It’s finally here — Big Island’s own International Futsal Cup!
Starting Thursday, the 2023 Hawaii International Futsal Cup kicks off to a thrilling start as Waimea’s Spencer “Kalani” Schutte District Park plays host to this exciting tournament showcasing youth and adult talent from across Hawaii and Japan.
Presented by the Hawaii County Department of Parks and Recreation, in partnership with Hawaii Futsal, WeGo Foundation and ADK, a Japanese marketing company, the three-day tournament begins Thursday with an opening ceremony followed by free futsal clinics with professional players from Japan and Brazil, and pool play among all divisions ranging from girls and boys 10U, 12U, 14U, 16U, women’s open, and men’s open.
Friday will continue with pool play among all divisions and friendship games, culminating with play-offs, championships, and an awards ceremony on Saturday. The Hawaii International Futsal Tournament not only showcases the immense talent and passion for futsal in Hawaii and Japan, but also aims to strengthen and celebrate the spirit of aloha, sportsmanship and camaraderie between the two regions.
“I think it’s very exciting because it’s always important to build relationships and to welcome people to our island to show our aloha,” said Rebekah Lussiaa of WeGo Foundation. “The Big Island and Hawaii have always been special as the Japanese always love to come here. I think we can bridge that gap by offering events, and the more events we can offer to Big Island kids here, the broader their perspective on life and what’s out there. It will help them to build relationships and teach them valuable life lessons through sports.”
Hawaii County Recreation Administrator Lindsey Iyo confirmed a turnout of 30 teams and a total of 220 athletes. While the majority of the players come from the Big Island along with a few neighbor island teams, 25 athletes will be from Japan.
“This is exciting for us,” Iyo said. “For Parks and Recreation, we don’t necessarily have our hands in the soccer and futsal world. We primarily do just basketball, volleyball and baseball leagues for youth. So, this is definitely different for our department but when we were approached by the Japan delegation to bring this to Hawaii Island, we jumped on it. What I want to do is to expand our sports services, and to bring this tournament here to the island is another avenue to expand our horizons for the youth on our island. So, it’s really exciting for us to bring something new to the island.”
Both Lussiaa and Iyo credited close community partnerships that brought the Hawaii International Futsal Cup to fruition.
“We live in such a great community that whenever you do ask for help, people are willing to step up whether it’s with volunteers or bringing different businesses and companies together to sponsor,” Lussiaa said. “We live in a special place where people are willing to give back so easily and that’s a blessing living here.”
Iyo added, “I just want people to realize that without people like Rebekah Lussiaa of WeGo Foundation and Rico Ferrari from Hawaii Futsal, we wouldn’t be able to do tournaments like this. The community partnership with this event has been the role model partnership for future events. They have been so easy to work with and a lot of the credit for the success of this event goes to them.”
The tournament is more than just a competitive sporting event — it reflects the deep-rooted connection between Hawaii and Japan. Now, with the Hawaii International Futsal Cup, this long-standing relationship takes on a new dimension, where playing the concrete pitch becomes the stage for fostering lasting connections and friendships beyond borders.
With the vision of becoming an annual event and extending the invitation to mainland and other international teams, the Hawaii International Futsal Cup will offer a unique platform for the Big Island’s budding athletes to elevate their game and take their skills to new heights.
“Coming from an island, our kids do not have many opportunities to expand, grow and take it to the next level,” Lussiaa said. “So, building these relationships with international teams by having an International Futsal competition here just offers more opportunities for our children for their future.”
