Flip flap (association football)

The Flip flap (also known as the elastico, "Snakebite" and la culebrita) is a dribbling move, or feint, in football, used to fool a defensive player into thinking the offensive player, in possession of the ball, is going to move in a direction they are not intending. Players perform it by using the outside of their dominant foot to push the ball towards their dominant side, then quickly move the dominant foot around the ball and using the inside to push the ball to their non-dominant side. Although the footwork is the most distinctive aspect of the flip-flap, its success as a feint also relies heavily on the attacking player having an explosive acceleration from a stationary position.

"He (Sérgio Echigo) says now that he invented it, but I perfected it"

The move was invented by the Japanese-Brazilian football player Sérgio Echigo. In 1964, Brazilian playmaker Rivellino learned the move from Echigo, who was his Corinthians teammate in the youth team, and performed it to a global audience during the 1970 FIFA World Cup. Interviewed on the television series Football's Greatest in 2012, Rivellino states; "He [Echigo] says now that he invented it, but I perfected it".

Rivellino was an idol to a number of Brazilians, and the trick was popularized in the late 1990s and 2000s by high-profile players such as Romário, Ronaldo and Ronaldinho among others.

In Africa especially Nigeria the move is commonly referred to as a "Snakebite" or "Zigima" because of the feet movement of the perpetrator. It is also called "Gaucho" because it was popularly used by Ronaldinho Gaucho on a number of occasions.

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