Qualification
From 1995 to 2005 (inclusive), teams were selected for the World Cup; they did not have to qualify. However with the interest from so many countries, FIFA decided to standardise the format for the World Cup in 2006 for future World Cups. FIFA agreed that countries from each confederation will play in FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Qualifiers, with 16 teams eventually qualifying for the finals. The number of countries qualifying from each confederation would always be the same as the table shows below:
Confederation | Continent | Amount of countries qualifying |
---|---|---|
UEFA | Europe | 5 teams |
CONMEBOL | South America | 3 teams |
AFC | Asia | 3 teams |
CAF | Africa | 2 teams |
CONCACAF | North, Central America and the Caribbean | 2 teams |
OFC | Oceania | 1 team |
Total | 16 teams |
Qualification continues to be the same. Note that the host countries' continent loses one qualification spot. E.g. since the 2011 World Cup was held in Italy, they automatically qualified as a European team. Therefore in the Euro Beach Soccer Word Cup Qualifiers, only four teams qualified to join the hosts, Italy.
Read more about this topic: FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup