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Table football still alive and flicking

Sports table football, popular in the 1980s and 90s, is seeing renewed interest here

Isaac Lim (at left), 13, playing a friendly game with his father Bernard Lim, 46, while his brother Luke (face hidden), 15, acts as the referee. Memorabilia from over 10 years of competitions, these old Subbuteo footballs are now too brittle to play
A collection of table football figurines from the early 1980s to the present owned by Mr Lim and his family. The collection includes figurines with different bases, such as the oldest base called the Cereal Bowl and the Tchaaa Snake Base. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Isaac Lim (at left), 13, playing a friendly game with his father Bernard Lim, 46, while his brother Luke (face hidden), 15, acts as the referee. Memorabilia from over 10 years of competitions, these old Subbuteo footballs are now too brittle to play
A match taking place on a 1m by 1.5m table-top pitch at Kebun Baru Community Club. A full match lasts about 30 minutes with two 15-minute halves and a minute-long break in between. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Above: A collection of table football figurines from the early 1980s to the present owned by Mr Lim and his family. The collection includes figurines with different bases, such as the oldest base called the Cereal Bowl and the Tchaaa Snake Base. Left
Isaac Lim (at left), 13, playing a friendly game with his father Bernard Lim, 46, while his brother Luke (face hidden), 15, acts as the referee. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Isaac Lim (at left), 13, playing a friendly game with his father Bernard Lim, 46, while his brother Luke (face hidden), 15, acts as the referee. Memorabilia from over 10 years of competitions, these old Subbuteo footballs are now too brittle to play
Lerissa Ong (right) and Yan Ji Yi (middle), both seven, learning how to play table football with the help of Lewis Ong, nine, who is refereeing the match. They have been playing in a league that started recently at Kebun Baru Community Club, with matches held on Thursday evenings. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Lerissa Ong (right) and Yan Ji Yi (middle), both seven, learning how to play table football with the help of Lewis Ong, nine, who is refereeing the match. They have been playing in a league that started recently at Kebun Baru Community Club, with mat
Memorabilia from over 10 years of competitions, these old Subbuteo footballs are now too brittle to play with and are kept by a collector in a chocolate box. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Mr John Edwards, 57, one of the older active players in the community, listing down the fixtures for players taking part in a competition at Kebun Baru Community Club while young players wait for the matches to start.
Mr John Edwards, 57, one of the older active players in the community, listing down the fixtures for players taking part in a competition at Kebun Baru Community Club while young players wait for the matches to start. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Mr Rudy Hesty, 43, club captain of the Farrer Park Flickers, putting back a table-top pitch at the Pek Kio Community Centre storeroom after a "flick" session.
Mr Rudy Hesty, 43, club captain of the Farrer Park Flickers, putting back a table-top pitch at the Pek Kio Community Centre storeroom after a “flick” session. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Abel Ang, 9 years old, makes a small and precise flick with his index finger on his figurine to slightly move the ball, which is in his possession, away from a nearby defending figurine. ST PHOTO: JASMINE CHOONG
Jasmine Choong Photojournalist
Updated
Dec 03, 2018, 03:54 PM
Published
Dec 03, 2018, 05:00 AM
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In the 1980s and 90s, hundreds of young Singaporeans were part of a small but thriving community that played a form of football where the most important part of the body is not the foot, knee or head but the index finger.

Sports table football - or Subbuteo - is played on a table top by two teams of 11 figurines, each no bigger than a thumb and whose movements are controlled by the flick of a finger. Rules are adapted from regular football and during the half-hour matches, players "dribble" the ball by flicking the figurines to kick the ball up to three consecutive times.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on December 03, 2018, with the headline Table football still alive and flicking. Subscribe

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