2004 Euro Beach Soccer League
The 2004 Euro Beach Soccer League, was the seventh edition of the Euro Beach Soccer League (EBSL), originally known as the European Pro Beach Soccer League, the premier beach soccer competition contested between European men's national teams, occurring annually since its establishment in 1998. The league was organised by Beach Soccer Worldwide (BSWW) between July 2 and September 5, 2004 in ten different nations across Europe.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | 2 July – 5 September |
| Teams | 18 (from 1 confederation) |
| Venue(s) | 10 (in 10 host cities) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | France (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Portugal |
| Third place | Ukraine |
| Fourth place | Italy |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 77 |
| Goals scored | 834 (10.83 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Madjer |
| Best player(s) | David Cordon |
| Best goalkeeper | Roberto Valeiro |
Division A events
Division B events
Division A, B & C events
Superfinal
This season, BSWW introduced a third division, Division C, to the EBSL alongside the already existing Divisions A and B. Each team continued, as in the previous seasons, to compete in their respective division, including the newly added Division C nations, to try and earn a place in the season-finale event, the Superfinal, in which the league title was then contested directly.
Spain, who entered as defending champions, had looked odds on favourites to reclaim their title after dominating the top Division but suffered a shock loss to the Division C qualifiers and debutants, Ukraine, in the first round of the Superfinal. This opened the door for France, who had originally narrowly qualified for the season-finale, to ultimately be crowned champions, winning their first and to date only European title.
The league also doubled as the qualification process for the first FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in 2005. The nations finishing in first, second and third place qualified directly whilst the teams in fourth through seventh place competed in a final play off stage to decide which nation would gain the remaining berth at the World Cup.