10 things to know about the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup

Starting this Friday, August 26, we will experience the excitement of seeing the best 15-year-old baseball players on the planet fighting to win fifth edition of the WBSC U-15 Baseball World Cup for their respective countries. Here we bring to you 10 things that you cannot miss about this national-team official world championship tournament.

• The tournament will be hosted by the city of Hermosillo in the state of Sonora, Mexico. A land where you can smell baseball in every corner, home of one of the most successful teams in the Pacific Mexican League: Naranjeros.
  
• Two stadiums will witness the best young talent in the world. Hector Espino Stadium, built for this tournament, and Sonora Stadium, a fantastic venue, opened in 2013, is the home of Naranjeros.
  
• This is the third time that Mexico has hosted the U-15 Baseball World Cup, following the conversion from the U-16 category. The first edition was held in Chihuahua in 2012 and the second in Sinaloa in 2014. The third edition was hosted by Iwaki in Japan and the fourth by David and Chitré in Panamá.
  
• The most successful team in this age bracket is Cuba with two world titles, USA and Venezuela, with one title each, are the other nations who won the World Championship title in this age bracket. Also, Panama, Chinese Taipei and Japan won medals in this age bracket.
  
• For this U-15 Baseball World Cup 13 national teams will fight for the world title. All the former champions at this level are present in this edition.

• The tournament goes from August 26 to September 5 and the schedule comprises 44 games.
  
• The whole tournament could be followed LIVE and worldwide through WBSC OTT Platform GameTime. Check out more details here.
  
• Emerging nations like Guam and France and, surprisingly, a powerhouse like Puerto Rico will compete in a Baseball World Cup in this age group for the first time.
  
• The teams will be divided into 3 groups, the first two of each group will advance to the Super Round.
  Group A: Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Czech Republic and Mexico
  Group B Colombia, France, Japan and Panama.
  Group C: Guam, Puerto Rico, South Africa, USA and Venezuela.
  
• 6 out of the best 10 ranked teams are in this World Cup. The best-ranked team in this tournament is Worldwide Number 1 Japan, followed by No. 2 Chinese Taipei, No. 4 Mexico, No. 5 USA, No. 6 Venezuela, No. 9 Cuba, No. 11 Colombia, No. 13 Panama, No. 14 Czech Republic, No. 16 Puerto Rico, No. 22 France, No. 26 South Africa and No. 38 Guam.