The inaugural Tiger National Futsal Championship will be held at the multipurpose indoor facility Beeline Arena from October 28 to November 2, paving the way for the Football Federation of Cambodia to regulate and promote the shorter version of the game in a structured format.

The first edition of the five-a-side competition, which is open to all, is being sponsored by Tiger beer with Cambodia Coca Cola and Ezecom serving as co-sponsors.

“We have signed a two-year memorandum of understanding with the FFC to stage the championships in 2013 and 2014,” Beeline Arena general manager Charles Julliard told the Post yesterday.

“Established teams or newly formed ones can register for free to participate in this event, however the total number of teams will be restricted to 32,” he added.

The listing of teams is set to start today while a meeting of team leaders is to be held at the FFC head office a week before the start of the championship to lay out the tournament’s rules and complete participation contracts.

The competition will take a one-day break on October 31, with matches on all other days to be played between 1pm and 7pm.

The semi-finals and final on November 2 will be telecast live from 4pm to 6pm on local channel MyTV.

A futsal side comprises five players including the goal-keeper. In accordance with changes made by FIFA in 2012, each team is allowed nine substitutes on the bench and unlimited substitutions can be made during a game.

Matches are played over two eight-minute halves with a four-minute half-time break. Five minutes of preparation time will be allowed from one match to the next.

The championship-winning team will be awarded a cash prize of US$2,500 along with a trophy and gold medals for all team members.

The runner-up is assured of $1,000 and silver medals while the team finishing third will pick up $500 and bronze medals.