The WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup Group B is set to open on Wednesday at the Pingtan Softball Stadium. Six teams will compete for two spots in the 2025 Finals. A total of 19 games will be played and two teams will join Chinese Taipei and Czechia, who have already punched the tickets to the 2025 Finals.
Check out 10 things you should know about this group.
1.- Three out of the six teams in Group B have won medals in the tournament dating back to 1981 while China and Japan have both won the title of World Champions. China won in 1985, Japan has been crowned five times (1981, 1991, 1999, 2003, and 2013) while Puerto Rico have finished with a bronze medal three times (2015, 2017, and 2021). Seven countries have medalled in this event overall.
2.- This is the first time for Pingtan, China to host a WBSC World Cup since the completion of the Pingtan Softball Stadium in 2015. This is also the first time for the Women’s Softball World Cup for this age group to return to China since 2003, when Nanjing hosted the tournament. During the WBSC U-18 Softball World Cup history, the events have been hosted by the Member Federations of Canada, USA, Australia, Chinese Taipei, China, Netherlands, South Africa, Peru, and Brazil. This event has been hosted on five continents.
3. Five of the six participating teams
in Group B have finished in the top eight of this competition in the past. Only
Italy has failed to do so, with a best finish of ninth in 2015.
4. In the past, 35 nations and territories from the five Olympic continents have participated in this event. In 2017, a record 26 teams participated in the tournament when there was no qualification process and open registration.
5. China and Japan have participated in the tournament 13 times, the second-most appearances in the tournament's history. USA is the only nation to participate in all 14 WBSC U-18 Women’s Softball World Cup editions while Australia, Canada, and Chinese Taipei have also played 13 times.
6. In Group B, only the Netherlands, Peru, and Puerto Rico participated in the tournament's last edition, which was held in Lima, Peru, in 2021.
7.- World No. 2 Japan is 6-0 against the
teams in Group B over the past three editions. Since 2017, Japan has defeated
every team in the group at least once and is enjoying a +44 run differential against
the teams in the group.
World No. 3
Puerto Rico is 4-2 against the teams in Group B over the past three editions.
Besides two losses to Japan, Puerto Rico has defeated China, the Netherlands,
and Peru.
8. China and Italy have been winless
against the teams in Group B over the past three editions. China is 0-3, with
two losses to Puerto Rico and one defeat against Japan, while Italy lost to
Japan in its only match against the teams in Group B.
The
Netherlands and Peru are 1-3 against teams in Group B over the past three
editions. The Netherlands went 1-1 against Peru and lost to Japan and Puerto
Rico, while Peru went 1-1 against the Netherlands and lost to Japan and Puerto
Rico.
9. The first edition of this World Cup was played in 1981 in Edmonton, Canada. The Junior Men's and Junior Women's World Cups were played simultaneously that year. A total of 10 teams participated in the inaugural event, with Japan winning the championship, USA winning the silver medal, and China winning the bronze medal.
For the first three editions of the event, all the medals were won by China, Japan, and USA. In the inaugural event in 1981, the first three teams were Japan, USA, and China.
In 1985, China won the championship, Japan came second, and USA walked away with the bronze medal.
In 1987, USA was the champion, China won the silver medal, and Japan took third place.
10.- The eight-team WBSC U-18 Women's
Softball World Cup Finals will be played in 2025 in Dallas, USA.
