The information below was distributed earlier this week by the WBSC recapping the 2024 season and looking ahead to 2025. Only female softball news & items were included. To go to the original article, click HERE.

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2024 in Review: Superb Softball Season Keeps Momentum Going with Three World Cups; LA28 Olympics in Sight

On the field, there was international softball action in three World Cups, including the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals, and the Group Stage of the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup and the WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup, for a total of seven events. Off the field, the announcement of the LA28 Olympic Softball venue as well as the dates for The World Games 2025, where men’s and women’s softball will be featured, were top highlights.

“After a momentous 2023, which saw us host many international events and our sport included on the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 sports programme, we now look ahead to another exciting year this year.”

With these words, World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) President Riccardo Fraccari anticipated in January a remarkable 2024 for softball, full of top-class competition and major news and the year did not disappoint.

“On the field, we saw softball action in three World Cups,” President Fraccari continued including:

• • the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals
  • the Group Stage for the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup
  • the WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup

“… for a total of seven events. Off the field, we witnessed the announcement of the LA28 Olympic Softball venue as well as the dates for The World Games 2025, where men’s and women’s softball will be featured.”

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The WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals: Japan Claims 4^th World Title

The WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals was an astounding success in Italy. A sell-out crowd in Castions di Strada saw Japan claim their fourth World Title, beating USA, 6-1, in the World Championship Final. 

“We are concentrating on the Los Angeles 2028 Games,” Japan’s head coach Reika Utsugi said after the final.

“This victory will encourage the whole [Japanese] softball community to work even harder. We have a lot of young players on the roster. This world title will give them a lot of confidence.”

🏆🇯🇵 Congratulations to Japan on winning the World Championship!#SoftballWorldCupW pic.twitter.com/2q1p5Lqx1c

— WBSC ⚾🥎 (@WBSC) July 21, 2024

Canada secured the bronze medal in a dramatic 11-inning game against the Netherlands, who were aiming to become the first European team to step onto the podium. This marked Canada’s fourth bronze medal in the Women’s Softball World Cup, adding to their three previous third-place finishes, as well as a silver medal in 1978.

This tournament marked the completion of the XVII WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup, the first ever WBSC event to be played under the two-stage format.

After the group stage played in 2023 in Ireland, Spain and Italy (all of them hosting a Softball World Cup for the first time), the tournament finished on a high note with an unforgettable finale in Castions di Strada.

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The WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup: 8 Teams Advance to 2025 Finals

The WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup was played this year under the same two-stage format. Group A was held in Sao Paulo, Brazil; Group B in Pingtan, China; while Dallas, USA, hosted Group C. 

Brazil hosted a Softball World Cup for the first time in history, illustrating the opportunities the new two-stage format provides for hosts cities. 

With the conclusion of the Group Stage, the eight teams advancing to the 2025 Finals to be held in Dallas have been confirmed: World No. 1 USA, No. 2 Japan, No. 3 Puerto Rico, No. 4 Chinese Taipei, No. 6 Canada, No. 8 Czechia, No. 9 Mexico, and No. 12 China. 

In one of the most extraordinary individual performances in the history of the event, Morgan Reimel pitched a perfect game in Canada’s 2-0 win against Australia in Group C. She went seven-innings with 14 strikeouts.

PERFECTION✅
🇨🇦Morgan Reimer pitches a perfect game for Canada!

🔛 Play by Playhttps://t.co/ZJC4Vr75uf
📺 LIVE Streaminghttps://t.co/1hIixsFn8R#SoftballWorldCupWU18 pic.twitter.com/po055LHp8Z

— WBSC ⚾🥎 (@WBSC) September 1, 2024

The top national women’s softball programmes had an excellent opportunity in 2024 to assess their teams and players competing on the global stage at the U-18 and senior World Cups, with the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 as their main target, 

Of the 90 players who participated in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Softball competition, 46 played the WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup (formerly Junior Women’s Softball World Championship) in the early stages of their career, making the global youth tournament a starting point for the international career of the world’s top players.

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Oklahoma City’s Softball Park to Host 2028 Olympic Softball Competition

Off the field, a big announcement was made in June, with the confirmation of Softball Park in Oklahoma City, OK as the competition venue for the LA28 softball competition, an iconic and breathtaking stadium for softball’s sixth appearance at the Olympic Games.

🚨LA28 News🚨

Excited to share our first series of announcements for the updated 2028 venue plan. Pending approvals from @LACity, IOC, and IPC, LA28 plans to provide an updated Games Plan which we believe will reflect the bounty of existing world-class venues in LA, offering the… pic.twitter.com/xwdKuK7xKE

— LA28 (@LA28) June 21, 2024

With a capacity of 13,000 spectators, the stadium hosted the U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup 2015 and the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup Group C this year. It’s also the home of the NCAA Women’s Softball World Series, which annually draws over 190,000 people from outside Oklahoma to enjoy softball. 

“Hosting the Games in Oklahoma City extends the Olympic spirit beyond Los Angeles, bringing the festivities to the heart of America’s softball community. This venue selection not only celebrates the sport’s roots but also engages a broader audience, fostering a nationwide Olympic atmosphere,” President Fraccari said on LA28’s announcement.

In 2028, USA will become the first nation to host an Olympic softball competition twice, after the sport’s historic debut in the Olympics in Atlanta 1996. 

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Dates Announced for International World Games (IWGA)

The International World Games Association (IWGA) confirmed this year the dates and competition venues for all 35 sports to be featured on the sports programme of The World Games 2025.

The women’s competition will be contested from the 13^th to the 17^th in August, 2025. 

Softball will be played at Sichuan Baseball-Softball-Hockey Centre located in Southern Chengdu, China.

The venues and competition schedule for The World Games 2025 are now official! 🤩

Check out where and when the competitions will take place: https://t.co/YUygWkg07M#RoadtoChengdu #WeareTheWorldGames #TWG2025@twg2025 pic.twitter.com/6WwIBAjLJO

— The World Games (@TheWorldGames) May 21, 2024

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Related News

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• 2024 Year in Focus
• Japan Softball extends head coach Reika Utsugi’s contract through LA28 Olympics aiming to three-peat as gold medallists24/12/2024 07:12