Tucson, Arizona, to host 2021 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers

The qualifying rounds for the 2021 World Baseball Classic will be held in March 2020 at the Kino Sports Complex in Tucson, Arizona, with four teams out of the 12 attending getting advancement into the 2021 WBC main bracket.

Each pool will feature six teams with the top two finishers in each advancing. Pool 1, scheduled for March 12–17, will feature Brazil, France, Germany, Nicaragua, Pakistan and the Republic of South Africa. In Pool 2, March 20–25, the teams will be the Czech Republic, Great Britain, New Zealand, Panama, Philippines and Spain.

“We are excited to bring the World Baseball Classic Qualifying Round to Tucson, Arizona,” said Tony Petitti, Major League Baseball deputy commissioner for business and media. “We would like to thank our host, the Kino Sports Complex, the city of Tucson and the WBSC for their support in continuing in their efforts to grow the game around the world.”

The four teams from the qualifying rounds will join 16 countries—Australia, Canada, China, Chinese Taipei, Colombia, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Mexico, Puerto Rico, United States and Venezuela—that received automatic invitations based on their performance in the 2013 tournament.

“We are looking forward to seeing great players from around the world come together to play the game we all love,” said Leonor Colon, senior director of international and domestic player operations for the Major League Baseball Players Association. “Our hope is that many of these players will be inspired by the experience and will go on to represent their countries at the Major League level one day soon.”

The 2021 World Baseball Classic, the fifth edition of the tournament, will be held in March.