Futsal: head‑to‑head battles at the bottom in the race for the postseason

On the eve of the 23rd round of the 2025-26 San Marino Futsal Championship, attention is immediately drawn to a double clash between teams at the top: last season’s finalists, Murata and Pennarossa, will close the fixture list in Tuesday’s late game, while Virtus and La Fiorita face off indoor in Acquaviva with a direct berth in the Scudetto Play-off quarter-finals on the line.

Starting from there, it is worth highlighting that Virtus – second in the table, level on points with Tre Penne but with one game fewer – hold a five-point advantage over their next opponents, La Fiorita, who also have a game in hand. In short, tomorrow’s big match at the Acquaviva sports hall (22:00) could allow the Gialloblù to renew their bid for second place. Tre Penne will be keen to take advantage, as they face Domagnano in the first of two fixtures scheduled in Dogana (20:15). Having mounted a surprising comeback only to lose to San Giovanni in the last round, the Wolves will certainly want to bounce back against the season’s biggest surprise package, who now sit ten points clear of fifth place.

Fifth place is currently occupied by Pennarossa: the first team outside the direct qualification spots for the play-off quarter-finals must take on league leaders Murata. Last season, all three finals between these two sides went the way of the Bianconeri. The match is set for the Acquaviva sports hall, the only fixture on Tuesday night (22:00). With Juvenes Dogana on their bye week, local rivals Cosmos and Folgore are dreaming of moving above them in the standings – mindful that the final placement could mean more or less favourable pairings in the postseason. Both will have to contend with the qualification ambitions for the Preliminary Round of Libertas and Cailungo. The Granata are currently in, albeit with a slender cushion over Fiorentino (+4), just like Venerucci’s team – one place above with a minimal lead in the table. While Folgore-Libertas is scheduled for tomorrow in Fiorentino (20:15), Cosmos-Cailungo will be played in Dogana (21:45).

The minimum threshold for play-off qualification is currently represented by Faetano’s 13 points. Selva’s Gialloblù are set for a direct showdown with Fiorentino (Fiorentino, 21:45) who, in the event of defeat, would be in real danger of seeing their season end with the regular season. Three points separate Screti’s side from the team immediately ahead of them: the aim, naturally, is to wipe out that entire gap on a matchday packed with head‑to‑head clashes. One of them is Tre Fiori-San Giovanni: the bottom two could sensationally haul themselves back into the race for a place in the sun. The recent victory over Domagnano allows Palermino’s men to contemplate moving to within three points of the play-off threshold, should other results fall their way. Conversely, the Gialloblù from Fiorentino could move significantly closer to their target by overtaking their next opponents at the Multieventi, from 22:00 tomorrow. What is certain, in a round that sees the bottom four in the table all face each other simultaneously, is that Fiorentino, Tre Fiori and San Giovanni have no alternative but to win – otherwise they will simply end up cancelling each other out.

The key fixtures at the top and bottom of the table, scheduled for tomorrow and Tuesday evening (at the Multieventi and the Acquaviva sports hall respectively, from 22:00), will be officiated by Gibraltar match officials Villada and Barroso. This initiative is part of the long-standing Referee Exchange project involving several Football Associations from Europe’s Small States, which recently saw D’Adamo and Mazza referee two matches in the Gibraltar futsal league.

Below is the schedule for the rescheduled 23rd matchday of the championship: