The WBSC Americas Softball held its XVI Ordinary Congress in Barranquilla, Colombia on 3 February at the Radisson Hotel Diamond. A total of 22 nations participated in the mid-term congress.
The governing body for softball in the Americas is celebrating 45 years of life in 2024 and celebrated the anniversary with the Congress in Colombia. The delegates arrived in Barranquilla on 2 February, with the Congress being held the day after.
WBSC President Riccardo Fraccari was in attendance at the Congress, where the global organising body made a presentation about the opportunities provided by Olympic Solidarity to the National Federations, with women's softball being an Olympic sport at the LA28 Olympic Games in 2028.
The Congress was also an opportunity to discuss the present and future of Baseball5 in the Americas, and how to continue developing the fast-growing urban discipline which will make its Olympic debut at the Dakar 2026 Youth Olympic Games.
The WBSC Americas Softball also committed to integrate its continental events in the WBSC scoring system and digital environment, and give visibility to their teams, athletes and events through the WBSC-owned streaming platform, GameTime, which is already producing and streaming every WBSC Softball World Cup.
During the Congress, the WBSC Americas Softball members ratified a series of amendments to the statutes of the continental organisation, including the possibility to hold virtual congresses, especially for the mid-term, non-elective meeting.
In line with this, the Congress worked to align the statutes, policies and processes of the Americas' regional associations (like the South American Confederation; the English Caribbean Confederation; or the Central American Confederation), in order to unify the criteria and working process regarding umpiring, technical commissioners and scoring.
The Congress also discussed the results of the WBSC Americas Softball in the WBSC Continental Association Governance Review, which is completing its third round while the organisation's financial report was also presented to the Congress for approval.
In addition, the WBSC Americas Softball has been working on a tournament calendar to integrate and coordinate the WBSC global tournaments calendar with the continental and regional schedules.
