Yuri Morales

Both sides arrived at the final assured of a spot at the third FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup thanks to a pair of wins in their opening two matches. The Stars and Stripes rode the goals of Brendon Taguinod and outstanding captain Francis Farberoff to an attack-happy 9-5 win over first-timers El Salvador in their opening match on Thursday. Mexico pulled off a decidedly more defensive-minded 3-1 win over a tricky Costa Rican outfit.

Friday's second round of matches at the Fairmont Acapulco Princess Hotel Beach proved decisive for both teams. Four goals from Jevin Albuquerque in a 5-3 win over the Ticos saw the USA through to Rio as Mexico booked passage to Copacabana Beach's fabled world finals for the first time when Ivan Medina and from Ricardo Villalobos struck to seal a 6-4 victory over the Salvadorans.

"Being 3-0 ahead and allowing the Costa Ricans to come back into and make it 3-3 must serve as a lesson for the future," said American goal hero Albuquerque after suffering a scare in the crucial win against Costa Rica. "Fortunately, we took back control and gave ourselves a chance of winning the title in the final game."

Without last year's finalists Canada in the competition, all the pundits were predicting the proceedings would boil down to the USA and Mexico, and a clasico final was always on the cards as the old North American rivals took their heated enmity to yet another venue: the beach. In the end, the Americans earned what has proven a tricky ask on grass: a win on Mexican soil (sand in this case).

The back-and-forth final was a hot one from the opening whistle as the white jerseys of the Americans and the green of El Tri hearkened back to the countless eleven-a-side classics the two nations have contested through the years. Anthony Chimienti, a veteran of Rio 2006, opened the scoring for the Americans inside the first minute and Mexican Gustavo Rosales wasted no time in responding, bulging the back of the US net just 30 seconds later.

Hat-trick hero on the day, Yuri Morales, struck next for the USA in minute 11 before Ricardo Villalobos drew level again just seconds later. Zak Ibsen went on to put the US in front again shortly after, only to see his strike cancelled out in the 16th minute by Francisco Cati. Morales hit home again in minute 29 and, true to form, the Mexicans drew level in the next minute through Rosales. At 4-4, the USA - with the experience of the first two FIFA Beach Soccer World Cups under their belts - finally put the game out of reach in the 33rd minute thanks to a stunning volley from Morales.

The nine-goal final was a true classic worthy of the heated rivalry that divides the two nations. And as Costa Rica (third place) and El Salvador (fourth) head for home with hard lessons learned, the USA and Mexico - considered top dogs in all age levels and all disciplines in the CONCACAF region - are set for a trip to Copacabana beach and the Beach Soccer world finals from 2 to 11 November.

After their loss in the final, the Mexicans - who successfully broke with an earlier attempt to use eleven-a-side players on the beach by scouring the country for native coastal talent - were thrilled to be Rio-bound. "We finally reached it. After over a year of hard work, it's awesome to achieve our ultimate goal. I hope this result may serve as a huge boost for Mexican beach soccer in the years to come," remarked coach Ramón Raya.

The South American qualifiers for Rio 2007 also took place in Acapulco at the weekend with Uruguay and Argentina qualifying for their second consecutive global showpiece. They join the USA, Mexico, Nigeria, Senegal, the Solomon Islands and hosts Brazil as already qualified nations. Asia and Europe will play their qualifiers before the end of August to round out the 16-team field.