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Spanish-language coverage of the 2009 FIFA Club World Cup begins on Wednesday, December 9th at 12:30pm ET with the preliminary match between Al Ahli (UAE) and Auckland City FC (NZL). The contest continues through Saturday, December 19th with the Championship Final airing on Fox Sports en Espanol at 11:00am ET.

FIFA Club World Cup is the competition between the leading clubs from all six continental confederations. Since 2007, the champions of Oceania have played a qualifying play-off against the champion club of the host country. In 2008, Manchester United (ENG) won its first FIFA Club World Cup by defeating first time participants and finalists, LDU Quito, (ECU) by 1-0.

In 2009, the event will be hosted outside of Japan for the first time ever as it travels to United Arab Emirates “Abu Dhabi”.

DAY DATE AIRTIME (ET) MATCH
Wednesday 12/09/2009 12:30 PM PRELIMINARY – Al Ahli FCD (UAE) v Auckland City FC (NZL)
Friday 12/11/2009 11:00 AM QUARTER FINAL – TP Mazembe (COD) v Pohang Steelers FC (KOR)
Saturday 12/12/2009 11:00 AM QUARTER FINAL – Winner Game 1 v Atlante FC (MEX)
Tuesday 12/15/2009 11:00 AM SEMI FINAL – Winner Game 2 v Estudiantes LP (ARG)
Wednesday 12/16/2009 8:00 AM FIFTH PLACE MATCH – Loser Game 2 v Loser Game 3
Wednesday 12/16/2009 11:00 AM SEMI FINAL – Winner Game 3 v FC Barcelona (ESP)
Saturday 12/19/2009 8:00 AM THIRD PLACE MATCH – Loser Game 4 v Loser Game 5
Saturday 12/19/2009 11:00 AM FINAL – Winner Game 4 v Winner Game 5

*For a complete telecast schedule, visit www.fifa.com.

Source: Fox Sports en Espanol

The match schedule for the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 was confirmed at the Official Draw at Abu Dhabi’s Emirates Palace.

The Official Draw was held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Honorary President of the UAE Football Association and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council. Also in attendance was Chuck Blazer, member of the FIFA Executive Committee and chairman of the Organising Committee for the FIFA Club World Cup.

His Excellency Mohammed Khalfan Al-Rumaithi, UAE FA President, His Excellency Mohammed Ebrahim Al Mahmood, General Secretary of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council, and representatives from all seven participating clubs were also present.

His Excellency Mohammed Khalfan Al-Rumaithi said: “We are less than a month away from kick-off and anticipation for the tournament is building significantly. We are very much looking forward to welcoming the players, staff and supporters of all seven clubs, many of whom will be visiting the UAE for the first time. We are confident all of the hard work and preparations over the last 18 months will ensure a memorable tournament for the whole of the UAE to enjoy.”

Manchester United legend Sir Bobby Charlton made a special appearance on behalf of the current club world champions for the handover of the official trophy to the FIFA Club World Cup Local Organising Committee, who will take the prize on tour throughout the UAE over the next month in anticipation of the tournament.

Sir Bobby also joined UAE national team player Ismaeil Matar on stage for the draw.

The following pairings are now confirmed:

Match 1, 9 December: Al Ahli FC v. Auckland City FC
Match 2, 11 December: TP Mazembe v. Pohang Steelers FC
Match 3, 12 December: Winner Match 1 v. Atlante FC
Match 4, 15 December: Winner Match 2 v. Estudiantes de La Plata
Match 5, 16 December: Winner Match 3 v. FC Barcelona
Match 6, 16 December: Loser Match 2 v. Loser Match 3 (5th place match)Match 7, 19 December: Loser Match 4 v. Loser Match 5 (3rd place match)Match 8, 19 December: Winner Match 4 v. Winner Match 5

Chuck Blazer commented: “The match schedule is now complete and with a fantastic line-up of clubs and players confirmed, we look forward to seeing some great football played here in Abu Dhabi in less than a month’s time. The support and excitement for the tournament across the UAE has been tremendous and we are confident all of the clubs will receive a warm welcome.”

For some of the competing clubs, the wait for the Official Draw has been a long one with Auckland City FC, FC Barcelona and Al Ahli FCD all earning entry into the competition back in May.

With only under 100 days to go until the start of the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 presented by TOYOTA, tickets for the tournament officially went on sale today. FIFA and the UAE Football Association (UAEFA) are encouraging fans to act quickly in order to secure their seats and avoid disappointment when this prestigious event comes to the UAE for the first time in December.

