From 25 March to 4 April, the Russian Futsal Championship took place in Stavropol at the Vostok-Arena sports complex. This year, 13 teams from across the country participated, representing the Lugansk People's Republic, St. Petersburg, the Republics of Dagestan and Crimea, the Perm and Stavropol Territories, as well as the Amur, Bryansk, Voronezh, Kursk, Novosibirsk, Samara, and Sverdlovsk Regions. Based on refereeing decisions and the draw, the teams were divided into two groups — A and B — with the top four seeded teams placed according to last year’s championship results.

Group Stage Line-ups:

Group A:

1) Voronezh Oblast

2) Novosibirsk Oblast

3) Bryansk Oblast

4) Perm Krai

5) Lugansk People's Republic

6) Kursk Oblast

Group B:

1) Sverdlovsk Oblast

2) Samara Oblast

3) Amur Oblast

4) Republic of Dagestan

5) St. Petersburg

6) Republic of Crimea

7) Stavropol Krai

All group-stage matches followed a round-robin format, with the top teams advancing to the semi-finals and finals. Over the course of the week, Voronezh and Novosibirsk emerged as the expected leaders in Group A, while Samara Oblast delivered a surprise in Group B, defeating all their opponents. The Sverdlovsk Oblast team secured second place in the group.

In the first semi-final, Samara dominated Novosibirsk with tactical precision, overwhelming their defence and sealing a 10-3 victory. Meanwhile, in the second semi-final, Voronezh left no chance for Sverdlovsk, securing a 6-0 shutout.

The decisive match saw Vyacheslav Gutko’s Voronezh squad overpower Samara with a commanding 7-1 win, claiming the prestigious trophy. With this victory, Voronezh has now won the championship six times in a row, cementing their status as Russia’s unbeaten futsal team.

Final Standings:

1st place - Voronezh Oblast

2nd place - Samara Oblast

3rd place - Novosibirsk Oblast

Individual Awards:

Best Player - Rodion Shalamov (Samara Oblast)

Best Goalkeeper - Artem Radinsky (Voronezh Oblast)

Top Scorer - Anatoly Sokolov (Amur Oblast) - 19 goals

The winners and runners-up were awarded by Vladimir Veselli, OSFSG Vice-President; Robert Dzantiev, President of the Russian Committee of Deaf Sports; and Artem Nesterov, head of the OSFSG Refereeing Department.

Vyacheslav Gutko, Head Coach of the Russian National Futsal Team, shared his thoughts: “The championship showcased high-quality play. Matches involving national team players naturally featured a more aggressive and tactical level of futsal, but we appreciate all participating teams for their efforts. Soon, another futsal championship will take place with 13 regions competing, promising fierce battles and emerging young talent. This demonstrates the sport’s steady growth, though we aim for even greater progress. Thank you all!”

PHOTO ALBUM

Text: Maria Mazhenina, Nurlan Tazhigulov

Photo: Vladimir Cherniavski

Translation: Daria Kudelina