After six days of competition, we now know who will compete for medals at the FISU World University Championships Futsal. Brazil and Portugal will face off in both the women’s and men’s tournaments.
On Monday, all eyes were on Pruszkow, where the battle for a spot in the grand final was taking place. The start of the first semifinal made it clear that this would be a hard-fought match. The Portuguese team attacked their opponents goal more often, but the Germans also had their chances and played effectively on defense. For most of the first half, the score remained tied at zero. The Portuguese teams efforts were finally rewarded, and with half a minute left in the first half, the team from the Iberian Peninsula took a 1:0 lead.
In the second half, the Portuguese quickly extended their lead and then scored again. They controlled the game throughout the second half and secured a well-deserved 3:0 victory, advancing to the futsal championship final for the third consecutive time.
The second semifinal was dominated by the Brazilians, who proved to be far superior to the Polish team. The Brazilian team needed just 90 seconds to open the scoring. They then continued to attack the goal and doubled their lead. In the middle of the first half, the match was more evenly matched; the Polish team fought to score a goal to close the gap, but to no avail.
It was the Brazilians who managed to score again, taking a 3:0 lead into halftime. In the second half, the favorites maintained their dominance on the field, capping it off with a goal to make it 4:0. The Brazilians will deservedly compete to defend their championship title in Tuesday’s final.
The gold medal match will be a rematch of the finals from four years ago in Guimarães and two years ago in Shanghai. In 2022, Portugal won 5:4 in a penalty shootout (5:5 in regulation time), while in the previous edition, Brazil prevailed 3:1.
A moment later, the Polish and Brazilian men’s teams took the court. The fans didn’t have to wait long for a goal, as the “Canarinhos” scored their first goal just 12 seconds into the game, courtesy of Toninho. The Brazilians extended their lead to 2:0 in the 10th minute of the match with a goal by Kelven. In the final minute of the first half, the action picked up a bit as Toninho scored to make it 3:0. Shortly after, Kacper Pawlus responded with a goal, and the first half ended with a score of 3:1. In the second half, Brazil didnt let up and ultimately won 6:1, advancing to the final once again. The South American team has a chance to reclaim the gold medal and win the tournament for the seventh time in history.
– The Polish team was very good, but we managed to score early and get off to a better start. That definitely helped us win. We don’t have any preferences as to who we’d rather face in the final. I remember the group stage match against Portugal, which was very tough, but the Czech Republic is also a difficult opponent. This tournament is taking its toll because there’s really a lot of playing. Now we need to rest and play well in the final,” said Wellinton Brandao de Oliveira, captain of the Brazilian team.
The second semifinal was full of excitement. Another medal favorite, Portugal, was already leading the Czech Republic 4:0 in the first half thanks to goals by Abel Vaz, Tiago Rodrigues, Tomás Silva, and Gonçalo Paixão. The Czech team didn’t give up, however, and scored three goals on shots by Kristof Lizalek, Wojtech Bisko, and Dominik Balog. The teams went into halftime with the score at 4:3. Early in the second half, the Czechs took a risk by playing with a man advantage, but this only led to more goals for Portugal. Ultimately, the Portuguese won 8:4. The final will thus feature a rematch between group-stage rivals Portugal and Brazil. Their previous match ended in a tie, but now one team will have to emerge victorious.
– We’re very happy. We worked hard to make it to the final. It was a tough match because the Czech Republic played tough defense. They also had a good strategy, but we improved our defense and won, said David Gita,
On Tuesday, Poland will face Germany in the women’s bronze medal match. The match begins at 10 a.m., and at 1 p.m., the Czech Republic and Poland will compete for the men’s bronze medal. The women’s gold medal match will take place at 4 p.m., and the men’s gold medal match at 7 p.m. Brazil and Portugal will face off in the men’s championship match.
The event is organized by the University Sports Association of Warsaw and the University Sports Association of Poland. FISU is a co-organizer. The main partners of the championships are: the Ministry of Sport and Tourism, the Capital City of Warsaw, the Mazovia Province Local Government, and the Bemowo District
Partners include: Lotto, Toyota W&J Wiśniewski Dealership, Arche Hotels, Dawtona Poland, and the Warsaw Commuter Railway
Sports partners: the Polish Football Association, the Polish Handball Association, the Pruszkow Culture and Sports Center, OSIR Bemowo, and OSiR Włochy
Honorary patronage of the event was provided by: the Mayor of Warsaw—Mr. Rafał Trzaskowski; the Marshal of the Mazovia Province—Mr. Adam Struzik; the Minister of Sport and Tourism—Mr. Jakub Rutnicki; the Minister of Science and Higher Education—Mr. Marcin Kulasek; the Minister of National Defense—Mr. Władysław Kosiniak Kamysz, and the Pruszków County Administrator—Mr. Adrian Ejssymont. The competition is held under the honorary patronage of the Mayor of Pruszków—Mr. Piotr Bąk. Media patronage for the event is provided by TVP Warszawa and the futsal-polska.pl website.
1 Jul
