Three-sided football (often referred to as 3SF) is a variation of
association football
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
played with three
teams instead of the usual two. Played on a
hexagon
In geometry, a hexagon (from Ancient Greek, Greek , , meaning "six", and , , meaning "corner, angle") is a six-sided polygon. The total of the internal angles of any simple polygon, simple (non-self-intersecting) hexagon is 720°.
Regular hexa ...
al pitch, the game can be adapted to
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
, as well as other versions of football.
Unlike conventional football, where the winner is determined by the highest scoring of the two teams, the winner in three-sided football is the team that concedes the fewest goals.
It was devised by the
Danish
Danish may refer to:
* Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark
People
* A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark
* Culture of Denmark
* Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...
Situationist
The Situationist International (SI) was an international organization of social revolutionaries made up of avant-garde artists, intellectuals, and political theorists. It was prominent in Europe from its formation in 1957 to its dissolution ...
Asger Jorn
Asger Oluf Jorn (3 March 1914 – 1 May 1973) was a Danish painter, sculptor, ceramic artist, and author. He was a founding member of the avant-garde movement COBRA and the Situationist International. He was born in Vejrum, in the northwest c ...
to explain his notion of
triolectics, which was his refinement on the
Marxian concept of
dialectics
Dialectic ( grc-gre, διαλεκτική, ''dialektikḗ''; related to dialogue; german: Dialektik), also known as the dialectical method, is a discourse between two or more people holding different points of view about a subject but wishing to ...
, as well as to disrupt everyone's general idea of football.
History
The first known game of 3SF, played on Friday 28 May 1993, was organized by the
London Psychogeographical Association
The London Psychogeographical Association (LPA), sometimes referred to as the London Psychogeographical Committee, is an organisation devoted to psychogeography. The LPA is perhaps best understood in the context of psychogeographical praxis.
Lo ...
on
Glasgow Green
Glasgow Green is a park in the east end of Glasgow, Scotland, on the north bank of the River Clyde. Established in the 15th century, it is the oldest park in the city. It connects to the south via the St Andrew's Suspension Bridge.
History
In ...
as part of the Glasgow Anarchist Summer School. Participants included Richard Essex,
Stewart Home
Kevin Llewellyn Callan (born 24 March 1962), better known as Stewart Home, is an English artist, filmmaker, writer, pamphleteer, art historian, and activist. His novels include the non-narrative ''69 Things to Do with a Dead Princess'' (2002), an ...
and the members of
The Workshop for Non-Linear Architecture
The Workshop for Non-Linear Architecture (WNLA) was a group of experimental artists and psychogeographers. The group was active in parts of Great Britain and Glasgow during the 1990s. Based on the urban practices of the Paris-based Lettriste Int ...
.
Three-sided football has been practiced in various training sessions of the
Association of Autonomous Astronauts
The Association of Autonomous Astronauts is a worldwide network of community-based groups dedicated to building their own spaceships. The AAA was founded 23 April 1995. Although many of their activities were reported as serious participation in c ...
in England, France, Italy and Austria, including the 1st Intergalactic Conference in Vienna (1997), the 2nd Intergalactic Conference in Bologna (1998), the Space 1999 in London, or as a protest event in Parc de La Villette during the 1998 two-sided football World Cup in Paris.
The Deptford Three Sided Football Club (D3FC) was founded in February 2012 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Jorn's invention of the game in his 1962 book Naturens Orden. Games were held every other Sunday between D3FC and other local clubs at the Deptford Green Hexagon in
Fordham Park, South East London.
From 2013 to 2021 the Sports Organization "Futbol 3 Colombia - F3C" has been conducting Three Sided Football (soccer 3) tournaments in public parks and universities in Bogotá - Colombia for children and young people (men and women) of low income and vulnerable The Three Sided Football matches are held in various public parks such as: Servita Park, La Gaitana Park, Ciudad Montes Park, and since 2018 every Saturday in the Normandía neighborhood park in the city of Bogotá (https://futbol3colombia.jimdofree.com/)
The first three-sided football match in Turkey was organized by InEnArt on 14 September 2013, to coincide with the 13th
Istanbul Biennial
The Istanbul Biennial is a contemporary art exhibition that has been held biennially in Istanbul, Turkey, since 1987. The Biennial has been organised by the Istanbul Foundation for Culture and Arts (IKSV) since its inception. Format
Istanbul Bien ...
. The match was played in front of
Kadir Has University
Kadir Has University, also known as KHAS, is a foundation university in Fatih, Istanbul, established in 1997 by Kadir Has, the late Turkish industrialist and philanthropist.
