CHICAGO, Ill. (Oct. 31, 2023) - U.S. Men’s Beach Soccer National Team head coach Francis Farberoff has selected 14 players for the team’s year-end training camp to be held Nov. 4-11 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Continuing in U.S. Soccer’s mission to develop winning teams, the No. 13-ranked USBMNT will use the camp to prepare for the 2024 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in United Arab Emirates as it plays two international friendlies against No. 14-ranked Argentina on Tuesday, Nov. 7 and Thursday, Nov. 9, before playing local club Argentinos de Rosario on Friday, Nov. 10.
The matches against Argentina will be the USBMNT’s final international contests of 2023, a year in which the team has earned a record 10 wins – the most in a calendar year since U.S. Soccer began overseeing Beach Soccer in 2005. The camp replaces the USBMNT’s original plan to take part in the 2023 Intercontinental Cup in Dubai, which was canceled in early October.
“We’re very excited to head to Argentina to cap a very successful year for this program,” U.S. Men’s Beach Soccer National Team head coach Francis Farberoff said. “The two matches against Argentina give us a good test against another high-level opponent that is going to next year’s World Cup and will help us shape our roster as we push toward our main goal of becoming the first U.S. team to advance from the group stage at a Beach Soccer World Cup.”
GOALKEEPERS (2): Austin Collier* (Chesapeake, Va.; 8/0), Chris Toth*^ (Fallbrook, Calif.; 95/16)
DEFENDERS (2): Antonio Chavez* (Oceanside, Calif.; 30/7), Nico Perea*^ (Hollywood, Fla.; 33/18)
MIDFIELDERS (6): Tanner Akol^ (Santa Cruz, Calif.; 20/11), Chris Albiston*^ (Virginia Beach, Va.; 43/18), Fredo Dilbert^ (Miami, Fla.; 22/3), Lukas Holocher (Santa Cruz, Calif.; 3/1), Andres Navas (Miami, Fla.; 11/4), Cody Valcarcel* (Santa Cruz, Calif.; 16/4)
FORWARDS (4): Alessandro Canale*^ (Venice Beach, Calif.; 88/66), Ricardo Carvalho* (Tampa, Fla.; 6/3), Nick Perera*^ (Carlsbad, Calif.; 92/113), Conner Rezende*^ (Davie, Fla.; 28/4)
*Member of 2023 Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship Roster
^Member of 2021 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Roster
The 14-player squad averages 35 caps and features 10 players that were part of the U.S. team that claimed the 2023 Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship this past May in The Bahamas to qualify for next year’s Beach Soccer World Cup. The returning contingent is led by long-time USBMNT veterans in goalkeeper Chris Toth (95 caps), forward and captain Nick Perera (92 caps) and forward Alessandro Canale (88 caps), as well as two-time U.S. Soccer Men’s Beach Player of the Year, defender Nico Perea.
Still with two matches to play, the USBMNT’s 2023 campaign is already one of the most successful in team history. Along with winning the team’s first Concacaf Beach Soccer Championship since 2013, the team’s 10 victories mark the highest win total in program history since U.S. Soccer began overseeing Beach Soccer in 2005. The current six-match winning streak is also tied for the longest in team history, matching the run that occurred from Nov. 9, 2018 to May 17, 2019.
At the attacking end, the USA’s 68 goals is second-most behind the 80 goals scored in 2019, while the team’s +41 goal differential is by far the best in program history.
The USBMNT has met Argentina on the sand nine times dating back to the first match that came during 2005 World Cup qualifying in Rio de Janeiro – a 4-2 USA win. Despite that win, the USA trails in the overall series with a 2-4-3 mark, with Argentina winning the last two meetings. Chris Albiston, Gabe Silveira and Dillon Thompson scored for the USA in a 4-3 defeat to the Albiceleste on Sept. 6, before Antonio Chavez bagged the lone goal in a 2-1 loss to Argentina four days later in the 2022 Asuncion Cup in Asuncion, Paraguay.
On Oct. 6, the USBMNT learned it would face Italy, hosts United Arab Emirates, and Egypt in Group A at the upcoming 2024 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup, which will take place Feb. 15-25 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The opening match on Feb. 15 will see Farberoff’s team take on the 2023 European Champions in what will be the first modern-era meeting between the USA and Italy. With an even 2-2-0 record against United Arab Emirates, the Feb. 17 encounter will mark the fourth-straight Beach Soccer World Cup where the USA will face the host nation. The USBMNT then closes out the group stage on Feb. 19 with its second all-time match against Egypt, one of two nations taking part in their first Beach Soccer World Cup. The top two teams from each group will advance to the tournament quarterfinals on Feb. 22.
Founded in 1913, U.S. Soccer has been the official governing body of the sport in the United States for more than 100 years. As U.S. Soccer looks toward the future amid an unprecedented moment of opportunity, we’ve aligned our efforts around five strategic pillars: Grow the game by increasing youth and adult participation and accessibility to the sport; Foster the best playing environments through quality of referees and coaches, increase DEIB and participant safety; Develop winning teams through solidified pathways and success of professional leagues; Grow the soccer economy to fuel reinvestment by increasing membership, fandom and commercial success; and Create a world-class organization through revitalized structure and culture, best-in-class talent, progress in DEIB, and more. For more information, visit ussoccer.com/ourvision.