Beach Soccer Championships kick-off delayed

The Malta Beach Soccer Association wishes to inform the public that due to an unforeseen circumstance the Beach Soccer Championship 2011 being staged at Pretty Bay in Birzebbugia has to be postponed to kick off on Friday the 15th of July 2011. The Beach Soccer Tournament organisers were expecting 20 containers of silica sand coming from Egypt but the shipment will not make it in time for this Wednesday the 29th of June.

Mark Marlow, President of the Malta Beach Soccer Association (MBSA) comments: “Unfortunately we have to bow to this unforeseen circumstance which will delay the sand from being sent to Malta in time. We need this high quality sand for the tournament and now we are aiming to kick off the opening match on Friday the 15th of July. I know that the teams, us organisers and a lot of beach soccer fans were looking forward to this year’s championship but I promise them that this further wait will be worthwhile”.

The participating teams, men and women, will play two rounds with the first round with 12 minutes per half for two halves, whilst the final round will be played over three periods. The main sponsors for this event are Gilette Deodorant who are also the main sponsors for the famous Brazilian Beach Soccer National Team.

Zumba by Maria and Pedro, Goalkeeper Battle by Numero Uno goalkeeper school, various beach sports and sexy cheerleaders will complement the tournament with loads of entertainment for everyone all throughout the competition. An international beach handball tournament will also be organised between July 29th and 31st and three foreign teams are participating. In August, players with special needs will also have the opportunity to enjoy playing on the sand in Pretty Bay.

The tournament directors have also advised that Roberto Pasquali, the Italian Beach Soccer National team captain will be a special guest for the tournament whilst FIFA is sending Spain’s and the world’s leading beach soccer player, Ramiro Figueiras Amarelle, who will conduct two beach soccer courses, one for coaches and the other for referees between the 22nd and 24th of July.

“All in all this competition is surely attracting a lot of attention from the public and teams alike as seen from our facebook page. Besides the 12 teams already enrolled in the competition we invite those who are interested to enlist their team up till the 7th of July” added the enthusiastic Mark Marlow. “We are also glad that both the Malta Football Association and the Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport are endorsing and giving us their help to make this Beach Soccer Championship the most successful ever”