The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

IN a relatively short time span, the Bahamas has become a major regional player in beach soccer and now the Bahamas Football Association seeks to join the rest of the Caribbean in making the development of this mode of the sport a major initiative.

In 2017, the Bahamas will host two major beach soccer events, the CONCACAF Beach Soccer World Championships in February and the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in May.

BFA president Anton Sealey said the Bahamas will look to continue its development of the sport on the sand.

“We in the Bahamas are very excited to host both of these events as these competitions will have a major impact in the Bahamas and the Caribbean. We are very excited about the opportunities from a social and economic standpoint as well as growing the game. Since 2013, the CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships, we have concentrated our efforts in building a foundation for the sport by investing in programmes and infrastructure. It is evident how bright the future is for our nation and for the confederation,” Sealey said during Monday’s draw for the 2017 CONCACAF Beach Soccer Championships in Miami, Florida.

He underscored the impact the events will have on the development of the local game and called beach soccer “the great equaliser” for smaller countries like the Bahamas to compete with traditional powerhouses.

“We have the potential to excel in this form of football and I encourage all participating CONCACAF teams to keep building on this momentum for beach soccer within our region and to continue to impress upon the administration of your MA’s the importance of this modality of football to the development not only of the beach game but also how it impacts the grass game as well. It is actually a complement to the grass game and not in competition. This is something I know, as presidents we feel as if our success is defined buy our national teams on the grass but we understand that this is just as an important part of football and it enhances the grass game. It should be looked at with equal importance and enthusiasm,” Sealey said.

“The sand is a great equaliser. Those countries such as ourselves, very small, when we come to competing against the likes of the US, Mexico, Canada, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica on the grass it is a bit of a challenge, but the sand equalises all of that. It is time we take this modality more serious than we have been. Hosting the FIFA World Cup is both an honor and a privilege but it is also an extraordinary opportunity to develop talent and encourage competition among our youth. Furthermore, these major events provide a platform to continues  building a stronger and  more passionate fan base.”

CONCACAF Secretary General Phillippe Maggio said the region and the international soccer community at large anticipates the continued growth of the sport.

“Beach Soccer has experienced some tremendous growth since the first FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was held 11 years ago. According to Beach Soccer Worldwide the sport is now played in over 100 countries over the six confederations of FIFA and its future is very bright as demonstrated by federations like the Bahamas Football Association, adding the discipline to their national team programmes,” he said, “Next years tournament will certainly increase the competitive, further develop the game and stimulate tourism while adding economic benefit to the host country Bahamas.”

The Bahamas last hosted the CONCACF Beach Soccer Championships in 2013 where they finished sixth following a loss to Guatemala in the tournament finale.

The champion and the runner-up of the competition will join host Bahamas as the three CONCACAF representatives in the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017. In case Bahamas (host of the World Cup) and/or Guadeloupe (Non-FIFA Member) reach the final match, the World Cup spot(s) will be allocated to the next best placed team(s).