After 1,045 days COVID stand down, the Irish Women’s Softball Teams take the international field once more.

A new look Irish Under 22 team will participate in a very competitive tournament with most participating teams including players on their roster who will be on roster for the Women’s European Championships in Barcelona later this month.

Ireland start the tournament as #3 seeds overall and the number one seed in their pool. Ireland are joined by European Softball powerhouses Austria, Belgium and Spain in the group and will need to be at their best to finish in the top 2 and progress to the super round later in the week.

Ireland will field an exciting roster with 9 of the roster making their debut for Ireland in the coming days. (Full roster – http://fastpitchsoftball.ie/2022-u22-wnt/)

Preparations for World Cup 2023 start this week. We have an exciting group of young players with a lot of talent and potential who are ready to get going and very proud to pull on the Green Jersey.

What makes coaching so enjoyable at this age group is that nobody, including the players themselves, know what their limits are and we are very excited as a group to what we can achieve over the next 6 days together.

Melanie Cunningham, Head Coach & Director of Fastpitch

Ireland start the tournament on June 27 against Austria, followed by Belgium and Spain on June 28.

Opponent	Date	Local Time	Irish Time	Streaming Link
Austria	27 June 2022	14:30	13:30 (1.30pm)	Ireland v Austria
Belgium	28 June 2022	09:00	09:00 (9.00am)	Ireland v Belgium
Spain	28 June 2022	15:45	14:45 (2.45pm)	Ireland v Spain

European Softball will be providing both Play by Play and streaming for the tournament, details below. The games can also be followed via Game Changer.

Official Play by Play – Click Here

Live Stream – Click Here

Game Changer – Click Here

The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Executive Committee have today awarded the co-hosting rights of the flagship WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup to Ireland, Italy and Spain. Ireland together with Italy and Spain will host a group of the World Cup in 2023, with Italy hosting the Finals in 2024.

Other than the Olympic games, the Women’s Softball World Cup is the most prestigious event in World Softball and will be broadcast globally in 2023. Working closely with its bid partners, the World Cup Organising Committee, Fastpitch Ireland and Fingal presented a successful bid to co-host the tournament in Ireland.

The World Cup Group will be held in Fingal on a purpose built venue for the tournament.

“We’re delighted to bring the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup back to Europe, with Ireland, Italy and Spain co-hosting the biggest international softball event in the globe.” “The Women’s Softball World Cup represents the first WBSC World Cup to be played under the innovative Two-Stage format, that gives more flexibility and opportunities for cities, regions and countries to host and participate in WBSC events.”

WBSC President Fraccari

The hosting of the tournament will be the biggest softball event ever hosted in Ireland, and it is envisoned that it will be the catalyst that puts all disciplines of our sport in the eyes of the nation and begins the re-growth of the sport.

“The awarding of the World Cup to Ireland is a testament to the standing of Team Ireland and the Irish Federation in the WBSC. A lot of hard work has been put into developing the bid with Fingal and we are very gateful for Fingals support and vision to join us in the bid.” “This tournament presents a once in a life time opportunity for our Players to play in a World Cup on their home field and for us to create a strong positive legacy for the game in Ireland, promote all disciplines of the game in Ireland and supercharge the growth of women’s and youth softball.”

Melanie Cunningham, Director of Fastpitch Ireland

The exact dates of the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Group Stage and Finals are still to be confirmed and will be announced shortly.

For further media information – please contact Colum Lavery – +353 86 770 8576