North York Sweeps the OSA Futsal Cup Titles

Surprise, surprise, the most successful region in Canadian futsal wins more hardware and goes 3 for 3 at this year’s OSA Futsal Cup.

The North York Hearts Azzurri claimed their 2nd major title in under a month as they shutout their rivals and 3 time defending champions Etobicoke Energy 6-0 in the U16 Girls final earlier today at the OSA Futsal Cup. Etobicoke had beaten them earlier in the group stages 7-3 but the Azzurri held down the defense perfectly to record the first shutout in OSA Futsal Cup Finals history. These two also played a very tight game at the Toronto Invitational Futsal Tournament (TIFT) last month and have built a strong rivalry over the last year.

North York El Salvador from the Driftwood Futsal League also won top prize in the U14 boys division as they defeated a tough London LA Selecta squad in the final 8-2. The NYES team actually included three highly skilled girls on the squad and played a fantastic blend of one touch futsal that teams just could not contain on the tiny courts at the Hoop Dome.

North York, the north central portion of Toronto, has without question been the greatest contributor to elite Canadian futsal development for the last 20 years. Many of the top players in the country developed their skills in various leagues, mostly unsanctioned,  including curent Canadian national team players Alvaro Yaques, Roy Blanche, Julio Garcia, the Marchant brothers, Matthew Rios and countless others. A big reason the region has been so successful in the sport is because they get the kids to play futsal from the earliest ages as opposed to putting them in a 6 or 7 a side mini soccer league with a bouncy ball.

The Boca Juniors team that won the Mens OSA Futsal Cup is also based in North York and so is the Toronto Impact team that won the TIFT title. Though it has lost some its lustre over the last couple of years, the famed Driftwood league, which runs in the Jane and Finch community, is the most recognized youth futsal league of them all but others such as Centro Sur, the AMF rules Toronto group, and the former Platense Jrs Futsal League have all significantly added great value and depth to futsal over the years. The Toronto Futsal League is also based in North York.

In fact North York futsal teams have won 7 out of 19 OSA Futsal Cups since the tournament started back in 2007. That’s 37% of all titles, impressive stuff.