Blind Bundesliga Begins This Month

I’m not a big fan of stereotypes, but I will say this: Germans know how to get shit done. Apparently blind football was introduced to Germany only two years ago, but by the end of this month there’s going to be a Blindfootball-Bundesliga up and running. Catering to both blind and partially sighted players, the league will initially consist of 8 teams and kicks off on March 29th. Great stuff.

This story also made me realize that I know nothing about blind football. The extent of my knowledge was that whenever my (admittedly not very good) U-12 team won a game, my dad would always ask “Did they have white sticks?” Consequently, somewhere in my young mind I imagined that blind football involved players carrying white sticks, which would explain why I got it confused with hockey.

So I did a bit of research and put together this quick outline of how blind football actually works:

• It’s five a side. Four outfield players and one ‘keeper.
• The four outfield players all wear eye patches, so as to level the playing field between completely blind and partially sighted players.
• The goalkeepers are fully or partially sighted, but can’t have been FIFA registered pros within the last five years (so a team can’t sign Buffon tomorrow and win the league.)
• There’s also an off-the-field guide, who directs the players.
• The actual ball contains ball bearings, which make a clearly audible noise as the ball moves.

And if you think that unsighted players versus sighted/partially sighted goalkeepers is unfair, take a look at this finish from blind Brazilian international Joa Silva, vs France at the Blind World Cup.

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Category: World Football