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grew so strong Yuma no longer could support it, he said. The Phoenix and Tucson metros have the two largest foosball scenes in the state. “One of the reasons I moved here was for foosball; I wanted to be closer to it.” Chamberlain said. “It’s just so much fun. It’s a very addictive game.” Foosball can bring competitors all across the country, he added. “I can go back home to Wisconsin, I can go to Florida, I go to Colorado, there will be like- minded foosball people there who do the same thing and we’ll hit off instantly.” A foosball scene of our own? Young athletes travel from as far as Mexico and Canada to play regular soccer tournaments at Copper Sky Regional Park, so what’s stopping a table soccer scene from coming to town? “I mean, you’re talking 5 million people in the Phoenix area, and we still only have 100 players,” Chamberlain said. Maricopa isn’t large enough to support the niche yet, according to Phoenix foosballers. But Chamberlain believes the city is hurting without it. “They’re missing the camaraderie, they’re missing making friends, they’re missing the competitive nature of this thing,” he said of Maricopans. The fact Maricopa doesn’t have a foosball scene is a thought that ricochets around in Chamberlain’s head like a foosball trying to find its way into the goal. He wants to eventually bring his crowd down to his neighborhood. “I’d have to develop it if I was going to do it out there,” he said. “I’d have to invest in some more tables and probably get them in local establishments.” Chamberlain and his foosball friend Jesse Rhoade directed the 2025 Arizona State Foosball Championship at the Spokes on Southern in Tempe Jan. 24-26. About 100 people participated. They are considering hosting the 2026 Arizona State Foosball Championship in Maricopa. Chamberlain said he is also advocating for tables in youth centers and schools. “I’ve done the school thing before, but we really need to get all the schools competing against each other,” Chamberlain said. “I’d love to see that because if we get these kids when they are little, those are the kids that grow up and become masters later on.” For that community, foosball is the rod that keeps them, like little foosmen, bound together in this table soccer game of life.
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The International Table Soccer Federation has a 41-page rulebook that outlines rules for tournament play. However, if you’re just dipping your toes into the sport for recreational play, here are six of the basic rules, according to FoosballSoccer.com: • Flip a coin. A coin flip decides who serves the foosball to start the foosball game. After the first goal is scored, the rule is that the team who was last scored on gets to serve the next ball. The foosball must complete the ready protocol and opening sequence before it can be advanced or scored. • No spinning. The rod may not complete a 360-degree
• No jarring. A player may not slam his or her hand or rod against the wall of the foosball table in an attempt to distract or jar the foosball loose from the other player’s possession. • Dead balls. If a foosball stops in the middle of two opposing rods, the ball must be picked up and re-served. The serve goes back to the team that conceded the last point. If a dead ball occurs on the defensive side of the table behind the second defensive bar, the defensive player must move the ball back into playing position. • Out of play. If a ball
comes off the table area or hits a top rail and comes back onto the table area, the ball is ruled out of play and must be re-served by the team that was last scored on.
• Five-bar passing.
These passing rules do not apply to the other foosball rods, just the bar with five foosmen. After a serve, you have 10 seconds to pass the ball from your 5-bar rod (the one with five men) to your 3-bar rod (the one with three men). The ball must be moving and touch two men on the 5-bar before being advanced.
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rotation without touching the ball.
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InMaricopa.com | April 2025
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