THE BALL IS ROLLING ON THE BEACH: Bahamas gets ready for beach soccer world cup hosting with CONCACAF finals
Bahamas, host of the 2017 Beach Soccer World Cup, will also welcome the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship on February 20-26 which will qualify two teams for the World cup. The Bahamas, pre-qualified as host as one of the three CONCACAF countries at the World Cup, will welcome 16 teams for the regional competition.
Four groups & four teams
The beach soccer teams will compete in round-robin play in four groups of four teams each. Following this, the winner and runner-up from each group will advance to the quarterfinals. The third- and fourth-placed teams from each group will also play in positioning matches over the final three match dates. Barbados beach soccer team has replaced Guatemala in the championship. Guatemala is currently suspended by FIFA from taking part in international competition.
A party in the Bahamas
In the words of Anton Sealy, President of the Bahamas Football Association, “We are very proud to welcome once again the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship. The fans will have an extraordinary opportunity to see the best teams compete for the title. Bahamians have embraced beach soccer and we are confident that this tournament will help generate greater excitement and anticipation for the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup.” The CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship has been held six times. Mexico has staged the event on four occasions, while Costa Rica and Brazil hosted the competition once each.
U.S. Team
The U.S. beach soccer national team, who previously competed in Beach Soccer World Cups in Brazil and Tahiti between 2005 and 2013, is seeking to qualify for the competition for the fifth time. CONCACAF has hosted its own beach soccer qualifying competition since 2006. The Stars and Stripes has won both the 2006 and 2007 editions. The U.S. started 2013 by winning the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship in Bahamas. The team qualified for the 2013 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup after defeating Costa Rica 4-2 in the semifinals.
Experience
An experienced coaching staff will lead the U.S. squad at the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship. As Head coach, Eddie Soto brings enormous experience to the team. He has great passion for beach soccer and is a true winner at the highest level of every tournament. The Assistant coach is Francis Farberoff, former captain of the U.S. beach soccer national team. Farberoff- who is also President of FBS-FC in Aventura, Miami- led the team to three CONCACAF Championship triumphs during his years as captain.
He played for the USA team in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2013.
Beach Soccer Championship 2017
Groups
Group A
Bahamas, Jamaica, Belize, Guyana
Group B
Mexico, Barbados, Canada, Guadeloupe
Group C
United States, Trinidad & Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda, US Virgin Islands
Group D
El Salvador, Costa Rica, Panama, Turks & Caicos Islands
QUALIFIED TEAMS
• Nigeria
• Senegal
• Italy
• Poland
• Portugal
• Switzerland
• Bahamas
• Tahiti