The different scenarios of freestyle football

A while ago, I was sitting with a group of my friends (how versatile of me!). We were talking about this and that, when I reached out to my phone and took a look at some messages I just received. A new video was posted by the Indian hardcore freestyler Chinmay on a certain Whatsapp group. I was intrigued by it and then went on to open the video to watch some real hardcore lowers tricks done by the guy.

Now the person sitting beside me demanded to see what it was that had left me so spellbound. I showed him the video. And as one would expect, he did not understand a single thing. He even gave the dreaded comment — ‘ He’s doing the same thing over and over again!’

I was not surprised by his reaction as this was not the first time people reacted to a hardcore freestyle video in front of me. Many times before also I had witnessed people just not getting what (hardcore lowers) was going on in front of them.

But this led me to think about creating one more type of categories for freestylers depending upon the situation and what type of tricks are suitable for that particular scenario. I came up with three distinct categories —

• Video scenario
• Showcase scenario
• Competition scenario

Zegan, Sean Garnier and Erlend Fagerli in the different scenarios

Now it is not necessary that a particular set of tricks that a freestyler might be doing in one particular set of scenario would not be appreciated or accepted in the other scenario. In fact most of the tricks are common to all the above three scenarios. But a lot of factors influence what tricks should be used or not in the given scenario.

For a simple example — One can try again and again in a video recording situation until he gets the perfect shot or combo, but there is less chance for retakes in a live performance situation and almost none in a competition format. You getting where I am going, right ?

Different situations provide different opportunities and demand different set of tricks accordingly.

Let us take a further look into what one should do or not do in different scenarios.

• Video situation — For simplification purposes, I am going to include different kind of video into one category into one only. This means that if you are referring to a concept video, this is the category. If you are talking about a practice session video, this is the category. And if you are talking about online competition videos, this is the category.

The best thing about the type of tricks being done here are that you can retake shots again and again till you get a perfect one for the particular video. So whatever that dream combo of yours is, keep on trying it for hours and when you finally get it, just upload the end result of it. Keep on trying that hard transition and capture it from different camera angles so as to make it look more beautiful.

People get to see the best of your tricks through these videos. So make sure you try a lot of times and choose the best from the options available now. Also you have the option of adding graphics and effects to make your video even more attractive.

• Showcase/Live Performance Scenario — As a smart person would guess by the name of this category, this is the type of situation in which one has to give a live performance in front of 10 or 10,000 people.

The key concept here is not to perform tricks which are relatively high or hardcore in level but to do tricks which are more eye pleasing and appealing to the general crowd. So an AMATW NT combo may have less effect than a simple pen trick in these situations. Seems weird, but you have to make a connection with the crowd and hence do what they would like to see.

Now a dilemma arises here, that the crowd pleasing tricks such as carousel or pen trick are relatively easier to learn and to do. So one has to put a lot less effort to be a crowd entertainer than to be a proper freestyler. A highly marketed guy who can easily do some simple tricks is a lot more in demand than a guy who has put in hours of hard work and improved his level substantially higher than the former person. So one might say that this is a bit unfair. But let’s discuss this topic another time.

Moving on, other than the tricks one must also be charming and try to engage the audience in the act with him. Try to teach them a simple trick or two, indulge in a friendly game of panna with them. One more thing — focus a lot on musicality on your performance to make it even better.

• Competition scenario — The last and the most popular category is the competition scene. One has about a minute and a half to show what he is made of while besting his opponent. Also every drop counts here, so if he has to give his best anywhere, here is the place.

A general freestyle football competition is 3 minutes long with two players taking turns after every 30 seconds. So one has to show what he has learned in all these years in couple of seconds. Seems harsh? Haha. No really. This is what actually defines an artist and his capability. He spends years honing his skills to improve his accuracy and speed in the given art-form.

So you have to give an all round performance in a competition while doing as less drops as possible. Since it is a competition, one has to make sure he does more complex and possibly more number of tricks than his opponent in order to win. One has to take in all the aspects of freestyle while battling someone — all-round skills, creativity, transitions, difficulty, originality etc.

One must keep in mind to have a different attitude and mindset in different scenarios as mentioned above. Now no one can be a perfectionist but one should try and be prepared to give his best in any situation he is put in. Be it giving a showcase in front of a packed stadium, or competing against the best or making a mind-blowing concept video for your clients, be prepared to give it all.

Who do you think is the guy who is quite a master in all the domains of freestyle football ? Comment down below with his name.

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That’s all folks.