The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) and Softball New Zealand jointly announced the new dates of the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup 2022. The 12-team tournament will open on 19 February at ELE Rosedale Park in Auckland, New Zealand, with the World Championship Game to be played nine days later on Sunday, 27 February.

The WBSC Men's Softball World Cup was originally slated to take place from 20-28 February 2021, but had to be postponed due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic with health and safety measures, and travel restrictions around the world, preventing continental qualification events from taking place.

"With this announcement we continue the legacy of the late Don Porter, whose vision, values and leadership launched the Men's Softball World Championship in 1966 and turned it into the global spectacle it is today," said WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. "After the huge success of the 2019 edition in the Czech Republic, we can't wait to be back in New Zealand -- home to one of the leading men's national softball teams in the world -- with the premier tournament for men's international softball, helping to continue the exceptional growth of the game."

Through the continental championships, which serve as official qualifiers, the global representation of the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup will be as follows 

  • Africa:One (1)
  • Asia: Two (2)
  • Americas: Four (4)
  • Europe: Two (2)
  • Oceania:  Two (2)
  • Wild Card: One (1) 

The 2021 Men's European Championship in Ledenice, Czech Republic, will serve as a qualifier.

/WBSC press release
photo courtesy WBSC