Saudi Arabia has become the first ever non-African nation to compete in a COSAFA region’s Beach Soccer Championship in Durban, being held from March 17 to March 23.
The team brings some Middle Eastern flair and hopes their participation will help grow the sport in their country, as they work towards earning their first ever FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup qualification in the Seychelles in 2025.
They are former champions of the Arab Beach Soccer Cup in 2010, though there have only been four editions of the tournament played, the last of which took place in 2023.
In the latest edition, they topped their pool with wins over Mauritania (7-3) and Morocco (4-3), who are also competing in Durban, to go with a 4-7 defeat to Lebanon. The Saudis went out in the quarter-finals after a 3-5 defeat to Palestine.
The team has been preparing for the COSAFA event with a camp in the city of Jazan under the watchful eye of Brazilian Goqa Zulukovic.
ALSO READ :First Saudi woman qualifies for Paris 2024 Olympics
Saudi Arabia, Angola, South Africa and Mozambique all pulled off big wins on the second day of the COSAFA Beach Soccer Championship at Durban’s South Beach Arena on Monday, in some cases upsetting the odds.
Saudi Arabia finished off the day with a thumping 5-1 win over Malawi, the biggest victory of the tournament to date.
All the teams in Group A are standing on 3 points and have a chance to make it to the knockout stages.
Saudi Arabia will take on the host South Africa in a nail biting contest at 14:30 local time today, while Seychelles will take on Malawi in the earlier game at 10:30 Central African time.
The Saudis have been doing well on the beach soccer scene.
They recently returned from the Oman International Friendly Beach Soccer Championship, where they finished third. Before that, they lost a friendly against Italy 3-5.
According to Beach Soccer Worldwide, the team is ranked number 23 in the world, the second highest of the teams competing in Durban after Morocco (15).
ALSO READ: Saudi football club sets new world record
