The Ukrainian beach soccer team took third place at the selection tournament of the World Beach Games

04.09.2022 15:19

Photo by beachsoccer.com

In Catania, the Ukrainian beach soccer team played in the match for the third place in the European selection for the 2023 World Beach Games.

Yesterday, the blue and yellow team, who had already completed the main task of the tournament by winning a ticket to the World Beach Games in 2023, lost to Spain in the semi-final match (4:7). Today, Mykola Kostenko's wards met Switzerland in the match for the third place.

The rivals have already met in the group stage of these competitions, and then the Swiss won (7:3). Today, our boys managed to take revenge.

In the first period, the teams exchanged scored goals. The opponents responded to Dmytro Voytenko's goal with an accurate shot by Patrik Rüttiman. 

At the beginning of the second 12-minute period, Voytenko scored a double and brought the Ukrainians ahead. In five minutes Oleg Zborovskyi increased our team's lead to 3:1.

In the third period, at the 26th minute, Oleksandr Korniychuk increased the lead to three goals, but soon Tobias Steinemann managed to make up for it with one goal. Moreover, one and a half minutes before the final whistle, Ariel reduced the blue-yellow advantage to a minimum. However, the Swiss could not achieve more — 4:3 in favor of Mykola Kostenko's wards. 

Thus, the Ukrainian national team took third place in the selection for the 2023 World Beach Games. The winner of the tournament in Sicily will be decided in a match between Spain and Portugal later.

World Beach Games 2023. European qualification. Men

04.09.2022

Match for 3rd place

Ukraine - Switzerland - 4: 3

Goals: Voytenko (8, 13), Zborovsky (18), Korniychuk (26) — Rüttiman (9), Steinemann (28), Ariel (35).

Ukraine: Kovalenko, Nerush, I. Borsuk, A. Borsuk, Korniychuk, Hlutsky, Voytok, Shcheritsa, Voytenko, Zavorotny, Pashko, Levchenko, Zborovsky.

Final

Spain — Portugal — 6:2

World Beach Games 2023

It will be held in Bali, Indonesia, from August 6 to 12, 2023. There will be 16 teams in the men's final tournament and 12 in the women's final. Five continental qualifiers are scheduled to take place until July 2, 2023, with the top teams earning a spot at the World Beach Games.

Distribution of seats by continental confederations for men:

UEFA (Europe) — 5 teams;

CONMEBOL (South America) — 3 teams;

CAF (Africa) — 2 teams;

CONCACAF (North and Central America) — 2 teams;

AFC (Asia) and AFC (Oceania) — 2 teams.

Distribution of seats by continental confederations for women:

UEFA (Europe) — 4 teams;

CONMEBOL (South America) — 2 teams;

CONCACAF (North and Central America) — 2 teams;

CAF (Africa) — 1 team;

AFC (Asia) and AFC (Oceania) — 1 team.

In addition, the finals of the 2023 World Beach Games will feature the Indonesian men's and women's national teams as hosts, as well as one specially invited team each that did not take part in the qualifying tournaments. 

If the National Olympic Committee of any of the participants withdraws or does not confirm their participation by July 2, 2023, then the place in the tournament will be transferred to the next highest ranked team on the continent.

If the continental selection tournament does not take place by July 2, 2023, then the world ranking of beach soccer as of July 1, 2023 will be used to determine the participating teams.

Let's add that the current winners of the World Beach Games are the teams of Brazil (for men) and Spain (for women), who won the 2019 titles in Qatar.