Kadir Has University has six faculties: Faculty of Art and Design; Fac ...
,
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
between Philosophy Football FC from the UK, FSC Dynamo Windrad Kassel from Germany and Ayazma FC from Turkey. The referee was
Halil İbrahim Dinçdağ
Halil İbrahim Dinçdağ (born 1976) is a Turkish professional athlete who was suspended because of his sexuality.
Dinçdağ had been a football referee in Trabzon for 13 years in 2009 when he was informed that his referee's license would not be ...
, who was suspended by the Turkish Football Federation in 2009 because of his sexuality. Geoff Andrews, manager of Philosophy Football FC, launched the International Three Sided Football Federation before this match.
The first three sided football match in Australia was held on 4 May 2014. It was held at St Kilda Primary School in Melbourne and featured the St Kilda All Sartres, Pythagoras 3FC (the Pys) and Atletico Geometry (the Geometers). The teams were mixed - an important feature of Australian Three Sided Football.
3SF World Cup
Silkeborg, 2014
The first 3SF World Cup took place in cooperation with the International Three Sided Football Federation and the
Museum Jorn in Silkeborg, Denmark, 23 May until 25 May 2014. Teams from France, Germany, Poland, England, Lithuania and Denmark sought to win the Cup. The Danish team
Silkeborg KFUM
Young Boys FD is an association football club based in Silkeborg, Denmark, that competes in the Danish 3rd Division, the fourth tier of the Danish football league system.
Founded in 1918 as Silkeborg KFUM, the club is affiliated to DBU Jutland, ...
were crowned champions.
Kassel, 2017
The second 3SF World Cup was held at the
Hessenkampfbahn in Kassel, Germany on Sat 19 August 2017. The tournament was hosted by Dynamo Windrad as part of
documenta 14
documenta 14 was the fourteenth edition of the art exhibition documenta and took place in 2017 in both Kassel, Germany, its traditional home, and Athens, Greece. It was held first in Athens from 8 April to 16 July, and in Kassel from 10 June ...
and featured twelve teams originating from Germany, England, Poland and Lithuania.
The final was contested between local side F2 Versenkt and two teams from the SE London league, Polish Husaria and New Cross Internationals. In a very tight and tactical game, New Cross Internationals scored the only goal of the game against F2 Versenkt. Although Polish Husaria and New Cross Internationals both finished the game with clean sheets, the rules of the tournament stated that in cases of a winning draw the team who scored the most goals in the match would be considered the winner. Therefore, New Cross Internationals were declared winners of the tournament.
After the final it transpired that Polish Husaria had not been aware of the rule regarding goals scored, and because of this New Cross Internationals offered to share the title with Polish Husaria.
London, 2020
The next 3SF World Cup was scheduled to be held in London in 2020, however, was postponed due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
.
Domestic leagues
Deptford 3SF League (New Cross, South East London)
In September 2014 Deptford Three Sided Football Club embarked on a new experiment in trialectics by establishing a formal league structure with five other teams from the local area. The inaugural teams involved in the league were Aesthetico Athletico, New Cross Irregulars 3FC, Philosophy Football Club, Polsky Budowlancy (now named Husaria), Strategic Optimists Football Club and, of course, Deptford Three Sided Football Club.
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2014–15
The inaugural season ended on 7 June 2015 with New Cross Irregulars being awarded the trophy, having mathematically won the title in the penultimate game of the season.
2015–16
The same six teams played in the 2015–16 season. It was decided on the final game of the season, with Husaria, Aesthetico Athletico and New Cross Irregulars 3FC playing each other in a match where all three teams could win the title. Defending champions NXI were taken out of contention early on, conceding 5 goals in total, and Husaria were crowned new champions courtesy of a single goal against Aesthetico.
NXI, Aesthetico and Strategic Optimists all ended in joint second place, a single point behind winners Husaria.
2016–17
NXI reclaimed the league title in the penultimate game of the season on 7 May 2017 with a win over Deptford and Aesthetico.
Up to this point Husaria still had a chance of defending their title, but came second in their May match to concede the point that handed the league to NXI.
Triball (London Bridge, South London)
In January 2017 the first season of the Triball 3SF league was established. Duplicating the Deptford points structure for the league table, Triball is played in a 4-a-side format between seven league teams. The league also hosts a cup competition called the Triball Open Cup.
