2026 World Baseball Classic

Last updated

2026 World Baseball Classic
WBC logo.svg
Tournament details
CountriesJapan
Puerto Rico
United States
DatesTBD
Teams20
  2023

The 2026 World Baseball Classic is an upcoming international professional baseball tournament, planned to be the sixth iteration of the World Baseball Classic (WBC). [1] The pool play rounds will be played in Miami, Florida; Houston, Texas; San Juan, Puerto Rico; and Tokyo, Japan. The quarterfinals will be split between Miami and Houston, and the final round will be played in Miami. [2]

Contents

Japan are the defending champions after they defeated the United States 3–2 in the 2023 championship game. [3]

Teams

Qualification

16 teams qualified for the 2026 tournament by being in the top four of their pool in the 2023 tournament. Other participants will be determined through the qualifying tournament. [4] [5]

Qualified teams
RegionTeamQualification
method
Prev.
apps
Previous best resultWBSC World
Rankings [6]
Americas Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool C 3rd Place5Pool stage (2006, 2009, 2013, 2017, 2023)16
Flag of Cuba.svg  Cuba 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool A Winner5Runners-up (2006)8
Flag of the Dominican Republic.svg  Dominican Republic 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool D 3rd Place5Champions (2013)9
Flag of Mexico.svg  Mexico 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool C Winner5Third place (2023)2
Flag of Panama.svg  Panama 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool A 4th Place3Pool stage (2006, 2009, 2023)10
Flag of Puerto Rico.svg  Puerto Rico 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool D Runner-Up5Runners-up (2013, 2017)12
Flag of the United States.svg  United States 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool C Runner-Up5Champions (2017)3
Flag of Venezuela.svg  Venezuela 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool D Winner5Fourth place (2009)6
Asia Flag of Japan.svg  Japan 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool B Winner5Champions (2006, 2009, 2023)1
Flag of South Korea.svg  South Korea 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool B 3rd Place5Runners-up (2009)4
Europe Flag of the Czech Republic.svg  Czech Republic 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool B 4th Place1Pool stage (2023)15
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool C 4th Place1Pool stage (2023)18
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool D 4th Place2Quarterfinals (2017)19
Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool A Runner-Up5Quarterfinals (2013, 2023)14
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool A 3rd Place5Fourth place (2013, 2017)7
Oceania Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 2023 World Baseball Classic Pool B Runner-Up5Quarterfinals (2023)11

Venues

The main tournament will be held in four stadiums. [7]

Pool APool B & QuarterfinalsPool CPool D, Quarterfinals, Semis and Championship
Flag of Puerto Rico.svg San Juan, Puerto Rico Flag of the United States.svg Houston, United States Flag of Japan.svg Tokyo, Japan Flag of the United States.svg Miami, United States
Hiram Bithorn Stadium Minute Maid Park Tokyo Dome LoanDepot Park
Capacity: 18,264Capacity: 41,168Capacity: 45,600Capacity: 36,742
Hiram Bithorn Stadium.jpg Minute Maid Park 2016-04-23.jpg Interior of Tokyo Dome 201904b.jpg MarlinPark.jpg

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References

  1. "Classic will return in 2026, Commissioner confirms". MLB.com. March 21, 2023. Retrieved December 24, 2023.
  2. Tokyo, San Juan, Houston and Miami announced as World Baseball Classic 2026 hosts
  3. "Japan tops Team USA in dramatic finish to claim 3rd Classic title". MLB.com. March 21, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  4. Clair, Michael (March 10, 2023). "No surprise here: Ohtani dominates on hill, at plate". MLB.com. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  5. "Tokyo, San Juan, Houston and Miami announced as World Baseball Classic 2026 hosts". MLB.com. Retrieved May 24, 2024.
  6. "WBSC Rankings - Men's baseball on 28/06/21". World Baseball Softball Confederation . Retrieved July 2, 2021.
  7. "Tokyo, San Juan, Houston and Miami announced as World Baseball Classic 2026 host". MLB.com. Retrieved May 23, 2024.