2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup
The 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup was the ninth edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, the premier international beach soccer championship contested by the men's national teams of the member associations of FIFA. Overall, this was the 19th edition of a world cup in beach soccer since the establishment of the Beach Soccer World Championships which ran from 1995 to 2004 but was not governed by FIFA. This was the fourth tournament to take place under the biennial basis; the World Cup now takes place once every two years, after taking place on a yearly basis until 2009.
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Host country | Bahamas |
| City | Nassau |
| Dates | 27 April – 7 May |
| Teams | 16 (from 6 confederations) |
| Venue(s) | 1 (in 1 host city) |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Brazil (5th title) |
| Runners-up | Tahiti |
| Third place | Iran |
| Fourth place | Italy |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 32 |
| Goals scored | 266 (8.31 per match) |
| Attendance | 57,450 (1,795 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Gabriele Gori (17 goals) |
| Best player(s) | Mohammad Ahmadzadeh |
| Best goalkeeper | Peyman Hosseini |
| Fair play award | Brazil |
FIFA originally started the bidding process in April 2013, whilst in December 2014, the Bahamas were appointed as hosts; this was the first time a men's senior FIFA tournament was hosted in the Caribbean, and the first FIFA tournament hosted by the Bahamas. Fifteen teams advanced through their respective preliminary continental qualification competitions, which started in September 2016 and ended in March 2017, to join the host team in the final tournament which included three nations making their debuts at the finals and notably saw two-time champions (in 2011 and 2013) Russia fail to qualify. The tournament was played from 27 April to 7 May 2017, with all 32 matches hosted in one 3,500 seater stadium, in the Bahamian capital, Nassau.
The hosts, making their first appearance at a World Cup, exited at the group stage. Portugal were the defending champions, but were eliminated by Brazil in the quarter-finals. Brazil ultimately went on to defeat Tahiti in the final to claim their fourteenth world title since the competition's inception in 1995, and their fifth title of the FIFA era, ending an eight-year wait after last winning the crown in 2009. Iran finished third to claim the best ever placing by an Asian nation in the history of the competition.