![<span class="mw-page-title-main">Little League Baseball</span> Youth sports organization](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8c/Little_League_logo.svg/320px-Little_League_logo.svg.png)
Little League Baseball and Softball is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, United States, that organizes local youth baseball and softball leagues throughout the United States and the rest of the world.
The Little League World Series is an annual baseball tournament for children aged 10 to 12 years old, held in the Eastern United States. Originally called the National Little League Tournament, it was later renamed for the World Series in Major League Baseball. The Series was first held in 1947 and is held every August in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania; while the postal address of the organization is in Williamsport, the Series itself is played at Howard J. Lamade Stadium and Volunteer Stadium at the Little League headquarters complex in South Williamsport.
![<span class="mw-page-title-main">Intermediate, Junior, Senior & Big League Baseball</span>](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/8c/Little_League_logo.svg/320px-Little_League_logo.svg.png)
Intermediate, Junior, and Senior League Baseball are youth baseball divisions of Little League Baseball that are considered more advanced and difficult than younger Little League divisions due to more advanced rules, including the ability to lead-off and steal as the pitcher breaks, along with longer base paths and greater pitching distance. Junior League also includes the use of bats with 2+5⁄8-inch (6.7 cm) barrels rather than the transitional 2+1⁄4-inch (5.7 cm) barrels of Little League. Junior League also allows the use of metal spikes in cleats in addition to the molded or plastic spikes used in Little League. The Big League level was a former division for even older teens until it was discontinued for both baseball and softball after the 2016 Big League World Series due to low participation levels over the previous 15 years.
![<span class="mw-page-title-main">Junior League World Series</span> Recurring baseball tournament for children ages 12-14 help in Taylor, Michigan](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a3/Junior_League_World_Series_field%2C_Heritage_Park_2.jpg/320px-Junior_League_World_Series_field%2C_Heritage_Park_2.jpg)
The Junior League World Series is a baseball tournament for children aged 12, 13, and 14 years old. The tournament is held annually at Heritage Park in Taylor, Michigan. It is patterned after the Little League World Series, which was named for the World Series in Major League Baseball.
The Mid-Atlantic Region is one of ten United States regions that currently sends teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball tournament in the world. The Mid-Atlantic Region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the East Region. However, when the LLWS doubled in size from eight to 16 teams in 2001, with the number of US teams expanding from four to eight, the East Region was split into the New England and Mid-Atlantic Regions.
Qualification for the 2008 Little League World Series took place in eight United States regions and eight international regions in July and August 2008.
The Great Lakes Region is one of ten United States regions that currently sends teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the Central Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the Central Region was split into the Great Lakes and Midwest Regions.
The Midwest Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the Central Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the Central Region was split into the Midwest and Great Lakes Regions. Starting in 2022, 8 teams will be represented at the Midwest regional with the addition of Wisconsin.
The Southeast Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the South Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the Southern Region was split into the Southeast and Southwest Regions.
The Southwest Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the South Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the Southern Region was split into the Southeast and Southwest Regions.
The Northwest Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the West Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the Western Region was split into the Northwest and West Regions.
The West Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region's participation in the LLWS dates back to 1957, when it was known as the West Region. However, when the LLWS was expanded in 2001 from eight teams to 16 teams, the former West Region was split into the Northwest Region and a new West Region. The West Region headquarters is in San Bernardino, California.
The Senior League World Series is a baseball tournament for adolescence aged 13 to 16 years old that began in 1961. In 2017, the tournament was moved from Bangor, Maine to Easley, South Carolina. It is patterned after the Little League World Series, which was named for the World Series in Major League Baseball since 2002.
The Asia–Pacific and Middle East Region is a region that competes in the Little League World Series. Asian teams first competed in the LLWS in 1961, when Japanese teams competed in the original Pacific Region. In 1962, Japanese teams began competing in the newly created Far East Region.
![<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Little League World Series</span>](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Little_League_World_Series_official_logo_2013.png)
The 2013 Little League World Series was held in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania, from August 15 until August 25. Eight teams from the United States and eight from throughout the world competed in the 67th edition of this tournament. The Musashi-Fuchū Little League of Tokyo, Japan, defeated the Eastlake Little League of Chula Vista, California, 6–4 in the championship game. For the country of Japan, this was their ninth LLWS championship overall, second consecutive, and the third in four years. This was the last World Series to feature players born in the 20th century.
The Little League Softball World Series is a softball tournament for girls aged 10 to 12 years old. It was first held in 1974 and is held every August at Stallings Stadium in Greenville, North Carolina, in the United States. Little League expanded the field of World Series participants to 12 in 2022, adding 2 regions in the United States. Before being held in Greenville, it was held outside of Portland, Oregon at Alpenrose Stadium.
The Far East East Region was one of four international regions that competed in the Little League World Series from 1962 to 2000. Far East qualifiers won a record 23 titles — 17 from Taiwan, four from Japan, and two from the Republic of Korea.
Qualification for the 2019 Little League World Series took place in eight United States regions and eight international regions from June through August 2019.
The Metro Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region was created in 2022 when the LLWS was expanded from 16 teams to 20 teams.
The Mountain Region is one of ten United States regions that currently send teams to the Little League World Series, the largest youth baseball competition in the world. The region was created in 2022 when the LLWS was expanded from 16 teams to 20 teams.