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AUCKLAND,
New Zealand -- The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) announced
today that broadcast rights have been awarded for the Oceania Qualifier of
the 2015 Men's Softball World Championship throughout the Oceania region.
Baseball
and softball international competitions sanctioned by the WBSC have
developed growing player, fan, commercial and broadcast interest around the
world in recent years, helping to further promote and increase
participation in the sports in new markets and local communities. WBSC
officials hailed the groundbreaking deals, particularly as baseball and
softball continue an accelerating trend of globalisation and adding to
their case for inclusion in the Olympics Games.
Under a
set of landmark agreements, the Oceania championship will see live coverage
throughout New Zealand via SKY Television and SKYGO live streaming.
Fox
Sports has acquired the broadcast rights in Australia for all highly
anticipated rivalry match-ups between Australia and host New Zealand, as
well as all playoff contests.
In
addition, live and delayed coverage of the men's softball continental
showcase will extend into the homes of nine emerging Pacific nations,
including American Samoa, Cook Islands, Fiji, Nauru, Niue, Samoa, Solomon
Islands, Tonga, and Vanuatu, raising the profile of the bat-and-ball sports
among new and growing audiences, while attracting more athletes and
commercial interest for baseball and softball.
"This
is an important time for our sport, and the growing number of broadcast agreements
show the expansive audience baseball and softball connects with," said
WBSC Executive Vice President Dale McMann. "Broadcast and media
coverage continue to be a main driver of growth for our sport and world
championship platforms. This is a great day for our sport and for both new
and loyal fans throughout the Oceania region."
Oceania
and its championship feature three of softball's Top 10 men's National
Teams in the world: Australia, New Zealand and Samoa. At the previous Men's
Softball World Championship held in 2013, Oceania was impressive, as host
nation New Zealand regained the World Title, while Australia took the
bronze medal and Samoa's performance was good enough for 7th place.
Asia's
qualifier will be staged in Singapore three days following the completion
of their Oceania counterparts, with the top three finishers gaining entry
into the 2015 Men's Softball World Championship in Saskatoon, SK, Canada
from 26 June to 5 July.
Ten of
the 16 nations have already qualified, including host Canada, Argentina,
Dominican Republic, Mexico, USA and Venezuela for the Americas, and Czech
Republic, Denmark, and Great Britain for Europe.
Baseball and softball
championships have developed loyal and passionate followings around the
world and have attracted strong interest amongst broadcasters in recent
years, helping to further promote and increasing participation in the
sports in new markets and communities.
While softball is one of the biggest and most popular sports globally for
women and girls from all backgrounds, the appeal and interest of the sport
also crosses genders and is played competitively by men in a growing number
of countries, cities and communities.
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