Spectators at Brazil’s Copacabana Beach will see teams from Spain, Brazil, Thailand, Portugal, the USA, Japan, South Africa, France, Argentina and Australia, among others, do battle on the beach.
Matches will be broadcast live and/or delayed between May 8 and 15 in more than 130 countries across the globe, reaching Africa, the Americas, Europe, Oceania and Asia.
“We are really excited and look forward to the first edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup held here in Rio de Janeiro with 12 teams, from around the world, competing for the honour of winning the ultimate prize in the beach soccer calendar. FIFA is convinced that beach soccer is and will increasingly become an important and attractive part of the sport of football”, said FIFA general secretary Urs Linsi.
Currently 75 countries around the world in all six FIFA Confederations are involved in the game with 70,000 amateur players across Europe.
Linsi admitted the game was “still in a transition period” with the first World Cup “a major step”.
