\u201cI was a terror growing up,\u201d admits Camila Costa da Silva. She would, on the farm on which she lived, sneak into the stables and, without a harness or saddle, mount her beloved horses and enjoy a ride around.<\/p>\n
Her mother would get back from playing 11-a-side for the estate\u2019s football team and give Camila a tongue-lashing, but it did no good. At 31, Camila is still a certified terror. Now, though, it\u2019s to opposition teams on futsal courts.<\/p>\n
The Ubirata native was unplayable as Stein Cascavel finished June by conquering the Copa Mundo do Futsal \u2013 a tournament featuring 12 teams from six nations \u2013 and July by making it back-to-back Copa Libertadores crowns. She finished both with the MVP and top scorer awards.<\/p>\n
One of the most multifunctional players on the planet, Camila chats to FIFA about wanting to become a vet, her exceptional form, the first FIFA Futsal World Cup\u2122 and the sport\u2019s best players.<\/p>\n
How did you get into futsal?
\nCamila: I\u2019m from a farm in the middle of nowhere. I had no access to football schools. I messed around with a ball on the farm with my cousins, my uncles, my parents, my brother and sister. I\u2019ll admit that, for a long time in my life, I had no idea how huge futsal was. I didn\u2019t know much about it at all. I started playing at school and I really liked it, but playing for the Brazilian national team was never a dream growing up. It was beyond reality for me. It sunk in how huge futsal is when I was around 22. Julia, who\u2019s my team-mate and life partner, made me want to study and understand the sport. She understood the discipline, its complexities, she had experience of playing in the Liga Nacional and for the Brazilian national team. She was a great inspiration for me.<\/p>\n
What was your childhood dream?
\nI wanted to be a vet (laughs). Maybe because I was a girl from a farm. I was always excited to be around horses, sheep, oxen, dogs. My two sources of joy growing up were kicking a ball around and going to the pasture with my granddad to see the oxen, getting up early to milk the cows. I just loved animals. I was a terror. I was always mounting the horses without a harness or saddle! (laughs) I used to dream about becoming a vet. My upbringing was wonderful. I felt really free, happy. My parents still live on the farm. I love going there for my holidays, on days off.<\/p>\n
How did it feel to help Stein make it back-to-back Libertadores titles?
\nIt was my third Libertadores title. It\u2019s always very special to win the Libertadores because it\u2019s such a prestigious competition. This year was even more special because the standard of the other teams had improved greatly. That\u2019s great for the sport. We had a really tough semi-final in which we came from behind to win (beating Always Ready 5-2). The final, despite the score (a 5-0 defeat of Racing), was a really hard-fought game. What helped us a lot was getting an early goal. I was extremely happy with the triumph.<\/p>\n
What was the reception like when you arrived back in Cascavel?
\nIt was super cool. Our supporters came to the airport to greet us. We left the airport and went on a procession, passing specific areas of the city. The supporters accompanied us. We were celebrating, jumping up and down. At the final stop we celebrated together with the trophy.<\/p>\n
You were named the MVP at the Copa Mundo do Futsal, and finished as the top scorer in that competition and the Libertadores. Do you think you\u2019re in the best form of your career?
\nI wouldn\u2019t say so. I think I\u2019ve had a very good year. I agreed that I should have been named the best player at the Copa Mundo do Futsal. Not just because I was the top goalscorer, but also because of my performances throughout the competition. I was also named the best player at the competition in 2022. I think in 2022, 2023 and 2024 I\u2019ve been playing really well, but I wouldn\u2019t say I was better in one year than the others. I think I\u2019ve been consistent. What I would say is that I\u2019m more pleased with what I\u2019ve done this year because at the start of it, I wasn\u2019t well psychologically, mentally. So to overcome that and play at the level I have has been really special.<\/p>\n
It’s very dangerous to use the flying goalkeeper when Camila\u2019s on the court, right?
