The Men’s and Women’s World Tour Finals will be held in Brazil for the second time in a row. From October 19 to 22, the best club teams in the world will meet in Curitiba.

It was a sporting spectacle that the men’s and women’s fistballers celebrated in Curitiba, Brazil, last autumn after the Corona pandemic. After two cancelled events, the best club teams in the world met again – and delivered top sports performances. In 2023, the top eight men’s and women’s clubs will return to Curitiba from October 19-22 for the fourth World Tour Finals in history.

The two defending champions Sogipa/Cargo Way (women) and TSV Pfungstadt (men) will also be taking part in the four days of competition. They will first have to compete in one of the two preliminary groups, from which only the two best teams will remain in the title race and make it to the semifinals. The World Tour Finals will be the last event of the International Fistball Association’s in 2023.

The women of Sogipa from Porto Alegre, just Brazilian champions, not only won the title at the 2022 World Tour Finals, but also claimed first place in last year’s World Tour. Not surprisingly, they are among the top favorites for the title this year as well. In the preliminary round, the team will face SG Novo Hamburgo (Brazil/5th World Tour), TSV Dennach (Germany/2nd World Tour) and Union Nussbach (Austria/7th World Tour). All four teams have also qualified for the three previous World Tour Finals. Group B is different: Here last year’s finalist Clube Duque de Caxias (Brazil/6th World Tour) would like to win a medal as they did in the previous three events. Opponents are TV Jahn Schneverdingen (winner Champions Cup Europe 2022), bronze medal winner 2022, as well as the two newcomers Askö Seekirchen (Austria/3rd World Tour) and Clube Mercês (Brazil/9th World Tour).

In the men’s competition, TSV Pfungstadt from Germany is not only the winner of the last two events, but also one of the favorites in 2023. In the preliminary round, the team will face a Brazilian trio of Clube Mercês (6th World Tour), Sogipa Porto Alegre (2nd World Tour) and Duque de Caxias (5th World Tour). Last year’s finalist SG Novo Hamburgo completes the four Brazilian teams. In its preliminary group, the team will face the three Austrian representatives Union Tigers Vöcklabruck (Champions Cup Europe winner), DSG UKJ Froschberg (3rd World Tour) and UFG Grieskirchen/Pöttingen (4th World Tour).

For the men’s and women’s competition, the preliminary round matches are scheduled first on Thursday and Friday, October 19 and 20. The third and fourth-placed teams in each group will compete in the Duque de Caxias Cup on the other two days of competition, with the top two teams in each group qualifying for the semifinals. The finals are set for Sunday, Oct. 21.

“We will see the best fistballers in Curitiba over the four days,” says Gastão Englert, Chairman of the Sports Commission of the International Fistball Association: “This promises top sporting performance in all matches.” A new feature is that all participating teams will play five matches in the course of the tournament. All 40 matches of the 2023 World Tour Finals will be broadcast live on www.fistball.TV.

The World Tour Finals will open with a Welcome Dinner on the venue of the organizing club, Clube Duque de Caxias. “The organizers proved last year that we can experience fistball events at the highest level here,” Christoph Oberlehner, IFA Secretary General, looks forward to the event: “Duque de Caxias will do everything to create optimal conditions for the fistballers, the staff members and the fans. Everyone involved can look forward to great days in Curitiba.”