page_title: Futsal
section_title: Players, equipment and officials
hierarchical_section_title: Futsal / Rules / Players, equipment and officials
caption_attribution_description: Português: Seleção Brasileira de Futsal, em partida contra o selecionado russo, em partida válida pela primeira fase da Copa do Mundo de Futsal Fifa 2008.
context_page_description: Futsal is a ball sport played on a hard court, smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football.
  Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is the goalkeeper. Unlimited substitutions are permitted. Unlike some other forms of indoor football, the game is played on a hard court surface delimited by lines; walls or boards are not used. Futsal is also played with a smaller, harder, low-bounce ball. The surface, ball and rules together favour ball control and passing in small spaces. The game's "emphasis is on improvisation, creativity and technique".
context_section_description: There are five players on the field on each team, one of whom is the goalkeeper. The maximum number of substitutes allowed is nine (FIFA change 2012), with unlimited substitutions during the match. Substitutes can come on even when the ball is in play but the player coming off must leave the field before the substitute can enter the playing field. If a team has or is reduced to fewer than three players remaining, the match is abandoned and counted as a loss for the team with the lack of players.
  The kit is made up of a jersey or shirt with sleeves, shorts, socks, shinguards made out of metal, plastic or foam, and shoes with rubber soles. The goalkeeper is allowed to wear long trousers and a different coloured kit to distinguish themself from the other players on the team and the referee. The goalkeeper is also allowed to wear elbow pads because the surface is about as hard as a tennis court or basketball court. Jewellery is not allowed, nor are other items that could be dangerous to the player wearing the item or to other active participants.
  The match is controlled by the referee, who enforces the Laws of the Game, and the first referee is the only one who can legally abandon the match because of interference from outside the field. This referee is assisted by a second referee who typically watches over the goal lines or assists the primary referee with calls on fouls or plays. The decisions made by the referees are final and can only be changed if the referees think it is necessary and play has not restarted. There is also a third referee and a timekeeper who are provided with equipment to keep a record of fouls in the match. In the event of injury to the second referee, the third referee will replace the second referee.
caption: The Brazil national futsal team line up before a match.
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