Courtesy: UEFA.com

Murcia to stage futsal final four

Thursday, 1 February 2007

El Pozo Murcia FS are to stage the conclusion to the 2007 UEFA Futsal Cup which will be played as a 'final four' tournament for the first time.

Elite teams
Murcia will welcome Spanish rivals and defending champions Interviú Boomerang, last season's runners-up MFK Dinamo Moskva of Russia and 2005 winners Action 21 Charleroi of Belgium with the four sides battling to be crowned the kings of European futsal between 26-28 April. Murcia have double reason for celebration after a 2-0 win against Sporting Clube de Portugal last night confirmed a 3-1 aggregate success in the Copa Ibérica.

'Great atmosphere'
A UEFA delegation visited the Palacio de los Deportes, an impressive 7,500 all-seater arena, before today's announcement. Laurent Morel, UEFA futsal manager, said: "We have decided to stage the 2007 finals in Murcia. Spain has a long tradition in futsal and we are sure that this first final four tournament will be exciting and extremely competitive. Murcia has a strong futsal fan-base and we are sure the matches, featuring some of Europe’s top players, will be played in a great atmosphere."

March draw
The draw for the final four will take place in March. The two semi-finals will be played on 26 April, with the third-placed play-off and final to follow two days later. Spanish sides have dominated the UEFA Futsal Cup with Playas de Castellón FS winning the first two editions before Boomerang won for the first time in 2004. Charleroi became the only non-Spanish winners when they took the 2005 title before normal service resumed with Boomerang's second success last year.



Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com