\n(laughs) I had the happiness of scoring a goal from distance in the final. I\u2019ve been scoring this type of goal. We work a lot on marking when they use the flying goalkeeper. Our goalkeepers are very good with their feet, so we practice against the flying goalkeeper a lot.<\/p>\n
You\u2019re excellent defensively and offensively. Do you see yourself as one of the most complete players on the planet?
\nI can\u2019t say, but I always try to put myself at the disposal of the coach for whatever the team needs. If the teams needs me at the back, I try to do the best job possible. If the team needs me to play pivot, I\u2019ll do my best. Goalkeeper\u2019s the only position I haven\u2019t yet played! I always try to give me all in whichever role I\u2019m playing. I think because of this, it\u2019s easy for me to carry out several functions.<\/p>\n
Why do you wear the No11 shirt?
\nUntil last year, I thought it was the first shirt I had, but my mum told me it was actually the No12. So I can\u2019t tell you why I like the No11 shirt (laughs). But I always try to wear the No11 for whichever team I\u2019m playing for.<\/p>\n
How did you feel when FIFA announced the first FIFA Futsal World Cup?
\nWow. It was a massive moment for me. It was one of extreme happiness. My heart was racing. It\u2019s impossible to even put into words. So many girls have fought for this for so long. When I got into futsal, people were already fighting for this. They fought for it and won\u2019t get to play in the World Cup, but I hope they will feel fulfilled that it\u2019s happening because of their efforts. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll be called up to go to the World Cup, but I\u2019m extremely grateful to be playing futsal at a time when we\u2019ll have the first World Cup. Whether I make it or not, I\u2019m very happy because this is a huge step for the sport. A FIFA World Cup will grow the sport so much. Everyone is really excited. When they announced the [host nation], that was another amazing moment because you realise, \u2018This is really happening\u2019. It\u2019s incredible, magic.<\/p>\n
How many national teams do you feel have what it takes to win the first World Cup?
\nWhen people talk about [women\u2019s] futsal, they always say Brazil, Spain, Portugal. Brazil are always the favourites because we\u2019ve always won everything, but I think these are new times. We played at the Fafe Tournament and Japan really impressed me. National teams from all over the world are getting together all the time. They\u2019re preparing so much better than they did before. The standard of these national teams has improved dramatically. I think this is great for the sport. It\u2019s boring to see Brazil or Spain thrashing opponents. As a player, you want to win games having fought hard like we did against Portugal in Fafe. It was 2-2 and we scored in the final seconds. Those are the type of games people want to see. I think it will be an extremely high-quality World Cup.<\/p>\n
What do you expect from the upcoming tournament in Xanxere?
\nWe won the last Copa America with a very hard-fought victory over Argentina. We won 2-0 but it was a very close game. Argentina are a really strong side. We beat Paraguay at the Copa America but they had an important player sent off. I can\u2019t say much about Morocco because I haven\u2019t had the opportunity to see them, but I think it will be a high-level competition and good preparation for the World Cup.<\/p>\n
Two fellow Stein players are going to the tournament with Brazil. What do you think of Bianca and Luana?
\nI think the two goalkeepers we have at Stein, Bianca and Julia, are the best Brazilian goalkeepers right now. Bianca was named the best goalkeeper in the world. She\u2019s exceptional. I can speak with authority about Luana because I\u2019ve known her since she was 16 years old at Cianorte. I\u2019ve watched her development and have been really impressed. She deserved to be called up by the Sele\u00e7\u00e3o. She has so much potential. I believe Luana can become the best player in the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cI was a terror growing up,\u201d admits Camila Costa da Silva. She would, on the farm on which she lived, sneak into the stables and, without a harness or saddle, mount her beloved horses and enjoy a ride around. Her mother would get back from playing 11-a-side for the estate\u2019s football team and give Camila […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1010995,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20966],"tags":[9648,27192],"class_list":["post-1010992","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-fifa-news","tag-fifa","tag-fifa-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1010992","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1010992"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1010992\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1010995"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1010992"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1010992"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/91varzeshi.ir\/portal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1010992"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}