The HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Beach Soccer Championship is ready for lift-off with the battle on the sand to start at Durban’s South Beach Arena on Sunday from 10h30.
The eight-team field is the strongest ever assembled for a COSAFA beach soccer event and features African champions Senegal, defending COSAFA champions Mozambique, as well as Beach Africa Cup of nations-bound Uganda and Egypt.
Add to that hosts South Africa, Seychelles, Mauritius and last year’s beaten finalists Tanzania and it is a dream line-up to wow fans until the final is played on October 1.
And the best news for those that wants to take in the action live is that tickets are FREE!
These can be collected on a first come, first served basis either the day before the matches are scheduled to be played, or on match day.
The outlets are Durban Parks and Beach office (blue building) and Wedge Beach (opposite the Edward Hotel).
And the games are certainly going to get under way with a bang! Holders Mozambique will take on Senegal at 10h30 CAT on Sunday in what is a repeat of the 2021 Beach AFCON final that was won by the west African nation in Dakar.
Both of these sides went to the Beach Soccer World Cup in Russia last year and are probably the two most fancied to be in next weekend’s final. The top two teams in each pool advance to the semifinals.
They are also preparing for the next Beach AFCON that Mozambique will host from October 21-30, so can lay down a marker for that.
The second match in Group A sees Seychelles take on South Africa (12h30 CAT) and with two such heavyweight opponents to come, this is a must-win.
The Group B action gets under way when Egypt take on Mauritius at 14h30 CAT, before the last game of the day features an all-East African battle as Uganda play Tanzania at 16h30 CAT.
The second and third rounds of matches will be played on Monday and Wednesday, with the semifinals on Friday and the final and third-place play-off set for next Saturday.
You can view the full fixture list here.
If you cannot be on the beach, there are many other ways to follow the action.
Matches will be broadcast live on SuperSport channels 202 and 205, please check your TV Guide through the competition. You can stream these games via now.dstv.com.
They will also be streamed on SABC Sport Channel 124, while South Africa’s fixture with Seychelles on Sunday will also be on SABC 2. We will also stream all matches to a watching world on COSAFA.TVand FIFA+.
We will be providing result updates and tournament content across all our social media platforms. These include:
❖ Our website: www.cosafa.com
❖ Twitter: https://twitter.com/cosafamedia/
❖ Facebook: www.facebook.com/COSAFAMEDIA/
❖ Instagram: www.instagram.com/cosafafootball/
❖ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cosafamedia/
❖ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/COSAFAMedia/videos
La succession du Mozambique ouverte
C’est ce dimanche que l’édition 2022 de la Hollywoodbets COSAFA Beach Soccer Championship prend son envol sur la plage de Durban en Afrique du Sud.
Et autant dire que c’est un programme étoffé qui attend les amateurs de cette discipline satellite du football puisque pas moins de quatre rencontres sont programmées pour la journée inaugurale qui verra les huit équipes en lice partir à la conquête du titre glané par le Mozambique l’an dernier.
A tout seigneur tout honneur. Les Mambas seront les premiers à entrer en action dans ce qui s’apparente à un choc des titans puisqu’ils croiseront le fer avec le Sénégal. Ce duel est programmé à 10h30 au South Beach Arena. Le Mozambique, champion en titre dans la compétition affronte les Lions de la Teranga, vainqueur de la dernière Coupe d’Afrique des nations de beach soccer. Le spectacle promet d’être au rendez-vous. Reprise de volée, frappe lourde et retourné acrobatique promettent donc d’être au rendez-vous dès l’entame.
Cette troisième édition de la Hollywoodbets COSAFA Beach Soccer Championship verra les Seychelles affronter l’Afrique du Sud dans le deuxième match de la journée. Le match a été programmé pour 12h30 et contrairement au match inaugural, celui-là est un peu déséquilibré. Même si l’Afrique du Sud n’est pas une grande nation en beach soccer, ses représentants sont mieux armés que les Seychellois. Les Pirates ont toutefois cette tendance à être très accrocheurs. Ils pourront justement s’appuyer là-dessus pour offrir de la résistance.
A partir de 14h30, ce seront les équipes faisant partie du groupe B qui entreront en action. L’Egypte, invité de la compétition, sera aux prises avec Maurice. Ce sera la première participation des deux pays. Pour les Mauriciens, ce tournoi risque de ressembler à un parcours du combattant. Quant aux Egyptiens, ils semblent porter le chapeau de favoris du groupe B même si les Pharaons ne se sont jamais illustrés sur le continent.
Les deux invités de la compétition, à savoir la Tanzanie et l’Ouganda s’expliqueront à 16h30. Le match promet d’être équilibré entre deux pays qui commencent à pointer le bout du nez dans cette discipline. Ce sera un peu des retrouvailles pour les deux puisque lors de la dernière Coupe d’Afrique des nations de beach soccer, l’Ouganda avait battu la Tanzanie en phase de groupe (4-3). Pour les Tanzaniens, ils tenteront de faire mieux que lors de la dernière édition où ils avaient échoué en finale.
A noter que toutes les rencontres sont à suivre sur COSAFA.TV.
Gigantes digladiam-se no Beach Soccer Arena a pensar no CAN
É já amanhã que o Beach Soccer Arena, localizado na cidade balnear de Durban, África do Sul, irá acolher a III edição da Taça COSAFA de Futebol de Praia, que juntará oito países dos quais quatro (Senegal, Uganda, Egipto e Tanzania) participam na qualidade de convidadas.
Enquadrada no Grupo A, Moçambique iniciará a defesa do título, com o actual campeão africano, Senegal, adversário com quem disputou e perdeu (4-1) na final do Campeonato Africano das Nações (CAN) organizado pelos senegaleses no ano passado.
Com efeito, os “Guerreiros da Praia”, nome da equipa moçambicana medirão forças com os os “Les Lions de la Téranga”, alcunha da formação senegalesa, quando forem 10.30 horas e, ainda no mesmo local, as Seychelles e África do Sul irão protagonizar o segundo duelo referente a mesma série (A).
Ainda amanhã, o Grupo B entrará em cena sendo que Egipto e Maurícias bater-se-ão nas areias mornas do Beach Soccer Arena quando forem 14.30 horas, para depois no mesmo recinto Tanzania e Uganda encerrarem a jornada às 16.30 horas.
De acordo com o Regulamento da prova apuram-se para as meias-finais, a serem disputadas este domingo, as primeiras duas classificadas de cada grupo e os segundos melhores classificados dos dois grupos. A final está agendada para o dia 30 do mês corrente.
Vale lembrar que o Campeonato HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA de Futebol de Praia servirá de plataforma ideal para estas nações aprimorarem-se e prepararem-se para o Campeonato Africano, que este ano terá lugar na paradisíaca cidade de Vilanculos, localizado em Inhambane, Moçambique de 21 a 30 de Outubro.
Malawi e Madagáscar são as outras equipas da região austral que marcarão a sua presença no CAN de Praia, mas não puderam participar no torneio COSAFA devido a razões logísticas.
Os malauianos vão estrear-se em Moçambique, enquanto que Madagáscar é ex-campeão africano, tendo reclamado o título continental em 2015.
Ao todo, houve quatro equipas a hastear a bandeira da África Austral no continente desde que o primeiro evento foi realizado em 2006.
