From soccer to futsal: Brazilian elite level men players' career pathways

Many Brazilian boys dream of a professional soccer career. During adolescence, however, many players move into futsal, a popular, less professionalized counterpart to soccer. To study players' investment in a futsal career, this article aimed to understand how childhood socialization relates to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Soccer and society 2021-07, Vol.22 (5), p.486-501
Main Authors: Marques, Renato Francisco Rodrigues, Schubring, Astrid, Barker-Ruchti, Natalie, Nunomura, Myrian, Menezes, Rafael Pombo
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescents
athletic career development
Bourdieu, Pierre (1930-2002)
capitals
Career development
Childhood
Cultural Studies
Elites
Habitus
Idrottsvetenskap och fitness
Kulturstudier
Occupational choice
Pierre Bourdieu
Professionalism
Soccer
Social environment
Socialization
Sociologi
Sociology
Sport and Fitness Sciences
Sports
youth sport
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Summary:Many Brazilian boys dream of a professional soccer career. During adolescence, however, many players move into futsal, a popular, less professionalized counterpart to soccer. To study players' investment in a futsal career, this article aimed to understand how childhood socialization relates to players' career development; to reconstruct the pathways players developed to become elite futsal athletes; and to identify reasons that led players to move from soccer to futsal. Semi-structured interviews with 18 Brazilian national team futsal players provided data. Bourdieu's Theory of Social Fields helped to understand players' investment in futsal. The results show that players experienced a fruitful social context and familial socialization that facilitated 'ball-kicking capitals'; developed a habitus that better matched the futsal than the soccer subfield; and delegitimized soccer as a suitable environment to participate in. We conclude with critical implications for futsal and soccer stakeholders aiming to maintain/create attractive career environments in times of increasing professionalism.
ISSN:1466-0970
1743-9590
1743-9590
DOI:10.1080/14660970.2020.1826936