Photography: Felipe Echeverría - Santiago Barcacel
In an emotional evening, the 8th FIFUSA Futsal World Cup reached its decisive phase with the tournament's semifinals. Colombia secured a resounding 3-0 victory over Venezuela, ensuring their place in the final.
With the Bicentenario Coliseum filled with local fans, the Colombian team, fresh off a 7-0 victory over Mexico, arrived confident and determined. Led by coach Tomás Gutiérrez, they knew what was at stake, and under the unconditional support of their home crowd, they sealed their ticket to the final, where they will face Brazil, one of their historical rivals.
Although the match didn't see as many goals as expected, it was a demonstration of tactical and physical domination by the Colombians.
The first half was marked by a great balance, although Colombia came closer to opening the score. At 15:19, Daniel Rojas (#13) rattled the Venezuelan crossbar with a powerful shot, marking the first major threat from the "cafeteros."
The goal finally came at 7:10, when Brayan Ángel (#9) took a free kick that, after a deflection off the wall, caught Venezuelan goalkeeper Juan Ramírez (#20) off guard, becoming the first goal of the match. With this advantage, Colombia went into the break with the confidence of having one foot in the final.
The second half maintained the same dominance from the hosts. Venezuela failed to generate any real danger on the Colombian goal, and the solid defense led by Duván Mosquera (#1) secured a clean sheet. At 7:36, Kewin Ariza (#7) capitalized on a rebound from the Venezuelan goalkeeper to score Colombia's second goal.
The final blow came after a play built from a throw-in. With a series of precise passes, Ariza (#7) set up Daniel Rojas (#13), who sealed the match with a definitive 3-0. This third goal sealed the game and ignited the crowd, already celebrating their team's qualification.
The referee blew the final whistle, marking Venezuela's elimination and Colombia's qualification to face Brazil in the FIFUSA World Cup final. Expectations are high for what promises to be an epic showdown.
Lineups:
Colombia (Coach: Tomás Gutiérrez)
Starters:
-#1: Duván Mosquera (Goalkeeper)
-#7: Kewin Ariza (1 Goal) (Assist) (Yellow card)
-#11: Daniel Bentancourt (Captain)
-#13: Daniel Rojas (1 Goal) (Yellow card)
-#9: Brayan Ángel (1 Goal) (Yellow card)
Substitutes:
-#15: Josué Romero (Yellow card)
-#14: Jorge Vargas
-#8: Juan Diego Viveros
-#6: Alexis Sánchez
-#12: Félix García
-#10: Carlos Colmenares
-#4: Miguel Arciniegas (Yellow card)
Venezuela (Coach: José Zambrano)
Starters:
-#20: Juan Ramírez (Goalkeeper)
-#3: José Falcón (Captain)
-#6: Josué Soler
-#11: Ritxon Arguello
-#15: Yorman Esorihuela (2 Yellow cards) (Blue card)
Substitutes:
-#5: Juan Quintana
-#7: Eduardo Baracaldo (Yellow card)
-#8: Jhonaiker Rengifo
-#17: Ricardo Velásquez
-#10: Jhonatan Rivas
-#9: Eduardo Pantoja
-#1: Roxwell Laguna
FIFUSA PRESS