Robbie Tice is on the move again.
For one, the 22-year-old South Surrey soccer player – who plays professionally in Norway – recently signed with a new team in the Norwegian second division, which he’ll join after the league’s summer break.
But before he suits up for his new club, Nesodden IF, he’ll be donning a soccer kit adorned with the red Canadian Maple Leaf. Last month, Tice, an Earl Marriott Secondary grad, was selected to join Canada’s national men’s futsal team.
Futsal is FIFA’s official version of five-a-side indoor soccer. The sport – which originated in South America in the 1930s – is played by largely the same rules as the outdoor game, but on a smaller field and with a slightly smaller, weighted ball. It will be a medal sport at the 2015 Pan-American Games in Toronto.
Tice’s futsal squad was in Costa Rica late last month for two games against the host country’s national team, and last week, the Canadians headed to Guatemala City, where they were set to play a two-game preliminary series against El Salvador.
The winner of that two-game showdown advances to the eight-team CONCACAF Futsal Championships, which began yesterday (July 2).
The eight teams will be vying for one of four spots at the 2012 Futsal World Cup, which is to be held Nov. 1-18 in Bangkok, Thailand.
“It’s truly a dream come true and an honour for me to get the opportunity to represent Canada in an international competition,” Tice said via email from Costa Rica last week.
“This is something I’ve been dreaming of for as long as I can remember, and I’m very excited… to represent my home country.”
After the World Cup, Tice will head back to Oslo, where he’s lived for the past five years while playing with a number of different pro teams.
Prior to joining Nesodden IF, he hit the pitch with Kjelsås IL, and the season before that, with FK Bodø/Glimt. Since heading overseas after high school, Tice also also played in England for Nantwich Town FC and in Scotland, with Ayr United.
“I’m very happy to have signed with Nesodden and I’m looking forward to playing (there) when I return to Norway,” Tice said.
“It’s going to be a busy couple months for me, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.”