On June 25, the Russian national futsal team traveled to Serbia to compete in an international tournament for deaf athletes, held in the Zlatibor district. Alongside the Russian team, participants included squads fr om Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro. The tournament concluded on June 29.
Upon arrival, the Russian delegation visited a local stadium wh ere legendary players like Nemanja Vidić and other renowned Serbian footballers once played, as well as the Užice Mayor’s Office. There, they received a warm welcome from Mayor Jelena Raković-Radivojević. During the meeting, the mayor shared the history of Užice and the Zlatibor district, presenting the athletes with welcome gifts. In return, Maria Merzlikina, Deputy Head of the OSFSG Sports Department, presented gifts to the mayor on behalf of the Federation.
The tournament’s official matches began on the evening of June 27, broadcast live. Over the next two days, at the Veliki Park sports complex, the Russian team—led by senior coach Vyacheslav Gutko—faced off against deaf futsal teams from Serbia, Montenegro, and Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Russian players secured decisive victories in all matches, with scores of 5-2, 7-0, and 4-1, respectively.
Before and after the official tournament, the Russian team played friendly matches against Serbian professional futsal clubs KMF-92 and KMF Zlatar Nova Varoš, both top-division teams. The hard-fought games ended in a thrilling 4-4 draw and a 5-3 victory for Russia.
Congratulations to our futsal team on their outstanding performance!
International Tournament Results:
1st place - Russia
2nd place - Serbia
3rd place - Montenegro
4th place - Bosnia and Herzegovina
Match Results:
Serbia 2-5 Russia
Russia 7-0 Montenegro
Russia 4-1 Bosnia and Herzegovina
Montenegro 1-7 Serbia
Bosnia and Herzegovina 0-5 Montenegro
Vyacheslav Gutko, Senior coach of the Russian National Futsal Team:
“The match against Serbia was strong—the opponents played defensively, capitalizing on our mistakes. This was a valuable lesson for our team, reinforcing that every error can be punished. Offensively, we performed well, scoring a nice set-piece goal, though we could have netted more. We’ll work on our shortcomings.
The game against Montenegro was less intense but still useful for refining set plays and boosting the players’ confidence. Against Bosnia, we fielded those with less playing time, as we had another tough match against a hearing team from the top league—a stronger opponent than in our first friendly, which ended in a hard-fought draw. Ultimately, we won the second friendly 5-3. The team has fully accomplished its objectives.”

Text: Vyacheslav Gutko, Nurlan Tazhigulov
Photo: Maria Merzlikina
Translation: Daria Kudelina