Beach Soccer Worldwide

History

Founding

BSWW's routes are traced back to 1992 with the establishment of the official rules of the sport by Giancarlo Signorini, the founding partner of Beach Soccer Company (BSC). In 1992, Signorini staged a pilot event in Los Angeles in order to test out and perfect these rules which remain very similar today. In July 1993, with the aid of his own company, BSI, Signorini organised the first professional beach soccer event, held on Miami Beach, Florida. A keen interest was taken by Brazilian sports marketing agency, Koch Tavares, who replicated the event in 1994 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and Viking Graham Sports Group, a Philadelphia based investment group, acquired BSI's rights to stage professional beach soccer events, forming a partnership with Signorini to create Beach Soccer Company.

Koch Tavares and BSC went on to be the main two entities involved in promoting beach soccer for the rest of the 1990s, with the former responsible for organising the Beach Soccer World Championships beginning in 1995, and the latter establishing the Pro Beach Soccer Tour in 1996, a series of worldwide professional exhibition tournaments to promote the sport, and the European Pro Beach Soccer League in 1998, all contested between national teams as opposed to clubs. BSC relocated to Monaco in 1998 and again to Barcelona in 1999, renaming to become Pro Beach Soccer, S.L. (PBS) in 2000 to reflect the branding of their established events.

In October 2000, the entity of Koch Tavares responsible for beach soccer and PBS came together to register one single company in order to streamline development of the sport under one unifying company, as opposed to multiple parties involved trying to synchronise progress between one another, officially forming Beach Soccer Worldwide, opting to remain based in Barcelona. Starting with the 2001 season, BSWW took on roles of organising all major competitions of the preceding companies including the Pro Beach Soccer Tour and European Pro Beach Soccer League, whilst supervising the World Championships and the newly created America's League, all remaining focused on national teams. This was also done to make it easier to bring on board sponsors, coordinate media coverage and present the football alternative to FIFA under a clearly defined, all-encompassing, representative body for beach soccer.

FIFA partnership

BSWW's attention immediately turned to FIFA. Beach Soccer Company had already ensured all tournaments from 2000 onwards were played under FIFA's fair play rules and delegates from both parties met multiple times to discuss for BSWW's rules of the sport and competitions to gain recognition and backing of football's governing body. By 2002, FIFA had come to an agreement with BSWW to adopt the rules and regulations that had been established over the previous decade, with some minor changes to ensure FIFA's interest in key components of regular football were respected and acknowledging key major tournaments in the sport including the World Championships. During this time, BSWW also brought on board major sponsors such as MasterCard, McDonald's and Coca-Cola for certain time period.

The involvement with FIFA was furthered in 2004 when FIFA Beach Soccer S.L. was established in agreement and partnership with BSWW, to take over responsibility of the World Championships, being beach soccer's primary tournament, to become an official FIFA competition. The newly named FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup would start in 2005, with BSWW staff acting as advisers. It was also agreed that FIFA would become the sport's governing body, taking over from BSWW.

However at this time FIFA also recognised BSWW as the main entity behind past and more importantly continuing promotion and development of the sport elsewhere besides the new World Cup, and so BSWW retained the organisation responsibilities and control of other beach soccer championships like the EBSL, with FIFA only taking full control of the World Cup. So much so that after the first successful World Cup in 2005, when FIFA established World Cup qualifying tournaments to promote the sport across all confederations to start in 2006, all responsibility was handed to BSWW to organise and execute such events, with FIFA only supervising.

Continued development

Since then, BSWW has continued to develop the sport worldwide, now aided greatly with FIFA's beach soccer training courses and refereeing. The Euro Beach Soccer League (dropping the pro from the title in 2004 as it was no longer reflecting of the company name) has remained BSWW's main asset, gathering up to 27 nations to compete in recent editions compared to just 7 in the first event in 1998 in a summer-long event. The Pro Beach Soccer Tour has also been renamed to the BSWW Tour for the same reasons, continuing exhibition events to promote the sport as far wide and remote as Réunion and Cape Verde with around 10 tour events a year. BSWW has continued organising the World Cup qualifiers, as well as establishing new regular international competitions such as the Intercontinental Cup (similar to the FIFA Confederations Cup) since 2011 and generating more interest from big sponsors like Samsung and Huawei.

