It's the great classic of bar games, among pinball machines and other arcade machines. Table football has gone through the ages without aging. Near Riom, in Puy-de-Dôme, the Ménétrol club has a passion for this game.
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Wheels, bowls…We've all tried table football and its vocabulary at least once. In Ménétrol, near Riom in Puy-de-Dôme, players have decided to take this discipline very seriously. That evening, for the first time, Christophe joined the tables of this table football club. He explains: “This has been tickling me for a few years and I didn't have much time because I was away during the week. Now, I find that table football is a friendly and fun sport”.
Like him, this year, there are already around ten of them who have taken part in the game, having fun for some, out of a competitive spirit for others. Louane has just obtained her license. She says: “Being surrounded by people who are stronger than you really helps us. At first, it's a little scary because we don't have the same level. But it helps a lot to improve. I really like thisa”.
Among the pillars of the club, there is Nicolas, with 30 years of table football behind him. He still has so much fun playing: “The game is about scoring points but it is also about making good passes, good passages, good ball recoveries. We can attempt very technical shots even if there is a little loss of ball. But it doesn't matter, it's nice. In tournaments, this doesn't work because you have to be precise and efficient but that's not what I'm looking for. I'm here to have fun”.
-The Ménétrol club is seeking to make itself known.
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© Stéphane Trentesaux / FTV
Léo cultivated this taste for table football to the point of becoming world champion. A passion that he shares with his father and that he started at the age of 11. Leo explains: “I'm further forward because my father prefers the rear. I started with this in mind. We can develop a technical panel at the front which is more interesting. The fullback is more of a role for an experienced person, who has met a lot of players and who knows all the techniques. Generally, the best guards are experienced players”.
Sylvain concludes: “I would like to organize tournaments in Ménétrol, like we did in the old days. The room is a little small so we look for something bigger. We want to continue to make ourselves known in Clermont-Ferrand to attract more people. We would like to help our players progress in competition, while keeping a leisure section”.
Around an improvised match or in the tension of competition, table football brings together enthusiasts around the pleasure of the game and the snap of the little ball.
Comments collected by Mathieu Verlaine / France 3 Auvergne
