International Baseball Federation
Encyclopedia
The International Baseball Federation (Spanish
: Federación Internacional de Béisbol) is the worldwide governing body recognized by the International Olympic Committee
as overseeing, deciding and executing the policy of the bat-and-ball sport of baseball
at the international level. One of its principal responsibilities is to organize, standardize and sanction international competitions among its 118 national member federations through its various tournaments to determine a world champion and calculate world rankings for both men's and women's baseball. The IBAF is the lone entity that can assign the title of "world champion" to any baseball team delegated to represent a nation. Its headquarters are located in Lausanne
, Switzerland
--the Olympic Capital.
took place during the 1904 Summer Olympic Games
in St. Louis, MO. (USA). The exhibition
proved so successful that it was given an encore at the 1912 Summer Olympic Games
in Stockholm, Sweden.
The two popular showings in St. Louis and Stockholm laid the groundwork for baseball's international surge in popularity, leading the sport to be placed onto the program as an exhibition sport at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games. This exhibition was extremely well received as 92,565 spectators filled the Olympic Stadium in Berlin
to watch a game between two teams from the USA.
Following the success of Berlin, the first ever Baseball World Cup was
organized in London, England in August 1938. The United States and Great Britain engaged in five games, of which the British won four.
The growth of baseball competitions involving the representation of countries, coupled with the birth of the Baseball World Cup, provided the need for an institution to help develop, organize, regulate and oversee these events, thus the International Baseball Federation was established in 1938.
Conflicts of World War II
prompted the IOC to cancel the Summer Games that had been scheduled to take place in Tokyo in 1940 and in London in 1944, thereby halting baseball's tour as a demonstration sport. Nevertheless, by 1950, the IBAF was able to expand the format of the Baseball World Cup that was contested in Managua, Nicaragua to 12 participating countries.
In 1951, the Pan American Games
were established and baseball was on the official program from the onset.
In 1952, a Finnish version of baseball (Pesäpallo
) was a demonstration sport at the 1952 Summer Olympics
in Helsinki, Finland.
In April 1953, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain came together to establish what is now known as the Confederation of European Baseball
and organized the first ever European Baseball Championship
a year later.
The Baseball Federation of Asia
(BFA) was founded in May 1954 as the second continental confederation under the umbrella of the IBAF. The BFA wasted little time in organizing its first continental tournament, as it celebrated the Asian Baseball Championship
in December of that same year in Manila, Philippines.
The exposure of baseball to an international audience continued at the 1956 Summer Olympic Games, which saw approximately 114,000 spectators slowly fill the Melbourne Cricket Ground
to witness Australia vs. USA in a demonstration contest in Melbourne, Australia. This crowd of 114,000 was registered as a Guiness World Record for the largest attendance for any single baseball game. (The record lasted over 50 years before it was broken at a March, 29th 2008 Major League Baseball
exhibition game between the Boston Red Sox
and Los Angeles Dodgers
that drew 115,300 people to the Los Angeles Coliseum).
Baseball as an Olympic demonstration sport was finally able to take its act to Asia at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, where baseball was already exceptionally popular.
At the following Summer Olympic Games in 1968, a selection of premiere U.S. college players defeated the Cuban national team twice in Mexico City to win the tournament.
In 1973, the IBAF added the Intercontinental Cup
to its tournament program.
In 1978, the IOC awarded the hosting rights of the 1984 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles, and Robert Smith
quickly went to work, in his capacity as a member of the United States Olympic Committee
prior to becoming IBAF President, to reestablish baseball as part of the Olympic Programme. Smith reached out to the then Los Angeles Dodger owner, Peter O'Malley
, and University of Southern California
head baseball coach and subsequent College Baseball Hall of Fame
inductee, Rod Dedeaux
. The group organized an IBAF congress the following year in Los Angeles in order to establish an Olympic Baseball Committee. Through these efforts, baseball was again categorized as a demonstration sport and an eight-team tournament was organized at Dodger Stadium
, as part of the official Summer Olympic Programme. Coincidentally, the present IBAF President, Riccardo Fraccari, was the head umpire of the championship game.
A third branch of the IBAF continental confederations formed in 1985. The Pan American Baseball Confederation
(COPABE) was finally established after it was deemed necessary due to the strong expansion and increase of the national member federations stemming from the Olympic Baseball Committee campaign.
