May 29 – FIFA’s executive committee may have been split on the reform package they are to put to Friday’s Congress vote, but they did find concensus on other matters, including the awarding of tournament hosts, shortlisting of tournament bids and an update on next year’s World Cup.
Portugal was appointed as hosts of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2015, beating off competition from Brazil and Russia. The tournament at the Canide beach in Vila Nova de Gaia will be the eighth edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup and its 18th since the establishment in 1995 of the Beach Soccer World Championships. The 2013 edition will take place in Tahiti this September.
Brazil have won 13 of the 16 finals tournaments held, and were losing finalists to current world champions Russia in 2011. Portugal won the championship in 2001.
Colombia were appointed hosts of the FIFA Futsal World Cup 2016, beating the Czech Republic in the vote. Colombia proposed to host the eighth edition of the championship in six venue cities: Bogota, Villavicencio, Bucaruamanga, Cucuta, Ibaque and Neiva.
The executive committee also welcomed the high interest in a string of FIFA competitions, as shown by the number of countries that submitted a bid to host the following tournaments:
• FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2016 (Norway, Republic of Ireland, South Africa)
• FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2016 (Bahrain, Jordan, Republic of Ireland, South Africa)
• FIFA U-20 World Cup 2017 (Bahrain, France, Korea Republic, Mexico, Poland, Republic of Ireland, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, Ukraine)
• FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017 (India, Republic of Ireland, South Africa, Uzbekistan)
• FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017 (Argentina, Bahrain, Equatorial Guinea, Estonia, India, Israel, Mexico, Seychelles, South Africa, Turkey)
The hosts of these tournaments will be appointed in December 2013.
Also on the agenda was an update on the next year’s World Cup, with recently installed CONMEBOL President Eugenio Figueredo appointed as the new chairman of the Organising Committee.
Uruguay’s Figueredo took over the running of South American football following the sudden resignation of Nicolas Leoz last month. Figueredo will hold the presidency until the end of the current mandate in 2015.
Figueredo was president of the Uruguayan Football Association, one of the 10 members of CONMEBOL, from 1997 to 2006. This is his first FIFA executive committee meeting since taking over from Leoz.
Contact the writer of this story at andrew.warshaw@insideworldfootball,com