BSWW representatives, in partnership with FIFA, have liaised with the International Olympic Committee a number of times, with Olympic-affiliated events such as the Asian Beach Games integrating beach soccer from 2008 onward, the South American Beach Games from 2009 and the European Games starting from 2015. The ultimate aim is to have beach soccer a sport in the summer Olympics. But despite a campaign for inclusion in the Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020 Olympics., the sport was ultimately not included and so lobbying in cooperation with FIFA continues, to ultimately fulfil the goal of making beach soccer an Olympic sport. In 2017, BSWW secured beach soccer as a sport at the inaugural Olympic-affiliated World Beach Games in 2019 and hope to use its inclusion as a springboard for future absorption into the Summer Olympics.

More recently, a greater involvement from certain confederations in organising World Cup qualifying championships has eased the full involvement of BSWW, allowing the federation to promote the club side of the game more, establishing the Mundialito de Clubs (Club World Cup) in 2011 and the Euro Winners Cup (similar to the UEFA Champions League) in 2013.

Development of the women's game has also become a target for BSWW, with the first official game between Switzerland and Germany in 2009, promoting further international exhibition tournaments and friendlies involving nations such as England, Italy and the Czech Republic, with the Euro Winners Cup having a 16-club women's version for the first time in 2016 and the first Women's Euro Beach Soccer Cup also taking place in 2016.

BSWW has organised and delivered over 200 international events in more than 50 countries worldwide, involving over 110 nations from all confederations, assembling an audience of over 250 million households in 180 countries. Vice-president Joan Cuscó continues to serve on FIFA's Beach Soccer committee as BSWW's representative. In 2017, BSWW and FIFA agreed to extend their partnership until at least 2024.

Identity

Flag

File:BSWW logo 2001-08.png|2001–2008 File:Logo of Beach Soccer Worldwide.png|2009–2016 File:BSWW logo 2016.png |2016–present

Stars awards

Main article: Beach Soccer Stars

It has been standard practice for BSWW to award prizes to the top scorer, MVP and best goalkeeper at the conclusion every event of their organisation. However, in 2014, BSWW took this concept of awards to a new level, establishing beach soccer's first annual end of season awards ceremony, taking place during November in Dubai. The ceremony, a gala event attended by many of the world's leading figures in the sport, celebrates the achievements of top performers worldwide over the course of the season and has been compared to FIFA's The Best awards and the Ballon d'Or in association football, in both importance, grandeur and equivalence for those involved in beach soccer.

Some of the many prizes awarded on the night include best player of the year, best coach of the year, best goal and best team.

BSWW structured tournaments

BSWW organises and has an input in many different competitions; the following are regular events that are ongoing:

Advisory role:

• FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Considerable input, with involvement from confederations, under the supervision of FIFA:
• AFC Beach Soccer Championship
• Africa Beach Soccer Cup of Nations
• CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championship
• CONMEBOL Beach Soccer Championship
• OFC Beach Soccer Championship
• FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup qualifiers (UEFA)
• Euro Beach Soccer League
• Euro Beach Soccer Cup (formerly)
• Intercontinental Cup
• Mundialito
• Multiple BSWW Tour exhibition tournaments per year
• Persian Beach Soccer Cup
• Mundialito de Clubes
• Euro Winners Cup
• Americas Winners Cup
• Women's Euro Winners Cup
• Women's Americas Winners Cup Affiliation only:
• World Beach Games
• European Games
• Asian Beach Games
• Mediterranean Beach Games
• South American Beach Games
• African Beach Games

Current title holders

Teams

National teams with year of first international game:

