Real Assignment: Beach Soccer in Puerto Vallarta
I never imagined that one day I’d be working on a soccer project on a beach. But that’s where I was for two weeks in May.
My knowledge of the U.S. Beach Soccer National Team was limited. I joined the group for a week of camp in Huntington Beach, Calif. and It was a fire drill of sorts to learn more about the players and staff, and of course, the sport itself. And I was fascinated by all of it.
After five days, we flew to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico for the Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship - the World Cup Qualifers for our region. A mini-stadium was set up on a beach next to a Sherton Hotel, about a mile and a half down the road from our resort.
We cruised through the group stage, and then beat El Salvador in the semifinals in dramatic fashion, coming back from a 3-1 deficit in the final minutes, and then winning on penalty kicks to clinch our spot at the 2019 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Paraguay later this year. It’s our fifth time qualifying for a Beach World Cup (only 10 overall), and first time since 2013 after missing out in 2015 and 2017.
It was easily one of the more enjoyable camps I’ve been part of as Press Officer. And proudly, our teams are now six for six in qualifying for a World Cup when they call me in.
