president Gabriel Waage announced two major changes to the Euro softball calendar in light of the current COVID-19 pandemic. The first modification hits close to home as Italy was scheduled to host the European Women's Softball Championship in Friuli Venezia Giulia from September 20-26, 2020. For the health and safety of players, staff, and fans, the ESF has revealed that Team Italy manager Enrico Obletter will have to wait until sometime in 2021 for his Azzure softball team to defend the Euro championship throne as exact dates have yet to be determined.
The second change affects the European Men's Softball Championship, which was scheduled to take place in Ledenice, Sezimovo Ústí, Czech Republic from September 28 to October 3, 2020. While the venue for the international tourmanent remains the same, the dates have been moved back to June 21-26, 2021. Both the Euro Women's and Men's Softball Championships serve as qualifiers for the next WBSC World Cups. While the Men's World Cup has been postponed to 2022, the Women's World Cup competition has been rescheduled for 2023. The WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup was last held in Chiba, Japan in 2018, when Team Italy placed seventh in the 16-country tourney by winning four of eight games. Forza #Italia!
by Roberto Angotti
