Softball Europe released the 2021 European softball rankings for Women's Softball, Men's Softball, and Slowpitch.

The ranking is based on the final standings of the European Championships including the youth categories from the last two editions of each competition. Therefore, the ranking reflects the performance of the top teams in each country as well as the development point of view. 

The 2021 rankings are affected by the absence of several National Teams to the 2021 European Championships.

WOMEN
Compared to 2019, the top-3 has not changed: Italy at the top, followed by the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. France recorded a big improvement, moving from the 7th to the 4th position. Israel went from position 15th to 8th. On the other hand, Great Britain and Greece dropped positions due to their absence in the 2021 European Championships. 

The total number of countries in the rankings remains the same as 2019 - 25.

MEN

While the Czech Republic and Denmark keep leading the Men's Softball European rankings like in 2019, the third position of the ranking has changed: Croatia managed to overtake the Netherlands, moving from 7th to 3rd. France, new on the board, ranked 6th thanks to the excellent performance at the 2021 Men's Softball European Championship. Great Britain, Belgium, Germany, and Italy dropped positions due to their absence in the 2021 European Championships.  

The total number of countries in the rankings remains the same as 2019 - 13 - as Poland left the board and France filled in the gap.

SLOWPITCH

As there was no Slowpitch European Championship this season, Slowpitch rankings positions remain the same as 2019 with Great Britain leading with 2050 points.

HISTORY

The previous European Softball rankings can be found here.

How the European Softball ranking system works:

Rankings are based on points (multiplied by 100) given according to final standings at European Championships in all categories, with the following weighting: 

  • Senior European Championship – 100% 
  • Junior European Championship – 50% 
  • All others (U22 and U16) – 25%     

The ranking system only takes into account the two most recent championships in each category, with the following weighting:

  • Most recent ECh – 100% 
  • Previous ECh – 50%   

A total of all the points awarded determines the placement of each country in each ranking.