Houston, Miami, San Juan, Tokyo: World Baseball Classic ’26 Countdown Begins
Wednesday, August 21, 2024 at 03:58PM By Barry Janoff
August 21, 2024: In 2026, one of the biggest events in sports will take place when the FIFA Men’s World Cup is hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico.
Baseball is looking for a little love before that happens.
World Baseball Classic, Inc. in conjunction with MLB today unveiled dates, venues and pools for the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
The First Round is scheduled to begin March 5-6, 2026, the Second Round Quarterfinals March 14, Semi-Finals March 16 and the Championship March 17.
The FIFA Men’s World Cup is scheduled for June 11-July 19, 2026.
Games will be played in Houston’s Minute Maid Park, Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico, the Tokyo Dome in Japan and Miami’s loanDepot Park, which will host First and Second Round games, Quarterfinals, Semi-Finals and the title game. (Ticket details here.)
In 2023, the field of teams expanded to 20 for the first time in the tournament’s history.
This will be the second World Baseball Classic with a 20-team field, so as in 2023 — when Japan won it’s third World Baseball Classic title — there will be four pools of five teams.
The event was also staged in 2006, 2009, 2013 and 2017.
The 2023 Classic was originally scheduled to take place in 2021, four years after the previous event, but was canceled in May 2020, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The 2023 World Baseball Classic awarded $14.4 million in total prize money, with $1 million going to Japan as champions (pictured below) and $500,000 to the U.S. as runner-up. Japan’s Shohei Ohtani — who struck out Mike Trout for the final out — was named tournament MVP.
It aired on Fox Sports platforms.
Finances and media for 2026 have not yet been released.
The 16 teams that finished within the top four of their respective first round pools in the 2023 Classic are invited to play in 2026.
They will be joined by four teams that advance from the 2025 World Baseball Classic Qualifiers.
Similar to the 2023 World Baseball Classic, opening round games will feature pool play in each of the four venues.
The top two teams from each pool advance to the Quarterfinals, which again will feature single-elimination games.
The U.S, team is in Pool B, along with Mexico, Italy, Great Britain and a Qualifier in Minute Maid Park.
Photo: WBCPool A will take place in Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, with the host team Puerto Rico joined by Canada, Cuba, Panama and the winner of a Qualifier.
Pool C will be played in the Tokyo Dome, to include host team Tokyo along with Australia, Czechia, Korea and the winner of a Qualifier.
Pool D in loanDepot park will feature the Dominican Republic, Israel, the Netherlands, Venezuela and the winner of a Qualifier.
"We are excited and honored to be hosting World Baseball Classic matchups for the first time," Houston Astros owner Jim Crane said via the team.
"Houston is a global city with the best baseball fans, and we are proud to welcome fans from across the globe to watch international competition at Minute Maid Park."
Full ticketing information for the 2026 tournament are TK.
People can register here to receive up-to-date information, including how to receive exclusive priority access before tickets go on sale.
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