RollerSoccer, Futins, Football Skating, Roller Foot or roller football is a version of association football (soccer) played on roller skates.
History
The sport was created in the English Midlands[1] in 1882 and the first documented match was a game between local rivals Derby and Burton on 30 January of that year. A 1934 game at London's Forest Gate Roller Rink, between two teams of female players, was filmed for an item on Pathé News.[2] Over a decade later Billboard reported in 1949 that it had been revived in Detroit, having disappeared for more than thirty years.[3]
The game re-emerged serendipitously in San Francisco in 1995, when a soccer ball rolled into the street while Zack Phillips was inline skating. He instinctively kicked the ball with his skates and immediately envisioned sporting potential. Later that day he brought his own soccer ball to his group of inline skate friends who had previously kicked pine cones while skating.[4] In 1996 Zack established the RollerSoccer International Federation and launched a website and with the help of skate friends. By 1998, it was described as "well established in some areas".[5] In the early 2000's the Futins (Futebol de Patins) organization established by Almir Falcão in Pernambuco, Brazil connected with the RollerSoccer organization.
The first RollerSoccer World Cup was held in London in 2003 and again in 2004 whereafter the tournament was rotated around the world with European and National events also emerging. Fourteen (14) RollerSoccer World Cups or Club World Cups were held through 2019. Post-COVID the world championships are resuming as the Football Skating World Cup 8-18 December in Trabzon, Turkey and a Club World Cup during 2023.
The country with most active players and the highest number of teams is France, with UMS Easy Riders currently the defending Club World Cup Champion. Skaters on inline and roller skates on every continent (except Antarctica) have played soccer/football on skates. Australia[6] and Belgium[7] have interesting history. African and Asian teams have been emerging for many years.
