Press release World Baseball Softball Confederation
LAUSANNE, Switzerland — 05 May 2020 — The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) announced that the hosting rights of the inaugural WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup 2021 have been awarded to Argentina. This will be the second softball world cup hosted by the South American nation, after the IX Men’s Softball World Championship 2012 held in Parana.
The first-ever edition of the U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup, created to bridge the gap between U-18 Men’s Softball World Cup and the senior national teams, will be played in Argentina, in the latter half of the year, and features the world’s best players from 12 countries in the newly created U-23 category.
“We’re very happy with the awarding of the hosting rights of the WBSC U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup to Argentina,” said WBSC Softball Division Board Chairman Tommy Velazquez. “Argentine fans are very passionate and supportive so we expect a very successful and spectacular inaugural edition for the newly created tournament.”
The five continents will be represented in the U-23 Men’s Softball World Cup as follow: Africa (1); Americas (4); Asia (2); Europe (2); Oceania (2); Wild Card (1). Each continental confederation will announce the qualification system for this event.
Argentina has become one of the men’s softball powerhouses in the world. They are ranked number 2 in the world and currently hold the men’s softball world championship crown, after their historic campaign in 2019 in Prague, the Czech Republic. In addition, the South American country won consecutive Junior World Championship in 2012 (as host) and 2014.
The other newly created global event, the U-15 Women’s Softball World Cup, which was due to take place in 2021, has been postponed and will have its inaugural edition in 2023.