The 2022 International Blind Sports Federation (IBSA) Goalball Americas Championships will feature a record number of countries as a total of 25 teams are set to compete.

Thirteen men’s and 12 women’s teams will represent the largest ever contingent of nations when the Championships open in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on 18 February. The previous record, set at the 2019 edition in Lima, Peru, was eight for men and six for women.

The 2022 IBSA Goalball Americas Championships can be watched live at goalball.sport between 18-22 February. The match schedule can be downloaded by clicking here.

Photographs will be available for download for editorial and social media use at IBSA’s Flickr.

Chile and Colombia will make their debut in the men’s and women’s competition at Sao Paulo 2022. Chile, Ecuador and Venezuela will compete for the first time in the women’s as well as a return for Guatemala who last played in 2015. Nicaragua and Costa Rica will make their entrance in the men’s.

Host Brazil are the hot favourites in the men’s as the new Paralympic champions and regional title holders from the last three editions. Lemon Moreno and Josemarcio Sousa scored hat-tricks in the final at Tokyo 2020 and Sousa left as tournament top scorer. Riding the wave of winning their country’s first Paralympic goalball gold, the pair return to the team’s line-up at home.

The Brazilian women will also fight to preserve their impressive record at this level. They are the defending champions and have not missed a final since the competition began in 2005. Jessica Gomes was their top scorer when they just missed out on the podium at Tokyo 2020.

Both the Brazilian teams will face arch-rivals the USA. It was Brazil that came out on top in the women’s in 2019, but the US made it into their first Paralympic final since 2008 last year claiming silver. Asya Miller and Lisa Czechowski will bring their wealth of experience to Sao Paulo as six-time Paralympians.

The US men are fielding Calahan Young who was amongst the top five scorers from Tokyo 2020 on his Paralympic debut. Four-time Paralympian Tyler Merren is also on the squad.

Canada are also no strangers to the regional podium. Both their men’s and women’s teams have grabbed a medal at every single edition, including double bronze in 2019. Emma Reinke and Amy Burk have a combined tally of five Paralympic Game between them, and Burk took the crown for the most goals at the 2019 Americas championships.

The 2022 IBSA Goalball Americas Championships will run from 18-22 February. As well as fighting for the regional title, teams are also going for qualification for the 2022 IBSA Goalball World Championships in Hangzhou, China – the first chance to secure a place at the Paris 2024 Paralympics.