Men

1. BRA Brazil national beach soccer team (1993)
2. ARG Argentina national beach soccer team (1993)
3. USA United States men's national beach soccer team (1993)
4. ITA Italy national beach soccer team (1993)
5. CHI Chile national beach soccer team (1994)
6. URU Uruguay national beach soccer team (1994)
7. NED Netherlands national beach soccer team (1995)
8. GER Germany national beach soccer team (1995)
9. ENG England national beach soccer team (1995)
10. MEX Mexico national beach soccer team (1995)
11. JPN Japan national beach soccer team (1995)
12. KOR South Korea national beach soccer team (1995)
13. CAN Canada national beach soccer team (1995)
14. RUS Russia national beach soccer team (1996)
15. DEN Denmark national beach soccer team (1996)
16. FRA France national beach soccer team (1996)
17. ESP Spain national beach soccer team (1996)
18. BEL Belgium national beach soccer team (1996)
19. MAS Malaysia national beach soccer team (1996)
20. YUG Yugoslavia national beach soccer team (1996)
21. POR Portugal national beach soccer team (1996)
22. PER Peru national beach soccer team (1998)
23. SUI Switzerland national beach soccer team (1998)
24. AUT Austria national beach soccer team (1998)
25. NGR Nigeria national beach soccer team (1998)
26. PAR Paraguay national beach soccer team (1999)
27. RSA South Africa national beach soccer team (1999)
28. VEN Venezuela national beach soccer team (2000)
29. TUR Turkey national beach soccer team (2000)
30. IRL Ireland national beach soccer team (2001)
31. THA Thailand national beach soccer team (2002)
32. NOR Norway national beach soccer team (2002)
33. GRE Greece national beach soccer team (2003)
34. SWE Sweden national beach soccer team (2004)
35. POL Poland national beach soccer team (2004)
36. MON Monaco national beach soccer team (2004)
37. UKR Ukraine national beach soccer team (2005)
38. HUN Hungary national beach soccer team (2005)
39. AUS Australia national beach soccer team (2005)
40. CZE Czech Republic national beach soccer team (2006)
41. CRC Costa Rica national beach soccer team (2006)
42. IRI Iran national beach soccer team (2006)
43. CHN China national beach soccer team (2006)
44. PHI Philippines national beach soccer team (2006)
45. UAE United Arab Emirates national beach soccer team (2006)
46. BHR Bahrain national beach soccer team (2006)
47. MNE Montenegro national beach soccer team (2006)
48. SOL Solomon Islands national beach soccer team (2006)
49. COK Cook Islands national beach soccer team (2006)
50. TAH Tahiti national beach soccer team (2006)
51. VAN Vanuatu national beach soccer team (2006)
52. JAM Jamaica national beach soccer team (2006)
53. EGY Egypt national beach soccer team (2006)
54. MAR Morocco national beach soccer team (2006)
55. CMR Cameroon national beach soccer team (2006)
56. CIV Ivory Coast national beach soccer team (2006)
57. REU Réunion national beach soccer team (2006)
58. MAD Madagascar national beach soccer team (2006)
59. SEN Senegal national beach soccer team (2006)
60. ISR Israel national beach soccer team (2007)
61. BUL Bulgaria national beach soccer team (2007)
62. ROU Romania national beach soccer team (2007)
63. EST Estonia national beach soccer team (2007)
64. CPV Cape Verde national beach soccer team (2007)
65. MOZ Mozambique national beach soccer team (2007)
66. IND India national beach soccer team (2007)
67. SLV El Salvador national beach soccer team (2007)
68. NZL New Zealand national beach soccer team (2007)
69. AZE Azerbaijan national beach soccer team (2008)
70. UZB Uzbekistan national beach soccer team (2008)
71. LAT Latvia national beach soccer team (2008)
72. SVK Slovakia national beach soccer team (2008)
73. AND Andorra national beach soccer team (2008)
74. GEO Georgia national beach soccer team (2008)
75. LTU Lithuania national beach soccer team (2008)
76. KUW Kuwait national beach soccer team (2008)
77. OMA Oman national beach soccer team (2008)
78. LBA Libya national beach soccer team (2008)
79. ALG Algeria national beach soccer team (2008)
80. YEM Yemen national beach soccer team (2008)
81. INA Indonesia national beach soccer team (2008)
82. TLS Timor-Leste national beach soccer team (2008)
83. VIE Vietnam national beach soccer team (2008)
84. LAO Laos national beach soccer team (2008)
85. BRU Brunei national beach soccer team (2008)
86. MYA Myanmar national beach soccer team (2008)
87. QAT Qatar national beach soccer team (2008)
88. MRI Mauritius national beach soccer team (2008)
89. ECU Ecuador national beach soccer team (2009)
90. FIJ Fiji national beach soccer team (2009)
91. MDA Moldova national beach soccer team (2009)
92. FIN Finland national beach soccer team (2009)
93. COL Colombia national beach soccer team (2009)
94. SOM Somalia national beach soccer team (2009) ?
95. SYR Syria national beach soccer team (2010)
96. KSA Saudi Arabia national beach soccer team (2010)
97. KAZ Kazakhstan national beach soccer team (2010)
98. PLE Palestine national beach soccer team (2010)
99. JOR Jordan national beach soccer team (2010)
100. GUA Guatemala national beach soccer team (2010)
101. LBN Lebanon national beach soccer team (2010)
102. IRQ Iraq national beach soccer team (2011)
103. BAN Bangladesh national beach soccer team (2011)
104. NEP Nepal national beach soccer team (2011)
105. MDV Maldives national beach soccer team (2011)
106. SRI Sri Lanka national beach soccer team (2011)
107. AFG Afghanistan national beach soccer team (2012)
108. DOM Dominican Republic national beach soccer team (2012)
109. ALB Albania national beach soccer team (2012)
110. NCL New Caledonia national beach soccer team (2013)
111. PUR Puerto Rico national beach soccer team (2013)
112. TRI Trinidad and Tobago national beach soccer team (2013)
113. ZAN Zanzibar national beach soccer team (2014) Unofficial
114. UGA Uganda national beach soccer team (2014)
115. BOL Bolivia national beach soccer team (2014)
116. KEN Kenya national beach soccer team (2015)
117. GHA Ghana national beach soccer team (2015)
118. SEY Seychelles national beach soccer team (2015)
119. BLZ Belize national beach soccer team (2015)
120. PAN Panama national beach soccer team (2015)
121. ATG Antigua and Barbuda national beach soccer team (2015)
122. BRB Barbados national beach soccer team (2015)
123. GLP Guadeloupe national beach soccer team (2015)
124. TCA Turks and Caicos Islands national beach soccer team (2015)
125. VIR U.S. Virgin Islands national beach soccer team (2015)
126. MLT Malta national beach soccer team (2015)
127. GUY Guyana national beach soccer team (2017)
128. BOE Bonaire national beach soccer team (2019)
129. KGZ Kyrgyzstan national beach soccer team (2019)
130. MWI Malawi national beach soccer team (2022)
131. TAN Tanzania national beach soccer team (?)
132. TUN Tunisia national beach soccer team (?)
133. BDI Burundi national beach soccer team (?)
134. COM Comoros national beach soccer team (?)
135. DJI Djibouti national beach soccer team (?)
136. LBR Liberia national beach soccer team (?)
137. MLI Mali national beach soccer team (?)
138. SUD Sudan national beach soccer team (?)
139. COD DR Congo national beach soccer team (?)
140. TON Tonga national beach soccer team (?)
141. CRO Croatia national beach soccer team (?)
142. EQG Equatorial Guinea national beach soccer team (?)