Tournaments
On 31 October 2009, a three-sided football competition was organised in
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
during the
Biennale d'art contemporain de Lyon. The subversive event was a confrontation of the non spectacular sense of the original game with the main title of the Biennale, Le Spectacle du Quoditidien. The manifestation took place in
Stade Laurent Gérin,
Vénissieux
Vénissieux (; Arpitan language, Arpitan: or in the Lyonnais dialect) is a Communes of France, commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region in eastern France.
Geography
Vénissieux is located on the sou ...
and was organised by
Pied La Biche association.
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In an event called "Thinking Football", aiming to reflect on the role of football in modern society, the
Athletic de Bilbao
Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country of Spain. They are known as ''Los Le ...
Foundation organised among other things a three-sided football championship taking place from October 2011 to April 2012 with 37 participant teams.
Exhibition matches
In August 2009, a three-sided football game was played in
Alytus
Alytus is a city with municipal rights in southern Lithuania. It is the capital of Alytus County. Its population in 2022 was 53,925. Alytus is the historical centre of the Dzūkija region. The city lies on the banks of the Nemunas River. The maj ...
as part of the
Art Strike events there. Stewart Home acted as referee.
In the run-up to the
2010 UK General Election
The 2010 United Kingdom general election was held on Thursday 6 May 2010, with 45,597,461 registered voters entitled to vote to elect members to the House of Commons. The election took place in 650 constituencies across the United Kingdom unde ...
, a three-sided football game was played on 2 May 2010 in
Haggerston Park
Haggerston Park is an open space in Haggerston, in the London Borough of Hackney. It is bounded by Whiston Road (to the north), Hackney Road (south) and St Saviour's Priory, Queensbridge Road (west) and Goldsmith's Row (east).
The park was orig ...
, with each team representing one of the main political parties. This match was organised by Whitechapel Gallery in conjunction with Philosophy Football FC. The match was won by Philosophy Football FC, representing
Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
, who conceded no goals to the
Conservatives
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
' 2 and
Lib Dems' 3.
">Philosophy Football FC later organised and competed in the first ever three-sided football match to be played in Spain, on 7 May 2011, which was discussed by journalist
Sid Lowe
Simon James "Sid" Lowe (born 21 June 1976) is an English columnist and journalist. Born in Archway, London, and based in Madrid, he covers Spanish football for many publications, websites, television channels, radio stations, and football-relate ...
in the ''Guardians football podcast. Lowe's team won 3-5-5.
3SF in South London
Home to two different Three-sided football leagues, South London hosts an active community of 3SF, mostly played in New Cross at Fordham Park, and London Bridge at
Tabard Gardens
Tabard Gardens is a small park in Southwark, London. It is located on Tabard Street (itself named after the former Tabard public house) and gives its name to the surrounding Tabard Gardens Estate. The park was created as part of a slum clea ...
.
Three Sided Football Stadium
In 2017, Essex based architect Adam Leatherbarrow entered a Non-Architecture competition to showcase a conceptual design for a Three Sided Football Stadium. The design was based on pitch parameters, UEFA stadium guidance documents and inspired by German football stadia. The Stadium comprises six single tier stands and infilled with triangular seating to chamfer the hexagonal shape. The design was recognised by TalkSport's "The Late Tackle Podcast" where Adam gave an interview.
Shortly after the interview, Leatherbarrow's stadium concept featured in the June 2017 edition of Four Four Two magazine Titled "A Game of Three Halves".
Adam stated "Something has got to be purpose-built, because i really hope the sport kicks off. Just imagine a game between West Ham, Chelsea and Spurs - it would be mad!"
See also
*
Chinese checkers
*
Three-player chess
*
Sannin shogi
Sannin shōgi (三人将棋 three-person chess), or in full kokusai sannin shōgi (国際三人将棋 international three-person chess), is a three-person shogi variant invented ''circa'' 1930 by Tanigasaki Jisuke and recently revived. It is played ...
, a three-handed shogi variant played on a hexagonal board
*
A Game of War, a game by Asger Jorn's situationist collaborator,
Guy Debord
Guy-Ernest Debord (; ; 28 December 1931 – 30 November 1994) was a French Marxist theorist, philosopher, filmmaker, critic of work, member of the Letterist International, founder of a Letterist faction, and founding member of the Situationis ...
References
External links
Three-sided Football websiteNew Cross Irregulars*
ttp://triball.strikingly.com/ Triball 3SF LeagueThe Late Tackle Podcast, 30th April 2017Jpeg upload of Four Four Two Article, June 2017
{{Football codes
Social philosophy
Association football variants
Games and sports introduced in 1993