PULLY, Switzerland -- With one month to go until the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games baseball competition, the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) today released the updated WBSC Baseball World Rankings, which encompass a global footprint of 84 countries and territories.
The WBSC Baseball World Rankings measure National Team performance — from U-12 to Professional — in official WBSC-sanctioned international competitions over a four-year period. The newly published rankings reflect the distribution of ranking points from 2018-current (2021). No ranking points were awarded in 2020 as a result of the suspension of international games due to COVID-19.
Tokyo 2020 Teams
Following the world rankings update, the group assignments and group stage schedule for the six-team Tokyo 2020 Olympic Baseball tournament have been confirmed, with hosts Japan taking on Saturday's winner from the WBSC Baseball Final Qualifier - the Dominican Republic - in the opening game on 28 July.
Group A
Japan (WR1)
Mexico (WR5)
Dominican Republic (WR7)
Group B
Korea (WR3)
USA (WR4)
Israel (WR24)
“The Tokyo 2020 Olympic baseball tournament -- which will feature the top-ranked baseball nations and their players -- will be by far the most competitive and compelling in Olympic history,” said WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. “Winning the gold medal will be an exciting and unpredictable challenge, where any team can beat the other -- this is one of the strengths of the sport of baseball, and it also highlights the growth and evolution of our global game.”
Asia 1-2-3
No. 1 Japan maintains its position as the top-ranked
baseball country in the world, followed by No. 2 Chinese Taipei, who moved up
two spots, No. 3 Korea, No. 4 USA, No. 5 Mexico and No. 6 Australia, Oceania’s
top-ranked team.
No. 7 Dominican Republic advanced three spots, while
No. 8 Canada made the biggest move within the top 10, rising five spots.
No. 9 Netherlands remains Europe’s top-ranked baseball
nation.
No. 10 Venezuela fell two places, while No. 11 Cuba
dropped out of the top 10 for the first time since the Baseball World Rankings
were launched in 2009.
No. 12 Nicaragua moved up three positions to the critical cut-off point of the flagship WBSC Premier12.
The Americas features the highest concentration of competitive baseball nations, with the region claiming 11 spots within the Top 20.
No. 41 Switzerland was the top gainer, having moved up nine positions, while No. 39 Honduras moved up eight places.
The full WBSC Baseball World Rankings and formula can be found at https://rankings.wbsc.org.