Thirty-two men's and women's teams will take to the sand at Fort Lauderdale Beach Park Center Court for the first Beach Major Series event of the 2018 calendar.

Main draw action begins tomorrow with the qualifying tournament already underway.

Whilst the women will be competing in their first tournament since early February, the men will be playing for the second consecutive week following their exploits on Kish Island.

Mariusz Prudel, a bronze medallist at the 2013 European Championships in Klagenfurt, and Jakub Szalankiewicz, will be looking to secure their second title in the space of a week after clinching the gold medal in Iran.

Latvian duo Martins Plavins, a bronze medallist at the London 2012 Olympics, and Edgars Tocs, however, will be looking to take revenge on the Polish pair following their 21-18, 24-22 loss in the Kish Island final.

Outside of these two in-form teams, Saymon Barbosa and Alvaro Filho from Brazil will be looking to defend the crown they won in Fort Lauderdale last year.

With Brazil's Talita Antunes missing the event due to her pregnancy, a new champion will be crowned in the women's event.

Antunes and compatriot Larissa Franca had won 13-straight matches at the venue.

In the absence of Antunes and Franca, Canadians Melissa Humana-Paredes and Sarah Pavan will be the favourites for the event.

The pair had an excellent debut season in 2017 and reached seven semi-finals, eventually winning one gold, two silver and one bronze medal.

Brooke Sweat and Summer Ross will carry the hopes of the United States home fans on their shoulders and will be looking to add to their The Hague Open title which they won in January.

The Hague Open was Sweat and Ross' first-ever FIVB World Tour competition together.

The format will see the 32 men's and women's teams play in a round-robin competition followed by single elimination rounds, with the action set to conclude on Saturday (March 3) with the women's final before the men's final takes place the following day.