In 1986, a historic IOC vote puts baseball onto the Olympic Programme as a medal sport for the 1992 Olympic Games
in Barcelona, Spain.
Baseball would travel to Seoul, Korea for the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. This was the final time the IBAF, in conjunction with the IOC, would organize baseball as a demonstration sport at the Olympics before it were to become an official medal sport in 1992.
In 1989, the Baseball Confederation of Oceania
(BCO) was established as the 4th branch of the IBAF.
The African Baseball and Softball Association
(ABSA) was formed soon after the BCO in June 1990 in Lagos, Nigeria
Baseball was played up in a traditional amateur format up until the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, USA.
In 1998, the IBAF, MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association
reached an agreement to allow the participation of professional players in international competition.
Team USA uses a minor league selection to beat Cuba in the gold medal game at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
Cuba regains the world title, defeating Australia for the Gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
On July 7, 2005, the IOC voted not to include baseball on the 2012 Summer Olympics
program, citing a failure to include the best players in the world and issues with anti-doping.
Baseball makes its last Olympic appearance and Korea takes the Gold medal at the 2008 Summer Games
in Beijing, China.
The IBAF, under President Harvey Schiller
, attempts to reinstate baseball onto the Olympic Programme, but the IOC vote of August 2009 keeps baseball off the 2016 program, as concerns over baseball's previous issues were too much to overcome.
In February 2011, Dr. Harvey Schiller is appointed as a member of the IOC's Women and Sport Commission.
On April 1, 2011, the IBAF, under first-year President Riccardo Fraccari
, and the International Softball Federation
announce that they are studying how to prepare a joint proposal in order to revive play of both sports at the 2020 Summer Olympics
.
The first-ever 12U Baseball World Championship
was played in Taipei
from July 8 to 17, 2011. Taiwan
won the first title.
In addition, the IBAF is the sanctioning body for the World Baseball Classic
, which is hosted by Major League Baseball
and the Major League Baseball Players Association
.
The IBAF discontinued the Intercontinental Cup
, which was an invitational event and last held in 2010.
Estimated data, according to the IBAF, as of April 2011:
IBAF Global Baseball Video
: 1938 Jaime Mariné: 1939 to 1943 Jorge Reyes: 1944 to 1945 Pablo Morales: 1946 to 1947 Chale Pereira: 1948 to 1950 Pablo Morales: 1951 to 1952 Carlos M. Zecca: 1953 to 1968 FIBA: Juan Isa: 1969 to 1975 (FIBA from 1973 to 1975) FEMBA: William Fehring: 1973 to 1974 FEMBA: Carlos J. García: 1975 Manuel González Guerra: 1976 to 1979 Robert E. Smith
: 1981 to 1993 Aldo Notari
: 1993 to 2006 (*) Harvey Schiller
: 2007 to 2009 Riccardo Fraccari
: 2009 to present
(*) Aldo Notari died during the period as the president, thus the first vice president,
Tom Peng of Taiwan, served as acting president from July 2006 to 2007.
of the International Baseball Fedederation (IBAF)
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
: Federación Internacional de Béisbol) is the worldwide governing body recognized by the International Olympic Committee
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee is an international corporation based in Lausanne, Switzerland, created by Pierre de Coubertin on 23 June 1894 with Demetrios Vikelas as its first president...
as overseeing, deciding and executing the policy of the bat-and-ball sport of baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
at the international level. One of its principal responsibilities is to organize, standardize and sanction international competitions among its 118 national member federations through its various tournaments to determine a world champion and calculate world rankings for both men's and women's baseball. The IBAF is the lone entity that can assign the title of "world champion" to any baseball team delegated to represent a nation. Its headquarters are located in Lausanne
Lausanne
Lausanne is a city in Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland, and is the capital of the canton of Vaud. The seat of the district of Lausanne, the city is situated on the shores of Lake Geneva . It faces the French town of Évian-les-Bains, with the Jura mountains to its north-west...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
--the Olympic Capital.
History
The first-ever international baseball event was a series of exhibition games thattook place during the 1904 Summer Olympic Games
1904 Summer Olympics
The 1904 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the III Olympiad, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in St. Louis, Missouri, in the United States from 1 July 1904, to November 23, 1904, at what is now known as Francis Field on the campus of Washington University...
in St. Louis, MO. (USA). The exhibition
proved so successful that it was given an encore at the 1912 Summer Olympic Games
1912 Summer Olympics
The 1912 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the V Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Stockholm, Sweden, between 5 May and 27 July 1912. Twenty-eight nations and 2,407 competitors, including 48 women, competed in 102 events in 14 sports...
in Stockholm, Sweden.
