London

It’s Thursday night at Bar Kick in Shoreditch, and among the regulars massed around the table football tables supping Portuguese lager, a petite woman by the name of Caroline Wong is showing the boys how it should be done. Calmly passing the ball between her players, she sets herself up in front of goal to rifle yet another unstoppable shot into the top corner.

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Wong, 29, is president of the Kick Association and fanatical about table football. ‘I got into the game when the office I worked in got a table in the break room. That’s how a lot of Londoners get into it – they become the best in their office then they go out to find other, better opponents.’
It took Wong about two years to get this good, playing in defence at first before upgrading to attack player. ‘It’s much more difficult playing up front as you have to be much more controlled and skillful in order to score. In defence, you just really have to get the ball out of your half by any means possible. After you’ve been playing for a while, your muscles eventually condition themselves to the moves you want to make.’

Competition in the capital is tough: four of the ten competitors selected for the Table Football World Cup in Hamburg this May are residents of the capital. But despite Wong’s enthusiasm – and the fact that there’s no reason why women should be any less skilled at the game then men – female players are thin on the ground. ‘Unfortunately, just like most sports, there aren’t as many women players as we would like,’ says Wong. ‘I’d say that there’s about one woman to every 10 men in the UK. Having said that, there are women out there who are just as passionate about the game as men. The appeal for me is that the physical power advantage is less important than in other sports.’

‘It can be a little intimidating, especially for women, to see the regulars playing on Thursday nights. We’ve introduced beginner sessions – so you can play without the fear of being publicly humiliated.’

Top player Rhys Roberts on how to rule the table

1 Find a local pub with a table and just play with your friends. Many pubs have tables that are in poor condition. Give the table a clean and lubricate the rods with some oil, you’ll be surprised at how much easier it is to play the game on a well-maintained table.

2 Buy a table. Many players have their own table at home. For a new one expect to pay between £1,000 and £1,200.

3 Go to the venues that good players go to and don’t be afraid to approach them and ask them for tips. These venues can be found on the British Foosball Association (BFA) website (www.britfoos.com).

4 Visit the BFA website and join the discussion forum, which players use to discuss skills and arrange where and when to play.