People have been expressing themselves through football ‘tricks’ for as long as the game has existed. In the 21st century, this practice has gone from being a way of showing off in front of your friends, to a global phenomenon with its own leagues and competitions. A quick online search for ‘freestyle football’ videos will yield some extremely impressive displays of finesse and ball control. We caught up with one of the best, Edward van Gils, to ask him what he and his crew have in store for us.
What would a typical street football workshop involve?
First of all we do a small skills demonstration so the kids will know what to expect, and then we do some basic tricks to see what level the kid is at. Then we adjust to their level and show them how to do a couple of tricks so they can make them their own. Normally kids pick their favourite trick, or one which suits them best, and then we apply it to a real game situation. That’s the most important part of learning a trick: it’s nice to show off but it also has to have a purpose.
What sort of events would there be in a street football tournament?
The thing is, in street football there are two disciplines. Freestyle is one discipline; just juggling and doing some nice tricks. Then you have to actually play and apply certain tricks in a game. It’s not like eleven-a-side football, because that is much more competitive. This is more “fun” – it’s important to have some flair, to have some personality and clown around with your opponent, that’s a big ingredient of street football.
What attracted you to Abu Dhabi?
Well, we travel all around the world and I think the Emirates is a new area where street football isn’t that big yet, but football is big. We saw some very talented kids, that’s when I thought ‘Wow, I want to work with these kids, I want to be the one who educated the first kid from the Emirates to go to a European league’.
Any final thoughts you’d like to leave people with?
I would really like to invite anybody who reads this to come over and have a peek at what we can do. Maybe I can get some kids to join, because a lot of kids play PlayStation, but it’s also important to play sports. Not only for your health, but for social contacts – because on Facebook you have a thousand friends that you don’t know, and you have to get yourself some real friends.
Street football workshops, clinics and tournaments will take place at Dome@Rawdhat (02 449 8480) during December and January 2012. Visit www.thedome.ae for information about prices and class timings or to register.
What’s in a name?
Association football
The most widely played version of football around the world, with rules originally laid down by the FA in 1863. The term ‘soccer’ is an abbreviation coined by the Brits and it was once prevalent in the UK, but recently fell out of fashion.
Rugby football
The oldest form of football with a codified rule-set, named after the school where it was invented. Originally, players were allowed to pick up the ball and run backwards or kick it, but not run forwards with it. The first games recognizable as rugby were played in the 1830s.
Australian football
An alternative rule-set was created in the 19th century and demonstrates the diverse origins of foot-based ball-sports. The first laws of the game were published in Melbourne in 1859 and were meant as a way for cricketers to keep fit during winter.
American football
Before its creation, American colleges and universities would each play their own versions of football – making inter-institutional competition difficult. In the late 1800s it was a version of rugby, with a few modifications, which became the modern game.