The two popular showings in St. Louis and Stockholm laid the groundwork for baseball's international surge in popularity, leading the sport to be placed onto the program as an exhibition sport at the 1936 Summer Olympic Games. This exhibition was extremely well received as 92,565 spectators filled the Olympic Stadium in Berlin
Olympic Stadium (Berlin)
The Olympiastadion is a sports stadium in Berlin, Germany. There have been two stadiums on the site: the present facility, and one that is called the Deutsches Stadion which was built for the aborted 1916 Summer Olympics. Both were designed by members of the same family, the first by Otto March...
to watch a game between two teams from the USA.
Following the success of Berlin, the first ever Baseball World Cup was
organized in London, England in August 1938. The United States and Great Britain engaged in five games, of which the British won four.
The growth of baseball competitions involving the representation of countries, coupled with the birth of the Baseball World Cup, provided the need for an institution to help develop, organize, regulate and oversee these events, thus the International Baseball Federation was established in 1938.
Conflicts of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
prompted the IOC to cancel the Summer Games that had been scheduled to take place in Tokyo in 1940 and in London in 1944, thereby halting baseball's tour as a demonstration sport. Nevertheless, by 1950, the IBAF was able to expand the format of the Baseball World Cup that was contested in Managua, Nicaragua to 12 participating countries.
In 1951, the Pan American Games
Pan American Games
The Pan-American or Pan American Games are a major event in the Americas featuring summer and formerly winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Pan American Games are the second largest multi-sport event after the Summer Olympics...
were established and baseball was on the official program from the onset.
In 1952, a Finnish version of baseball (Pesäpallo
Pesäpallo
Pesäpallo is a fast-moving ball sport that is quite often referred to as the national sport of Finland and has some presence in other countries, such as Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, Australia, and Northern Ontario in Canada...
) was a demonstration sport at the 1952 Summer Olympics
1952 Summer Olympics
The 1952 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event held in Helsinki, Finland in 1952. Helsinki had been earlier given the 1940 Summer Olympics, which were cancelled due to World War II...
in Helsinki, Finland.
In April 1953, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain came together to establish what is now known as the Confederation of European Baseball
Confederation of European Baseball
The Confederation of European Baseball , is the governing body of baseball within Europe. The CEB was founded in 1953 with 5 members, which were Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. As of today, there are 38 members, excluding Armenia...
and organized the first ever European Baseball Championship
European Baseball Championship
The European Baseball Championship is the main championship tournament between national baseball teams in Europe, governed by the Confederation of European Baseball . Italy won the inaugural European Baseball Championship in , and the competition has since been dominated by the Italian team and the...
a year later.
The Baseball Federation of Asia
Baseball Federation of Asia
The Baseball Federation of Asia is the governing body of the sport of baseball in Asia. The federation is governed by the International Baseball Federation.-Members:-Rankings:...
(BFA) was founded in May 1954 as the second continental confederation under the umbrella of the IBAF. The BFA wasted little time in organizing its first continental tournament, as it celebrated the Asian Baseball Championship
Asian Baseball Championship
The Asian Baseball Championship is the main championship tournament between national baseball teams in Asia, governed by the Baseball Federation of Asia . It is held every other year in odd-numbered years and since 1983 it also functions as the qualification games for the Baseball at the Summer...
in December of that same year in Manila, Philippines.
The exposure of baseball to an international audience continued at the 1956 Summer Olympic Games, which saw approximately 114,000 spectators slowly fill the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
to witness Australia vs. USA in a demonstration contest in Melbourne, Australia. This crowd of 114,000 was registered as a Guiness World Record for the largest attendance for any single baseball game. (The record lasted over 50 years before it was broken at a March, 29th 2008 Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
exhibition game between the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
and Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
that drew 115,300 people to the Los Angeles Coliseum).
Baseball as an Olympic demonstration sport was finally able to take its act to Asia at the 1964 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, where baseball was already exceptionally popular.
At the following Summer Olympic Games in 1968, a selection of premiere U.S. college players defeated the Cuban national team twice in Mexico City to win the tournament.
