NEOM: Officials have hailed the success of the NEOM Beach Soccer Cup ahead of tournament’s final round on Saturday night.
Coaches of the men and women’s side finalists took part in a press conference to preview their respective showdowns.
The conference was attended by Joan Cusco, FIFA Beach Soccer Worldwide president; Jan Paterson, NEOM Sports director; Teruki Tabata, Japan men’s coach; Marco Octavio, Brazil men’s coach; Lorena Ruiz, Spain women’s coach; and Fabricio Santos, Brazil women’s coach.
In an opening address, Jan Paterson welcomed guests and extended her appreciation to FIFA for their support in hosting the event at NEOM.
She said: “It is absolutely a privilege to sit on this table with such great figures in beach soccer. In fact, it is a milestone for NEOM and its success will help to further position the region as a natural hub for the beach soccer sport.”
Paterson also praised Cusco for giving his full support to the tournament.
The FIFA beach soccer president began his speech by marking the relationship between the sport and NEOM.
He said: “NEOM Beach Soccer Cup is one of the best beach soccer events ever. I always tell people around that whenever we go to NEOM, we get the best hospitality and always enjoy our stay here in Saudi Arabia.
“The tournament has been amazingly organized and every year we come to NEOM we see the difference.”
He thanked NEOM for “the support that they always give beach soccer and the amazing events we have done together,” and hailed the teams and officials from the local organising committee that had attended the conference.
Asked by Arab News about the expansion of the sport around the world, Cusco said: “We work to make the sport grow all over the world and at all levels, from grassroots and formation, to top-class international events with the best teams and players in the world.”
He added that the body has so far registered 134 countries, with more to come.
Octavio was asked how pressured he felt ahead of the final, having lost two finals previously in the 2022 season (Copa America vs. Paraguay and the Intercontinental Cup against Iran).
He said: “I do not feel pressure, but we are playing against Japan, which is considered as one of the top teams in the world. I really like the commitment and determination of the Japanese players.”
His Japanese counterpart, Tabata, spoke about his team’s preparation, saying: “We are fully prepared to play against a great team such as Brazil. They are very skillful players but we will do our best to beat them.
“So, in the end, we all have to take our chances and do what we have to do.”
Ruiz, Spain women’s coach, who will oversee her team’s game in the final round against Brazil, said: “The final match is totally different from last night’s match, which we lost.
“No doubt that Brazil is a tough team and its players have shown great skills in the field, but we also have great players and we will never give up easily.”
She added: “We will give our best efforts as a team and focus on getting our jobs done on the field.”
Her Brazilian counterpart, Santos, said he had “huge respect” for the Spanish team and is looking forward to his side playing them again in the final.
He added: “Yes, we won last night but it does not mean tonight’s match will be easy.”
