March 2003 "Farmington Life" magazine

article by Doug Malan of White Publishing, Inc

Club members compete for Subbuteo greatness

Almost simultaneously, the laughing stopped. The friendly banter among friends ceased. A small room of scattered activity transformed into a regimented sequence of motion.

Six men hovered over three tables lined with green felt and pieces of colorful plastic that represented the most elite of international soccer clubs. A seventh person monitored the scene, marking the official time that players spent manipulating their personal soccer universe.

When the clock started, the energy and concentration that was funneled into the 3X5-foot playing surface left no time for chatting. Another night of Subbuteo was at hand.

These men gather and compete under the auspices of the Connecticut Table Soccer Club, based in Farmington, playing a game whose origins trace back to the 1920s and whose popularity spans the world. In America, Subbuteo was once widely available in commercial toy stores but has since gone "underground" as a cult favorite.

Subbuteo (pronounced Suh-boo'-tee-oh) rules mirror those of an actual soccer match. Plastic players on polished round bases are flicked around the pitch, the proper term for a soccer field, as they slide toward a small soccer ball. The game requires a deft touch and analytical mind in order to position players correctly for a shot on goal.

Players twist around each other and bound across the table for an attack or counterattack that might define the outcome of these normally low scoring matches. And those are just the humans.

"Someone once called it chess on caffeine", said CTSC co-founder Massimo Conturso. "I don't play chess. I find it's too boring".

To a casual observer, Subbuteo combines the strategizing of chess with the finesse of billiards and the fervor of European football, riot-free of course.

When a player's shot goes awry, anguished screams resonate through the room. Players grimace and moan over missed opportunities and exalt over game-winning goals.

Otherwise, the pop of colliding plastic and mutterings of mutual admiration are the only sounds until intermission or the end of the match, when the room becomes a swirl of game recaps, celebrations and lamentations.

CTSC is just a small part of this global gaming phenomenon. Clubs exist all over Europe and the United States, and players compete in World Cup events sanctioned by the American Subbuteo Association and the Federation of International Sports Table Football.

This year, CTSC will host the ASA National Championship at Trinity College June 14-15 where the nation's best players will go head-to-head.

Hosting such a prestigious event is a significant accomplishment, especially for a club that formed just two years ago when Jim Taylor of Bloomfield found out that Conturso, a Subbuteo enthusiast from Farmington, basically lived in his backyard.

Taylor and Conturso met each other through several Subbuteo websites and exchanged e-mails as single Subbuteo players searching for gaming partners. Their relationship was built on three matches per week and an insatiable appetite for Subbuteo.

The first match took place in August 2001 and CTSC emerged with a website. At one point, Conturso won 75 consecutive matches against Taylor, who previously played sparingly on his 15-year old Subbuteo pitch.

"It almost broke up my marriage, and my wife told me I would never beat him", Taylor said only half-jokingly.

Conturso grew up in Italy and has been playing Subbuteo since 1983. He formed a club in 1990 in his hometown of Ostia, Rome, and moved to the United States in 1999. A natural talent, he showed Taylor no mercy.

In November, Taylor won his first match and celebrated wildly after suffering months of ridicule from having his losing streak posted game-by-game on the internet.

Last year, Taylor won a national title (the Mary Jane, ndr) and competed in the 2002 FISTF World Cup in England. Although he didn't win a match, his experience against international competition left him stunned.

"What you see here pales in comparison" said Taylor, the ASA vice president for the Northeastern Region. "The Belgians and Italians have decades-long rivalries. They'll make their players come to life. Each person has a different style. Some are more creative and others treat it like a chess match. To be good, you've got to play four or five years".

Other Subbuteo players in the state eventually joined the club. Usually they meet in Farmington or at Trinity College, where club member Ryan Bak secures the regular glass-enclosed lounge for their matches.

Bak has become one of the club's top performers. As of press time, he stood atop the Connecticut League standings with 41 points, four ahead of Conturso.

On February 12th, Bak earned his first victory over Conturso with a 1-0 decision.

"I played three years in high school, my freshmen through junior year", said Bak, who's also a national champion runner at Trinity. "I picked it up again this fall. So I had a four and a half year stint of not playing".

Four other club members met at Trinity on the freezing Wednesday night in February. Eddie Davidson, Luis Silva and Miguel and Rick Marques all showed up to play either league games or compete for the 27th Challenge Cup, which Silva ended up winning with a 1-0 decision over Rick Marques.

The passion for Subbuteo and soccer in general was undeniable. Each player wore the jersey of his favorite club or national team and carried his Subbuteo team in special boxes. Someone brought in a compact plastic sewing thread box that immediately earned praise. Other players showed off figures that they meticulously painted with lifelike details.

Because each player used different equipment, everyone compared and commented on the goals, goalkeepers and playing surfaces, which are secured to wooden bases.

For the most part, this boys night out is supported by club's members' significant others, although they occasionally have to clear up some confusion. "My girlfirend will say, 'He's off playing with his soccer dolls,'" Miguel said. "Then I have to go home and explain it to our friends".

CTSC members take their Subbuteo seriously. Conturso keeps a record of every match and every result dating back to the first matches he played in Italy, and members can recount the details of their special performances.

"It's the best game in the world", Conturso said.

In the Trinity lounge, students walked by and peered curiously through the windows while these men flicked with intensity. Others stood quizzically staring inside at the players who remained oblivious to onlookers.

Davidson's goalkeeper made a spectacular save and he yelled, "This guy's on fire. He's got three saves".

The room was filled with players of divergent backgrounds and ages, linked by a mutual appreciation for the complexities of the game. They gave these plastic figures personalities, pointing out how the guy in jersey #3 was notoriously slow or how the goalkeeper was too big in relation to the rest of the figures.

The group played against each other for four and a half hours. Around midnight, they took pictures for the website of Silva holding the Challenge Cup and packed up their equipment. Conturso realized he had to be up for work in about five hours.

They talked about their next meeting time and future competitions, then shook hands and got in their cars.

It was a night of exciting and enthusiastic Subbuteo. It's contagious, even if you don't understand it.