Women

1. SUI Switzerland women's national beach soccer team (2009)
2. GER Germany women's national beach soccer team (2009)
3. POR Portugal women's national beach soccer team (2010)
4. HAI Haiti women's national beach soccer team (2010)
5. DOM Dominican Republic women's national beach soccer team (2010)
6. ITA Italy women's national beach soccer team (2011)
7. CZE Czech Republic women's national beach soccer team (2011)
8. BAH Bahamas women's national beach soccer team (2012)
9. TCA Turks & Caicos Islands women's national beach soccer team (2012)
10. ENG England women's national beach soccer team (2014)
11. GRE Greece women's national beach soccer team (2016)
12. ESP Spain women's national beach soccer team (2016)
13. NED Netherlands women's national beach soccer team (2016)
14. MEX Mexico women's national beach soccer team (2017)
15. RUS Russia women's national beach soccer team (2018)
16. ALG Algeria women's national beach soccer team (2019)
17. CPV Cape Verde women's national beach soccer team (2019)
18. BLR Belarus women's national beach soccer team (2019)
19. SLV El Salvador women's national beach soccer team (2019)
20. USA United States women's national beach soccer team (2019)
21. BRA Brazil women's national beach soccer team (2019)
22. PAR Paraguay women's national beach soccer team (2019)
23. ARG Argentina women's national beach soccer team (2019)
24. CHI Chile women's national beach soccer team (2019)
25. UKR Ukraine women's national beach soccer team (2021)
26. SWE Sweden women's national beach soccer team (2022)
27. TRI Trinidad and Tobago women's national beach soccer team (2022)
28. POL Poland women's national beach soccer team (2022)

Rankings

Main article: BSWW World Rankings

BSWW established a ranking system for European teams in the mid-2000s as the majority of tournaments are held in Europe and it is the most active continent for national teams. Hence the ranking was used for seeding in competitions like the EBSL. However, in 2014, BSWW created the first world ranking table based on a similar system to FIFA's world ranking for association football national teams.

Sponsors

Official Global Partners:

• Genius Sports
• Iqoniq
• Puma
• RealFevr Official partners:
• Nostra
• United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC)
• Universo Mujer Technical Partners:
• Idoven

Foundation

Beach Soccer Worldwide extends its commitment beyond purely sport development. In 2009, the Beach Soccer Foundation was created by BSWW to tackle three main issues surrounding the sport:

• Environmental protection through awareness and recycling
• The development of children and young people through sport
• Awareness and prevention of skin cancer

History Results Database

• beach SOCCER RESULTS (1993-2019)
• Beach Soccer Worldwide (1993-2020)
• All-time results (2021-Ongoing)
• The Roon Ba (2010-2023)
• The Roon Ba (2010-2023)
• The Roon Ba (2010-2020)
• Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) - FIFA.com (Results in Team Profile)

References

References

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