Bacău in Romania has been named as host of the qualifying tournament for the 2017 IBSA Blind Football European Championships ©IBSA

Bacău in Romania has been named as host of the qualifying tournament for the 2017 International Blind Football Federation (IBSA) Blind Football European Championships.

The winners and runners-up at the event, which is scheduled to take place from April 1 to 9, will earn the right to compete at the Championships in Berlin from August 17 to 27.

All IBSA member countries in Europe are able to participate, with the exception of Belgium, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, Russia, Spain and Turkey, who have already qualified as the top eight from the 2015 European Championships in Hereford in England.

The tournament will be known as the IBSA Blind Football European Championships Division Two and will be the first of its kind to be held.

It will also be the first time an official IBSA Blind Football competition has taken place in Romania.

Turkey are one of eight nations to have already qualified for the 2017 IBSA Blind Football European Championships ©Getty Images
Turkey are one of eight nations to have already qualified for the 2017 IBSA Blind Football European Championships ©Getty Images

The entry fee for the tournament is between €525 (£451/$557) and €550 (£462/$581) per participant, including capitation fees, accommodation, all meals and local transport.

European IBSA member countries interested in taking part are asked to complete the expression of interest form and return it to [email protected] and [email protected] by January 15, 2017.

Although Russia have qualified for the 2017 European Championships, they are currently banned from entering events or competitions sanctioned by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC).

The IPC suspended the Russian Paralympic Committee in August over allegations the country operated a state-sponsored doping programme at Sochi 2014.

It meant no Russian Paralympians competed at September's Paralympic Games in Rio de Janeiro.