The OFC Beach Soccer Nations Cup has been cancelled because of Covid-19.
Tahiti's Heiarii Tavanae scored twice in the final. Photo: OFC via Phototek
The regional championship was set to be held in Tahiti and serves as the Oceania qualifier for the Beach Soccer World Cup, but was rescheduled multiple times due to border closures throughout the Pacific.
OFC General Secretary Franck Castillo said the organisation exhausted all possible options to play the tournament before coming to this decision.
OFC General Secretary Franck Castillo. Photo: Supplied
"The sad reality of the coronavirus pandemic is that we have a number of hurdles to overcome to operate our tournaments and we are still unable to do so given the border closures throughout the Pacific," he said.
"We look forward to when we can hold this event again in the future and thank our Member Associations for their continued patience during this challenging time in our region."
OFC's Executive Committee nominated Tahiti to attend the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup in Russia in August as Oceania's representative based on current world ranking and sporting merit.
Tahiti celebrate winning the 2019 OFC Beach Soccer Nations Cup. Photo: OFC via Phototek
The French Territory is ranked 13th in the world and has represented Oceania at the past five World Cups, finishing runners-up in 2015 and 2017.
"We thank the Executive Committee for making this decision swiftly to give Tahiti adequate time to prepare for the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2021 in Russia in August," Castillo added.