[Official] 2027 Premier 12, expanded to 16 countries → 'No. 4 in the world' South Korea will be included in the 12 countries directly going to the finals

*This content was translated by AI.

The WBSC (World Baseball Softball Federation) Premier 12 tournament, which will be held in 2027, will visit baseball fans by significantly increasing the number of participating countries along with a new game method. The South Korean national team was included in the finals.

In an official press release on the 15th (Korea Standard Time), WBSC unveiled the 2027 Premier 12's direct country and the newly introduced qualifying system.

According to this, as of December 2025, the top 12 teams in the WBSC men's baseball world rankings will go straight to the opening round of the 2027 tournament finals. A total of 12 countries have won direct rights based on the current ranking, including Korea, Japan, Taiwan, the United States, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Panama, the Netherlands, Cuba, Australia, and the Dominican Republic. Colombia, Italy, the Czech Republic, Nicaragua, China, Germany, and the United Kingdom were included in the qualifying round.

The remaining four qualifiers will be determined by qualifying in 2026. The WBSC will host two qualifying tournaments involving a total of eight teams. The remaining four qualifiers will be determined through qualifying matches in 2026. The last spot classified as undecided will be filled with wild cards depending on the situation of Canada (20th place) or the qualifying host country.

In particular, China has been selected as the venue for the first preliminary tournament to be held in Zhongshan City, Guangdong Province, from November 26 to 29. Another qualifying venue will be announced later.

"Premier 12 has become a flagship competition of the league in name and reality," WBSC President Ricardo Prakari said in a statement. "The directions of the top 12 teams are a reward for their steady performance, and the newly introduced qualifiers will open a clear path for baseball's emerging countries to the world stage."

Meanwhile, attention is focusing on whether the Korean national team, which was unfortunately eliminated from the 2024 Premier 12 held in November 2024, will be able to reproduce the glory of winning the first tournament in 2015 at the expanded and reorganized 2027 tournament.

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*This content was translated by AI.