World Cup Thailand 2012, which took place this Friday 24 August at theSt. Regis Hotel in Bangkok, with guests including FIFA Executive Committeemember Manilal Fernando and Local Organising Committee Chairman SuwatLipatapallop.Suttipong Tatpithakkul was thehost of the ceremony, while the Official Draw was carried out by Jaime Yarza,FIFAs Senior Manager of Futsal and Beach Soccer Competitions. Helping him wereThai boxer Somluck Kamsing, who won a gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games inAtlanta, former Thai football international Kiatisuk Zico Senamuang, as wellas Natpimol Natthayalack and Warudthaya Wongchayapon who finished first and third respectively atthe Miss Universe Thailand 2012 competition.This is the seventh hosting ofthe event and 24 countries are involved this time around, split into sixgroups. Hosts Thailand are in Group A and will be hoping to overcome Costa Rica,Ukraine and Paraguay to make it through to the Round of 16.Reigning FIFA Futsal World Cupwinners Brazil were the first team drawn in Group C and will face experiencedopponents from three different continents in the shape of Japan, Libya andPortugal. Spain meanwhile, who on paper are the team most likely to dent theSouth American title-holders chances of a repeat performance, find themselvesin Group B alongside Iran, Panama and Morocco.Group D looks to be the mostbalanced of the six, with Argentina, Mexico, Italy and Australia all having thepotential to make it through to the knock-out stages.The tournament begins on 1November with the final being held in Bangkok on 18 November. The Thai capitalhas three matchday venues, while Nakhon Ratchasima will also be hosting games.The 24 participating teams weredrawn in six groups of four, with the top two from each group going through tothe Round of 16 along with the four best third-placed teams.Group A: Thailand, Costa Rica,Ukraine, ParaguayGroup B: Spain, Iran, Panama,MoroccoGroup C: Brazil, Japan, Libya,PortugalGroup D: Argentina, Mexico,Italy, AustraliaGroup E: Egypt, Serbia, CzechRepublic, KuwaitGroup F: Russia, Solomon Islands,Guatemala, Colombia.The draw was almost complete whenit was realised that two South American teams had been drawn together in GroupC, which was not allowed as per the Draw regulations. Therefore, after a shortbreak, the final four teams were re-drawn, ensuring that the only group withmore than one team from the same continent due to seven qualifiers comingfrom Europe is Group E, which featuresCzech Republic and Serbia.The new Futsal World Cup Trophywas also presented during the Official Draw. It has been designed and createdby Thomas Fattorini Ltd. in Birmingham, England and comprises five gold andfive silver rods which represent two teams of five players each. It is 48centimetres high, weighs 4.6 kilogrammes and is made up of sterling silver,stainless steel, copper, lead and zinc.Sediado na Tailandia, o Mundialde Futsal 2012 e disputado por 24 selecoes, maior numero de participantes dahistoria da competicao. As equipes estao divididas em seis grupos, onde os doisprimeiros garantem vaga automatica as oitavas de final, assim como os quatromelhores terceiros colocados.No grupo A estao Tailandia,Ucrania, Paraguai e Costa Rica; o B tem Espanha, Ira, Panama e Marrocos. Atualcampeao, o Brasil esta na chave C, ao lado de Portugal, Japao e Libia. No grupoD estao Argentina, Mexico, Italia e Australia, enquanto o E tem Egito,