Successive World Cups were held in Rethymno, Crete[21] (2019), Budapest, Hungary[22] (2022), and Essen, Germany[23] (2023).

Other leagues

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Socca EuroCup 2024 - Moldova - Italy

A Socca Champions League was held in October 2018 in Porec, Croatia. Dynamik Toruń from Poland emerged as champions.[24] A second Champions League was held in Maribor, Slovenia in September 2019. Slovenian side ARKO Kljucarovci beat Dynamik Toruń 4–2 in overtime.[25]

In 2023, The first Socca EuroCup took place in Chișinău, Moldova. Kazakhstan won 2-1 on penalties against Romania.[26] 13 teams participated.

In 2024, the second Socca EuroCup took place in Chișinău, Moldova. Kazakhstan won against Croatia.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "International Socca Federation Rules & Regulations". Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Membership Levels – Socca".
  3. ^ "Formation of 'International Socca Federation' announced - Daily Times". 6 February 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Socca Federation Meeting Hailed As A Great Success - News - Leisure Leagues". 9 February 2018. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  5. ^ "First International Socca Federation conference on Feb 8". Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  6. ^ "International Socca Federation - Tournaments Around The World". International Socca federation. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  7. ^ "World Group". www.worldgroup.pk. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  8. ^ Brown, Graeme (20 April 2017). "Mazars hosts charity tea at The Cube". Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  9. ^ "liberost". liberost. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  10. ^ "Christoph Köchy". www.six-a-side.de. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  11. ^ "Governance - International Socca federation". Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  12. ^ "Star Referees". www.ukminifootball.co.uk. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  13. ^ "Home - Star Sixes". Star Sixes. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  14. ^ "Football: 'Ronaldinho and friends' to play exhibition matches in Pakistan - The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  15. ^ "Team Ronaldinho beats Giggs-7 to take 1-0 series lead". Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  16. ^ "Your chance to win Ryan Giggs' shirt!". Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  17. ^ https://soccafederation.com/
  18. ^ "2018 World Cup- Portugal". soccafederation.com. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  19. ^ "SOCCA SETS THE BAR HIGH ALL AROUND THE WORLD". soccafederation.com. 12 October 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  20. ^ "Instituto Neymar Jr on Instagram: "Olha só que legal!! O Instituto Neymar Jr. está estampando a camisa da Seleção Brasileira de Futebol de 6 no Primeiro Mundial de Mini…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 26 December 2021. Retrieved 15 January 2019.
  21. ^ "Crete 2019 – old – International Socca federation".
  22. ^ "ISF WORLD CUP 2022 LOCATION ANNOUNCED – International Socca federation".
  23. ^ "It's Germany 2023! – International Socca federation".
  24. ^ "Socca Champions League 2018 Knockout Stages – International Socca federation".
  25. ^ "Socca Champions League 2019 Knockout Stages – International Socca federation".
  26. ^ "Казахстан сенсационно выиграл турнир по сокке. Что это такое?". Vesti.kz.