Courtesy: Soccer Nation.com


Youth Soccer Spotlight: San Diego Futsal Summer Camps

Founded in 2005, San Diego Futsal offers clinics and camps. Founder and owner of San Diego Futsal, Mario Mrakovic has offered summer camps in San Diego for years. SoccerNation.com asked some questions about what is so different about these camps and what is new this year. Here is what Mario Mrakovic told SN:

SN: San Diego Futsal offers summer soccer camps, but so do a lot of other coaches and companies. What makes your camp different?

Mario Mrakovic: “All of our summer camps are designed to drastically improve each camper’s technical abilities in a short, one-week camp. My goal is to help make each and every camper a better soccer player, and to increase each child’s passion and love of soccer.”

The San Diego Futsal camps are offered every summer for children 6 – 14 at various locations around San Diego.

Mrakovic: “We don’t try to compete with traditional competitive club camps and their methods, but instead we offer a personal, individualized approach and coach each participant to help improve their abilities.”

San Diego Futsal camps provide skill development, intense footwork training and scrimmages. The campers are grouped by skill and age levels and the coaches are very hands on, providing a very personalized level of attention and training.


According to Mrakovic, “Using cutting edge training, San Diego Futsal provides guidance throughout each day targeting specific skill developments and individual improvement,” says Mrakovic.

“The most important thing is that the kids are having are having a blast. The campers love the exercises and games that they do while they are constantly being challenged to reach new heights.”

Now Mrakovic gets a bit more technical and explains that, “For example our training includes: emphasis of both feet, diving headers, outside foot, toe poke, bicycle kick, spins, heel passes, karate kicks, volleys, drop-kicks, etc. I have always been a strong believer in power of method of ‘skills confusion', the program that challenges your body to respond to varieties of soccer technical requirements and not being afraid to be mixing it up.”

“Too many players reach a plateau, and their learning curve flattens so fast that the kid stagnates to the point of not having fun in soccer anymore. This is one of the reasons why so many (too many) kids quit soccer. Or how the story goes about an athletic kid who peaked in soccer at age 7, only to quit because of poor technical acumens, and went on to play tennis instead…”

SN: What is new this year?

Mrakovic: This year, San Diego Futsal invited Coach Steveo Leacock to join as a director for the summer program. “Coach Leacock has been instrumental in helping me build Surf Grassroots Program from the scratch. He truly cares about the kids and is not “lazy” when it comes to investing time, patience and effort. He is a hard worker with a vast experience and a winning style.”

According to Mrakovic, “Coach Leacock is more to the tactical side of training, where I am forever technical, so when our styles are combined, it works to perfection.”

“Also, kids love Steveo. He knows ways how to instill passion and love for the game into the kids. They are always laughing, cracking jokes, playful around him.”

SN: Are you involved with the campers or do you manage the program?

Mrakovic: “I am there, everyday, playing soccer, training the campers and inspiring them to reach new heights and strive to improve their skills. I am not one of those coaches who stay on the sidelines with their papers and hire kids to coach their campers. I love what I do and really like working with young soccer players.”

SN: How many kids attend the camps?

Mrakovic: “We would usually have anywhere between 30-60 kids each summer with several kids attending more than one session. Coach Leacock and I have worked out a program where we complement one another. With so many years coaching soccer players, we really understand the big picture and know what we want to accomplish with our soccer players during the summer.



Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com