![]() | |
Abbreviation | ISF |
---|---|
Formation | 2017 |
Founded at | Birmingham, England, United Kingdom |
Headquarters | Birmingham, 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 |
Affiliations | Leisure Leagues (some members) |
Website | soccafederation.com |
The International Socca Federation (ISF) is a governing body for socca. [1]
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]
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]
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]
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]
62 nations sorted by 2023 full men ranking: [17]
|
|
|
|
|
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).
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.
![]() | |
Abbreviation | ISF |
---|---|
Formation | 2017 |
Founded at | Birmingham, England, United Kingdom |
Headquarters | Birmingham, 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 |
Affiliations | Leisure Leagues (some members) |
Website | soccafederation.com |
The International Socca Federation (ISF) is a governing body for socca. [1]
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]
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]
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]
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]
62 nations sorted by 2023 full men ranking: [17]
|
|
|
|
|
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).
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.