Alexandre Da Rocha, Canada's newly appointed women's futsal coach, is looking for talent

Alexandre Da Rocha has a busy schedule ahead.

As the newly named, first-ever Canadian women's futsal coach, Da Rocha has to hold ID camps and choose a roster ahead of the inaugural CONCACAF Women's Futsal Championship in late April in Guatemala.

The veteran coach is in the process of finalizing camps in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Quebec after talking to provincial associations about possible staff and players. That process will lead to a final selection camp, a four-day affair starting May 27 in Montreal for the top 25 players, from which the final 14-player roster will be chosen.

Futsal is a five-a-side indoor game played in two 20-minute halves. Like hockey, teams can make changes on the fly.

The sport is growing in Canada with Quebec leading the way. There are also leagues in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Da Rocha says his phone has been blowing up since Canada Soccer put him in charge of the fledgling women's program.

"I'm turning 50 this year and I think in 48 to 72 hours, I've never received so much love from one announcement," the Montreal native said in an interview. "People calling me, texting me, emailing me. And everyone was so happy and so excited about the news. So I would say right now it's a very, very positive vibe that I'm feeling."

Female futsal players have long campaigned for a FIFA championship. In 2022, the International Women's Futsal Players Association condemned FIFAs "public neglect towards women futsal players."

FIFA held the first Futsal Men's World Cup in 1989 with the 2028 edition set to expand from 24 to 32 teams. Defending champion Brazil has won six of the 10 tournaments to date, finishing runner-up once and third twice.

Canada has not participated since being one of the 16