The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) has assigned the next two editions of the U18 Baseball World Cup to Naha City (Okinawa prefecture), Japan in 2025 and to Pingtan, China in 2027.
The Japan Baseball Federation (BFJ) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Enterprise will jointly host the 2025 U18 Baseball World Cup, presented by sponsor Raxus, with the support of the High School Baseball Federation.
Team Italy will participate in the 2025 U18 Baseball World Cup, which last July in Regensburg, Germany, won the 2024 European title under the leadership of manager Guglielmo Trinci to reclaim the throne after a nine-year drought.
In the coming months, the Italian boys will begin training to try to make the best possible impression in what is one of the most prestigious tournaments for international baseball. Cuba leads the roll of honor of the U18 Baseball World Cup with 11 championship titles, followed by the United States with 10, Korea with five, Chinese Taipei with thee, Canada and Japan with one title each. The Japanese are the defending champions after winning the 2023 edition.
The 2025 U18 Baseball World Cup will take place at the beginning of September on an island that every year hosts the spring training of nine NPB franchises. Next year's youth event will have a special flavor: it will be part of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, with Okinawa promoting world peace through sports and international exchange initiatives. One of the key venues for the event will be the 15,000-seat Okinawa Cellular Stadium in Naha.
Forza #Italia!
by Roberto Angotti