Tickets for the tournament, being held at Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium and Zayed Stadium between 9-19 December, can be purchased by logging on to www.FIFA.com/uae2009 or calling 800-5425 or +971 2 449 9955 (if you are calling from overseas).

The official launch took place at the Emirates Palace and was attended by Chuck Blazer, member of the FIFA Executive Committee and chairman of the FIFA Club World Cup Organising Committee, along with Yousuf Abdullah, General Secretary of the UAEFA and His Excellency Mohammed Ibrahim Al Mahmood, General Secretary of the Abu Dhabi Sports Council.

Speaking at the event, Yousuf Abdullah, said: “The new world champion of club football will be crowned in Abu Dhabi in December and this is a unique opportunity for the people of the UAE to be part of an historic international event. Some of the biggest names in football will be playing right here in our backyard for the very first time.”

The final match schedule will not be complete until November when the respective AFC and CAF Champions League finals are contested, but there is already great demand for tickets. The opening match will pit the UAE’s Al Ahli FCD against OFC Champions League winners Auckland City, whilst the semi-finals will feature FC Barcelona in one tie and Argentinian side Estudiantes de la Plata, captained by Juan Sebastian Veron, in the other.

Chuck Blazer said: “This competition goes from strength to strength every year. I remember Sir Alex Ferguson saying last year that whatever the club goes on to achieve in the future, people will always be able to look back at the records and see that in 2008, Manchester United were the champions of world club football.”

“I know that people in the UAE are very passionate about their football and with both stadiums having undergone extensive refurbishment, I am sure fans will enjoy a fantastic tournament.”

Ticket prices and packages
Tickets are available in four price categories for each matchday and have been designed with affordability and accessibility in mind. The price categories reflect the variation in views of the pitch. Ticket prices start from as little as AED 10 for category four tickets and go up to AED 300 for category one tickets for the closing ceremony and the final.

Female and family stands
To ensure the FIFA Club World Cup UAE 2009 is an event that can be attended and enjoyed by everyone, dedicated female-only and family stands will be available at both stadiums.

Off the pitch, spectators will also be able to enjoy a football fan zone which will include a range of entertainment activities for the whole family as well as merchandise stores and food and beverage outlets. The fan zone will open two hours before every match.

Advance purchase and reserved seating
The public will be required to purchase tickets in advance and all ticket holders will be assigned specific seats in line with FIFA competition requirements.

At the time of ticket purchase, customers will be allocated a seat in their requested price category and will be able to view the zone in the stadium where they will be seated. All customers who purchase tickets online or by phone will receive a confirmation e-mail or text message.

In recognition of Visa’s valued sponsorship, FIFA prefers Visa.

NTT Electronics Corporation, headquartered in Yokohama City in Japan’s Kanagawa Prefecture (hereafter, NTT Electronics) is pleased to announce that its “HV9100 Series” AVC/H.264 HDTV/SDTV encoder/decoder have been selected by Sentech, a state-owned communication service company in the Republic of South Africa, as the codec equipment to be used for HD coverage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa(TM).

The operation of a broadcast transmission system using the HV9100 Series was started in the FIFA Confederations Cup 2009, which opened on June 14, 2009, as a precursor to the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa(TM).

In the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa(TM), the satellite communications of Sentech will be used for coverage of video from each stadium to the International Broadcast Center (IBC), which is the base for broadcasters from around the world. The NTT Electronics HV9100 Series will be installed (system integrated by Comscience) in all 10 stadiums in various regions of the Republic of South Africa where games will be held, and will be used by Sentech for contribution feeds to the IBC.

“The MPEG-2 format will be used in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, but we will also make use of the AVC/H.264 format in the future. The NTT Electronics HV9100 Series meets our needs in that it is compatible with both MPEG-2 and AVC/H.264,” said Mr. Allan Bester, Executive Network Services of Sentech. “The HV9100 Series is also compatible with the 4:2:2 Profile, allowing us to distribute high-definition video of Africa’s first FIFA World Cup in 2010. In addition, the HV9100 Series has already demonstrated outstanding performance in sporting events around the globe such as the Beijing Olympics and thus, we are confident that it will also contribute to high quality video transmission of the FIFA World Cup. Viewers will be able to enjoy full HD coverage from the stadiums.”

The HV9100 Series supports both HD (1080i / 720p) and SD (480i / 576i). It additionally supports, optionally, up to 16 channels of audio input capability and an IP interface. The HV9100 Series gained a great deal of attention right after its release in January 2008, and has already been selected by many broadcasting stations with a broad use ranging from domestic station content transmissions to contributions or distributions in Japan, North America, Europe and Brazil.

Source: NTT Electronics Corporation