South African Futsal Federation

Futsal started in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1930 when Juan Carlos Ceriani created a version of indoor football for recreation in YMCAs. In 1965, the Confederacion Sudamericana de Futbol de Salon (South American Futsal Confederation) was formed, consisting of Uruguay, Paraguay, Peru, Argentina and Brazil.

The sport began to spread across South America, and its popularity ensured that a governing body was formed under the name of FIFUSA (Federación Internacional de Fútbol de Salón) in 1971, comprising Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Peru, Portugal and Uruguay, along with the World Championships. The first FIFUSA World Championships were held in São Paulo, with hosts Brazil crowned champions ahead of Paraguay and Uruguay. Even more countries participated in the second World Championships held in Madrid in 1985.

Due to a dispute between FIFA and FIFUSA over the name of fútbol, FIFUSA registered the word futsal in 1985 (Madrid, Spain). In the 1990s, FIFA wanted to promote and spread its own version of indoor football, different from the original one played in the South American countries, but didn't manage to find an agreement with FIFUSA at the Rio de Janeiro Congress in 1989. In 2000, there was an attempt to repair the situation in Guatemala, while FIFA was celebrating in this country holding its fourth World Championship.