02 Aug 2016

Jesolo qualifiers: Live draw 3rd August at 12:00!

You can follow the draw live at midday on www.beachsoccer.com!

The 28 teams hoping to represent Europe at the FIFA Beach Soccer World in the Bahamas next year discover who they will face during the qualifiers on Wednesday when the draw is made in Jesolo. 

Qualifiers are to take place in the Italian city during September and Wednesday will see the nations separated into groups as the countdown begins to what is one of the most important events in European beach soccer. 

The draw will see seven groups of four, with the top two from each group, as well as the two best third-placed teams, progressing to the second group stage. 

From there, the remaining teams will battle it out to reach the final four, with the whole draw streamed live via www.beachsoccer.com from midday local time.

Jesolo also hosted the qualifiers ahead of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2015 in Portugal and, in a country that loves its beach soccer, the picturesque coastal city close to Venice will witness some of the continent’s teams bidding to become the four that head to the Bahamas next year. 

Hosts Italy will be fancied by many to ensure their places after a strong start to 2016 and will be seeded first while Portugal, Russia, Switzerland, Spain, Ukraine and Hungary will take the first spot in the remaining six groups as Europe’s highest ranked teams. 

The remaining teams will be placed in one of three pots, with France, Belarus, Germany, England, Poland, Greece and Czech Republic in pot one. 

Romania, Azerbaijan, Turkey, Estonia, Austria, Netherlands and Norway go into pot two, with Moldova, Serbia, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, Denmark, Georgia and Lithuania making up pot three. 

As witnessed in the most recent qualifiers, Jesolo will again prove an attractive resort for tourists and locals alike, with expectations high in Italy after their team secured a fourth-placed finish in the last FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup.