Five matches to get you in the mood for the Hamburg Finals!

All three women's teams that hit the Gstaad podium are in Hamburg for the World Tour Finals

The battle to be the best of the beach begins on Wednesday with the first 12 matches of the Beach Volleyball FIVB World Tour Finals in Hamburg taking place.

The biggest stars of the sport go head-to-head throughout the week, aiming to take home a share of 800,000 US Dollars in prize money and the title of World Tour Finals champion.

Among the dozen matches taking place on the opening day of the tournament are five games you can’t afford to miss – whether in person or on BeachStream – and we’ve carefully selected the best, so you don’t have to…

Here we go!! 😃😁 World Tour Finals starts tomorrow! Can't wait to compete with my sista again 👊🏾💪🏾 Vamossss! #fuerza #contodo #topbun #hamburgfinals #majorseries

35 Likes, 1 Comments - Mariafe Artacho del Solar (@mariafe_beach1) on Instagram: "Here we go!! 😃😁 World Tour Finals starts tomorrow! Can't wait to compete with my sista again 👊🏾💪🏾..."

Who? Pavan/Humana-Paredes v Artacho/Clancy

When? 3pm CEST

Where? Court 2

Why? In a re-run of the Commonwealth Games final, Canadians Sarah Pavan and Melissa Humana-Paredes will aim for a repeat of their triumph over Australians Mariafe Artacho and Taliqua Clancy. The Aussies – the only team from Asian/Australasian confederation in Hamburg – have enjoyed a great season, winning in Espinho, while the North Americans have already taken gold in Gstaad and Xiamen. Who will come out on top in this first meeting on the international stage?

Who? Bansley/Wilkerson v Meppelink/Keizer

When? 4pm CEST

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

Why? Two in-form teams go toe-to-toe in the Red Bull Beach Arena’s first match of the tournament. Canadians Heather Bansley and Brandie Wilkerson have won four medals this season, including bronze in Gstaad and a gold in Warsaw. Dutch duo Sanne Keizer and Madeline Meppelink come into their Hamburg opener having being crowned European champions and won bronze in Vienna two weeks ago. This will be the first time the two sides meet.

The boys are already in Hamburg to prepare themselves for @beachmajorseries #HamburgFinals 🏆 The action starts from Wednesday next week, this is going to be a lot of fun! 💪 . #GoVikings #TeamNorway #BeachVolleyball #WTFinals #Hamburg

1,723 Likes, 26 Comments - Beach Volley Vikings (@beachvolleyvikings) on Instagram: "The boys are already in Hamburg to prepare themselves for @beachmajorseries #HamburgFinals 🏆 The..."

Who? Fijalek/Bryl v Mol/Sørum

When? 5pm CEST

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

Why? You only have to look back to final of the Vienna Major for the last time these two teams met. That day, Beach Volley Vikings Anders Mol and Christian Sørum took gold, but the silver medal for Michal Bryl and Grzegorz Fijalek was enough to take the Poles to the Finals. The Norwegians haven’t lost in 19 matches, having won their last three tournaments. Who can stop them this week in the Rothenbaum or can they extend their sequence even further?

Who? Agatha/Duda v Bieneck/Schneider

When? 8pm CEST

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

Why? As the first German team to take to the Red Bull Beach Arena, Victoria Bieneck and Isabel Schneider will have the full backing from the home fans as they take on last year’s silver medalists. With no Laura Ludwig and Kira Walkenhorst this season, Agatha Bednarczuk and Duda Santos Lisboa will hope to go one better after finishing runners-up here 12 months ago. Under the floodlights of the Rothenbaum, the atmosphere promises to be extra special.

Who? Stoyanovskiy/Velichko v Wickler/Thole

When? 9pm CEST

Where? Red Bull Beach Arena

Why? Two beach volleyball teams of the future meet in the final match of day one inside the Red Bull Beach Arena. Russians Oleg Stoyanovskiy and Igor Velichko are just 21 and 23 years-old respectively – as are Germans Julius Thole and Clemens Wickler. Both teams have enjoyed excellent seasons, especially Oleg and Igor, who have reached the podium three times, and won the Xiamen four-star in April. But, buoyed by a capacity crowd, the Germans will have the fans on their side.

Match action begins on court 2 on Wednesday at 10am CEST. Click here for the full court schedule.