Lisbon
Portugal won the men's futsal World Cup in 2021, and the game it plays on that stage is the one Lisbon plays after work, in school pavilions and on rented artificial pitches. The MCC Lisbon tournament in 2027 offers three grounds, Loures, Oeiras and Almada, to amateur 5-a-side teams in the capital region, with a Pitch Champion for each and a place at the Country Championship.
Three grounds, three champions
Two halves of 15 minutes on a stop clock. Every team plays three group matches in a group of four, and the top two go into the playoffs, where a tie level after two halves goes to penalties. Five weeks of football on each ground leave Lisbon with three Pitch Champions, and each goes straight to the Country Championship.
Loures/North
64 to 128 teams · $20,000 to its Pitch Champion
Oeiras/West
64 to 128 teams · $20,000 to its Pitch Champion
Almada/South
64 to 128 teams · $20,000 to its Pitch Champion
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A futsal city before it was a tournament city
Benfica and Sporting both run futsal sections among the strongest in the country, and the sport reaches well below them. Freguesia pavilions, school halls and rented pitches host weekday leagues for office teams, neighbourhood sides and friends who have played together for a decade. A team that already books a regular evening slot somewhere around the Tagus has all it needs to enter.
Futsal players will find the numbers familiar: five on court and a squad sheet of up to nine. A match is two 15-minute halves on a stop clock. Every group has four teams and three fixtures per team. Two advance, and a playoff that ends level is settled by penalties.
Loures, Oeiras and Almada: reaching each ground
Loures is the northern ground, taking in the suburbs beyond the airport and Sacavém and the towns along the northern motorways. Oeiras is the western ground, strung along the Cascais railway line on the coast through Paço de Arcos and Carcavelos. Almada sits on the far side of the Tagus; teams from the south bank come over the 25 de Abril bridge, or by ferry from Cais do Sodré to Cacilhas and on by the Metro Sul do Tejo.
Grounds are not shared. Each holds 64 to 128 teams, plays its own Pitch Round and crowns its own champion, so a squad should pick the side of the region where most of its players live and work, and then plan its weeknight journey with the bridge traffic and the ferry timetable in mind.
Lisbon in April and May, and the national stage
Spring in Lisbon is warm and mostly dry, with daytime temperatures in the high teens and low twenties and long light evenings for late kickoffs. The Pitch Round opens on 9 April 2027. Lisbon sides play group games over the weekends of the 9th, 16th and 23rd, knockout football starts on 30 April, and 9 May is the day every ground crowns its champion.
Lisbon's champions then go to the Portugal Country Championship, 28 to 30 May 2027, where they face the three Pitch Champions from Porto. The continental stage is next, and the World Final closes the ladder on 7 July 2027, with prizes from $20,000 up to $5,000,000.
Why this is not another one-day cup
Summer cups and club festivals are easy to find around Lisbon. An MCC entry is something else: a season of group matches, a published format, $20,000 for the Pitch Champion of each ground and a path that leads out of the region. Only amateurs may play. Each entry carries a named Team President, and a zero-tolerance conduct policy can go as far as licence revocation without refund.
The road out of Lisbon
- 01 · 9 Apr - 9 May 2027
Pitch Round
Groups of four on every pitch, three group matches each. The top two of every group go into the playoffs, and penalties settle a level playoff tie.
$20,000 - 02 · 28-30 May 2027
Country Championship
The Pitch Champions of each country play for the national title: two halves of 15 minutes, a league table, then the playoffs.
$150,000 - 03 · 2027
Continental Championship
Country Champions compete within their region for a place on the world stage.
$500,000 - 04 · 7 Jul 2027
World Championship
A five-team mini-league, then the World Final: two halves of 15 minutes, penalties if level. One MCC World Champion.
$5,000,000
Questions from Lisbon
How does a team enter MCC in Lisbon?
Register on this site and pick one of Lisbon's three grounds: Loures/North, Oeiras/West, Almada/South. One Team License per team: USD 1,200 for one year until 1 March 2027 (then 2,500), or 5,000 for three years. Payment and KYC verification follow the application.
When does the tournament start in Lisbon?
The Pitch Round runs 9 April to 9 May 2027 on all three Lisbon grounds. The group matches are played on 9-11, 16-18 and 23-25 April, the playoffs from 30 April, and each ground's final on 9 May. Pitch Champions go straight to the Country Championship on 28-30 May 2027.
How many teams can play in Lisbon?
Up to 384: each of the three grounds takes up to 128 teams, and each needs a minimum of 64 to run its round. A full ground puts an entry on its waitlist instead of turning it away.
What can a Lisbon team win?
$20,000 per Pitch Champion, $150,000 for the Portugal title, $500,000 continental and $5,000,000 for the World Champion - plus championship rings from Country level up.
Do we need a futsal league background to enter in Lisbon?
Not at all. A team of five to nine amateur players qualifies, whether it plays futsal every week or came together this winter. A Team License is bought once per team, and a Team President is named on it.
Which Lisbon ground is easiest from the south bank?
Almada, which sits on the south bank itself. Teams there avoid the bridge and the ferry altogether. Players living in Setubal or the Margem Sul towns beyond it will also find Almada nearest.
Can Benfica or Sporting players take part?
MCC is open to amateur teams only. Veterans sides, works teams and neighbourhood groups of players who do not play for a living can enter on the normal terms, with one Team License per team and a named Team President.
How do Lisbon winners reach the national championship?
Each ground's Pitch Champion goes directly to the Portugal Country Championship on 28 to 30 May 2027, with no qualifier in between. Lisbon's three champions meet Porto's three there, so a Lisbon team can reach the last stage within weeks of winning.
Also hosting in Portugal
Nearby in Europe
Claim a pitch in Lisbon
One Team License per team, for one year or three years. Squads of up to 9 are built in the MCC app after licensing. Registration takes the team, its coach and its Team President.
- USD1,200One year
- 5,000Three years