During the Games, “Libé” tells you about the sometimes unusual functioning of the different disciplines. Focus on blind football, currently reserved for men at the Paralympics, which pits visually impaired or blind players against each other guided by speech, except for the goalkeeper.
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And in the end, Brazil wins. In terms of results, this is roughly the main rule to remember about blind football since its introduction to the Paralympic Games in 2004. Five-time gold medallists (in as many Paralympic tournaments), the Seleçao reign over this sport whose rules they invented in the 1960s. Regrettably, women still do not have their own Paralympic tournament.
But let’s take a closer look at the game and the principles that govern it. Opposing two teams of five players (four are visually impaired or blind, the goalkeeper has all his visual faculties), blind football is played on a field the size of a handball (40 m long, 20 m wide) during two halves of fifteen minutes. The clock stops each time the referee blows the whistle or the ball goes out. The playing area is bordered along its length by two barriers, which are entirely part of the game. The goals are 3 m wide and 2 m high. Unlike eleven-a-side football, there is no offside. For the sake of equality, the field players each wear an eye patch, as well as a blackout mask. Complete darkness guaranteed.
On your screen (or in the stands of the stadium in front of the Eiffel Tower, for the lucky ones), a collective and auditory feat takes shape. In blind football, communication, and by corollary hearing, are essential. Between the protagonists first, the rule of “voy” is fundamental: when they move towards the ball carrier, the players are obliged to signal each other with this word. This avoids brutal shocks between them, potentially sources of injury. “Some try to cheat, explains Toussaint Akpweh, the coach of the Blues. A player will come at an opponent strongly by signaling himself late. This creates a strong disruption for the ball carrier.” And may be sanctioned by the referee. Each team is allowed five collective fouls per half, beyond that, the slightest additional foul results in an eight-meter penalty.
In blind football, sighted people also participate in the game: the goalkeeper is allowed to speak when the ball is in the defensive zone, when it is in a midfield zone, it is up to the coach to raise his voice, and in the finishing zone (i.e. the last twelve meters), an assistant coach placed behind the goal gives instructions on how to find the way to the net. “The information given must be precise, because the player does not stop to listen. We give words, not sentences,” Akpweh explains. Then, well… it’s football: beautiful play, dribbling, small bridges and bad faith on the menu.
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