Miami Beach Hosts FIFA Beach Soccer Tourney For 1st Time

MIAMI BEACH (CBS4)-The United States will host a FIFA beach soccer tournament for the first time this weekend in Miami Beach.

Teams from the U.S., world champion Brazil, Mexico and Spain will play in a temporary facility on Miami Beach.

Joan Cusco, the managing director of FIFA Beach Soccer, says organizers plan to make the tournament an annual event.

Games in the Beach Soccer Worldwide Miami Cup 2011 feature five players on the field for each team. There are three 12-minute periods in each match.

FIFA has made a commitment to promote and structure the sport of Beach Soccer globally, by means of competitions, courses and other proactive measures, and to encourage its members to do the same, the organization said.

Over the past decade, beach soccer has journeyed from the beaches of Brazil to the hearts of millions of fans all over the globe.

Beach soccer had been played recreationally all over the world for many years and in many different formats. However, it wasn't until 1992 that the Laws of the Game were envisioned and a pilot event staged in Los Angeles. The following summer, the first professional beach soccer competition was organized at Miami Beach, with the teams from the USA, Brazil, Argentina and Italy taking part in what would turn out to be an historic event.

Just over two years ago, beach soccer became a part of the FIFA family, and in May, the first-ever FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was staged on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro.

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