Sixteen teams to compete for the regional championship and two available spots in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Bahamas 2017

Miami, FL (Friday, October 14, 2016) – The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (CONCACAF) and Beach Soccer Worldwide (BSWW) today announced that the Bahamas will host the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship, which has been scheduled for February 20-26, 2017.

The Bahamas, also set to host the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, will welcome the region’s top Beach Soccer national teams to the Caribbean for the tournament that will crown the CONCACAF champion.

“As Bahamas prepares to be the first Caribbean country to host the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in 2017, we are pleased to organize the CONCACAF championship there as well,” said CONCACAF General Secretary Philippe Moggio. “Beach soccer holds a very special place in this nation as displayed when it hosted the Confederation’s qualifying tournament in 2013. We look forward to an exhilarating competition, while leveraging it as a powerful platform to strengthen the game within our region.”

The 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship will include a field of sixteen teams:

Caribbean Football Union (CFU): Antigua & Barbuda, Bahamas, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad & Tobago, Turks & Caicos Islands, US Virgin Islands
North America: Canada, Mexico, United States
Central American Football Union (UNCAF): Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama

Two additional CONCACAF teams will join host Bahamas as the three CONCACAF representatives in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Bahamas 2017. The finalists will earn the tickets, unless host Bahamas – already qualified for the World Cup — or non-FIFA member Guadeloupe advances to the final, in which case the next-highest finisher would earn the spot.

“We are very proud to welcome once again the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship,” said the Bahamas Football Association President Anton Sealey. “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 official draw for the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship will be conducted at the Intercontinental Hotel in Doral, Florida on Monday, October 17, 2016 at 10:00 am ET. The sixteen teams will be separated into pots according to the Beach Soccer World Wide Ranking.

The draw will be transmitted live via the Official CONCACAF Facebook page. Media members and broadcasters wishing to cover the event are welcome to do so, and may apply by clicking here. A mixed zone with available coaches and other invitees will follow the draw.