Federation Focus: Iran Baseball Softball Association banks on Baseball5 as cost-effective way to grow the game

Federation Focus: Iran Baseball Softball Association banks on Baseball5 as cost-effective way to grow the game
26/10/2020
Iran has "the most advanced and modern baseball stadium in the Middle East", according to Houman Mansourian, the new President of the Iran Baseball and Softball Association (IBSA). "The venue is the outstanding achievement of the visits to Iran by WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. We hope we can earn hosting rights of the West Asia Cup from the Baseball Federation of Asia," Mansourian said.

With seven baseball teams and five softball teams currently active and running their own programmes and the total number of players numbering 250 in baseball and 150 in softball, new President of the Iran Baseball and Softball Association (IBSA) Houman Mansourian has his eyes on the WBSC's new urban discipline Baseball5 in helping grow baseball and softball in the country.

"Only three baseball teams have been able to play in our national league," Mansourian told the WBSC, pointing to tough financial conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. "Since I have been elected president, the main goal has been involving these teams in tournaments.

"So we are investing a lot in Baseball5. The possibility of playing everywhere makes it easier for recruiting in schools and universities. We organized the first Baseball5 National Championship in 2018, with six participating teams. We signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Tehran's Municipality to bring Baseball5 to parks across the city. We also plan to educate 70 coaches in the capital city. We hope Tehran can host a wider National Championship in 2021."

While Baseball5 is taking off across Iran, participating on the international stage is not so easy, said Mansourian, who celebrated his 40th birthday in July. "Baseball5 is a co-ed discipline. Iran's laws do not allow mixed-gender activities so we would need the WBSC to make an exception, in order to allow us to participate in international competition."

Mansourian himself enjoyed a successful career as a baseball player. He contributed to a couple of National Titles and earned individually four gold gloves and a batting title. He was certified as a coach by the Baseball Federation of Asia in 2016. He also attended a WBSC Seminar for Technical Commissioners. Before being elected IBSA president, he served three years as the vice president.

With a bachelor in Business Management, Mansourian runs a business in breeding, importing and exporting racehorses. As IBSA President, he says Iran's main obstacle to growing the game is financial.

"The price of equipment has soared during the COVID-19 pandemic. Starting new teams at the moment is a real challenge. There is almost no government budget allocated to baseball and softball in Iran. All our efforts go to keeping baseball and softball alive and active. We mainly get support from the private sector, and we do count on the support of the Baseball Federation of Asia. We also received support from WBSC. That's key to making baseball and softball more popular in Iran."

The Iran Baseball and Softball Association is also very proud of the new baseball stadium in Karaj, a city of 1.6 million people 20 kilometres west of the capital Tehran, which can also help with boosting the popularity of the sport.

"I can state that this is the most advanced and modern baseball stadium in the Middle East," said Mansourian. "The venue is the outstanding achievement of the visits to Iran by WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari. We plan on inaugurating the stadium in early 2021 and we hope we can earn hosting rights of the West Asia Cup from the Baseball Federation of Asia. It would significantly help the development of the game in Iran."

It's the only venue exclusively dedicated to baseball in the country with baseball and softball teams practicing on soccer fields in the rest of the country, said Mansourian. This is another reason why Baseball5 has a lot of potential in Iran says the IBSA leader.

During baseball's heyday in Iran during the 90s, USA contributed a lot to the development of the sport in the country, however times have changed. As Mansourian explained, it's a case of keeping sport and politics separate.

"We separate the people of the US from their politicians. Baseball created opportunities for relations with the US in the 1990s and before the economic sanctions, we had great coaches from the United States visit Iran. Their knowledge helped a lot of youngsters, including myself, improve as players."


Baseball was introduced in Iran by a committee run by Mohammad Bagher Zolfagharian in 1990. However, the country has known bat and ball games, named Chogo, Gol Begir Shadeh and Goei Male, for at least a century.

Zolfagharian's effort led to the birth of the National Association. The first baseball tournament, with three participating teams, was organized in 1996 in Kerman. In 2010, the tournament expanded into the Iranian National Baseball Club Championship League, consisting of a first and a second division.

Each year from 1994 to 2009, teams representing their provinces competed in the National Championship. Tehran won the most titles, 10. Bushehr and Isfahan won two titles each and Kerman earned one title.

The Iran National Baseball Team began competing internationally in 1999. The most relevant accomplishments are a silver medal (2015) and two bronze medals (2012, 2017) in the West Asia Cup. Iran finished second in a Youth Tournament played in Dubai in 2001.

Women's softball under IBSA official launched in 2002. The first National Tournament took place in 2006, with four participating teams. The Iranian Women's National Softball Team played three friendly matches in 2007 and participated in an Asian Youth Tournament in Malaysia.