The 11th edition of one of the beach soccer calendar’s top events kicks off tomorrow
We are back in Dubai for one of the most anticipated events of the year, the Emirates Intercontinental Beach Soccer Cup!
Eight of the top nations from across the globe have landed on the Arabian Peninsula ready to contend one of the biggest prizes in beach soccer.
Among the teams are two previous champions, Iran and Brazil, who have three titles each, and 17 appearances between them. This will be the ninth edition for the Iranians and eighth for Brazil. Iran finished second in the last edition, losing to Russia in the final, while Brazil haven’t competed since 2018 when they finished in third.
The UAE hosts ended the previous edition in last place for the first time in the event’s history, and will be keen to regain their previous place on the podium. The Emirati have finished in third place three times in the past.
The 2022 edition sees a debut for Saudi Arabia, who will host the NEOM Beach Soccer Cup (part of the NEOM Beach Games) next week. Under the management of their Brazilian coach Guga (named this year among the three nominees for the Best Coach award) Saudi Arabia have become one of the Asia’s up and coming beach soccer nations, impressing in the WAFF Championships and the Casablanca Beach Soccer Cup.
South American champions, Paraguay, return for their third Intercontinental Beach Soccer Cup, and will be hoping to better their record in this season’s event. In both of their previous participations (2017 and 2021), the Albirroja finished in seventh.
FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup runners-up, Japan, will make their fifth appearance in Dubai this season. The Samurai, who finished fifth last year, are led by the current world’s Best Player, Ozu, who captains and coaches Asia’s top-ranked team.
USA return to Dubai for the first time since 2018 when they finished in fifth place, while Spain make it four consecutive editions, hoping to go a step further than their 2019 silver medals.
The action kicks off on Tuesday when USA take on Japan, followed by the hosts going up against Spain.
Watch all the matches live on Recast!
For full details on the Emirates Intercontinental Beach Soccer Cup Dubai 2022, including fixtures, results and standings, head to beachsoccer.com.
