Marseille and Dubai to Host FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup

FIFA has confirmed that the United Arab Emirates will host the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2009 in Dubai. The 2008 competition will be held in the city of Marseille, France, the first time in the event’s history that it will be held outside of its birthplace of Brazil.

“What's happened in the last three years since the integration of beach soccer in the FIFA family has been fantastic. I don't know if any other sport has ever made such rapid progress in such a short space of time – both on the pitch and in running the game. It is now a fascinating combination of organised football and lifestyle. By moving the event first to Marseilles and then to Dubai, we are convinced that we will be taking yet another giant step in the dynamic world of beach soccer,” explained FIFA General Secretary Jérôme Valcke during the announcement at the occasion of the draw for the 2007 edition of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Marseille."

Emirates is an Official Partner of the FIFA World Cup with close links to FIFA and all its projects in the 2007–2014 period. At the 2006 FIFA World Cup Emirates became the first airline to be an Official Partner of the world's premier football tournament.

In 2004, Emirates and Arsenal Football Club signed one of the biggest club sponsorships in English football history - in addition to the Fly Emirates logo on the players' shirts, Emirates also has the naming rights of their new home, the Emirates Stadium. The airline also sponsors Paris Saint Germain Football Club and Hamburger SV.

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