In 1973, the IBAF added the Intercontinental Cup
Intercontinental Cup (baseball)
The Intercontinental Cup is a baseball tournament between the members of the International Baseball Federation . It was first held in 1973 in Italy, and was held every other year following until 1999....
to its tournament program.
In 1978, the IOC awarded the hosting rights of the 1984 Summer Olympics to Los Angeles, and Robert Smith
Robert Smith (baseball)
Dr. Robert E. "Ish" Smith, , is the former President of the International Baseball Federation, which is the international governing body for the sport of baseball, and the United States Baseball Federation....
quickly went to work, in his capacity as a member of the United States Olympic Committee
United States Olympic Committee
The United States Olympic Committee is a non-profit organization that serves as the National Olympic Committee and National Paralympic Committee for the United States and coordinates the relationship between the United States Anti-Doping Agency and the World Anti-Doping Agency and various...
prior to becoming IBAF President, to reestablish baseball as part of the Olympic Programme. Smith reached out to the then Los Angeles Dodger owner, Peter O'Malley
Peter O'Malley
Peter O'Malley is the former president and owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers of American Major League Baseball.-Biography:...
, and University of Southern California
University of Southern California
The University of Southern California is a private, not-for-profit, nonsectarian, research university located in Los Angeles, California, United States. USC was founded in 1880, making it California's oldest private research university...
head baseball coach and subsequent College Baseball Hall of Fame
College Baseball Hall of Fame
The National College Baseball Hall of Fame, located in Lubbock, Texas, is a museum operated by the College Baseball Foundation serving as the central point for the study of the history of college baseball in the United States...
inductee, Rod Dedeaux
Rod Dedeaux
Raoul Martial "Rod" Dedeaux was an American college baseball coach who compiled what is arguably the greatest record of any coach in the sport's amateur history....
. The group organized an IBAF congress the following year in Los Angeles in order to establish an Olympic Baseball Committee. Through these efforts, baseball was again categorized as a demonstration sport and an eight-team tournament was organized at Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium
Dodger Stadium, also sometimes called Chavez Ravine, is a stadium in Los Angeles. Located adjacent to Downtown Los Angeles, Dodger Stadium has been the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Los Angeles Dodgers team since 1962...
, as part of the official Summer Olympic Programme. Coincidentally, the present IBAF President, Riccardo Fraccari, was the head umpire of the championship game.
A third branch of the IBAF continental confederations formed in 1985. The Pan American Baseball Confederation
Pan American Baseball Confederation
The Pan American Baseball Confederation , is the governing body of baseball within the Americas.-Members:-Rankings:...
(COPABE) was finally established after it was deemed necessary due to the strong expansion and increase of the national member federations stemming from the Olympic Baseball Committee campaign.
In 1986, a historic IOC vote puts baseball onto the Olympic Programme as a medal sport for the 1992 Olympic Games
1992 Summer Olympics
The 1992 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event celebrated in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain, in 1992. The International Olympic Committee voted in 1986 to separate the Summer and Winter Games, which had been held in the same...
in Barcelona, Spain.
Baseball would travel to Seoul, Korea for the 1988 Summer Olympic Games. This was the final time the IBAF, in conjunction with the IOC, would organize baseball as a demonstration sport at the Olympics before it were to become an official medal sport in 1992.
In 1989, the Baseball Confederation of Oceania
Baseball Confederation of Oceania
The Baseball Confederation of Oceania is the governing body of baseball within Oceania, and is responsible for the Oceania Baseball Championship.The Baseball Confederation of Oceania was established in 1989, it currently has 15 member nations....
(BCO) was established as the 4th branch of the IBAF.
The African Baseball and Softball Association
African Baseball & Softball Association
The African Baseball and Softball Association , is the governing body of baseball and softball within Africa. As of June 2011, there are 24 members.The confederation is responsible for operation of Baseball at the All-Africa Games.-Members:...
(ABSA) was formed soon after the BCO in June 1990 in Lagos, Nigeria
Baseball was played up in a traditional amateur format up until the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, USA.
In 1998, the IBAF, MLB and Major League Baseball Players Association
Major League Baseball Players Association
The Major League Baseball Players Association is the union of professional major-league baseball players.-History of MLBPA:The MLBPA was not the first attempt to unionize baseball players...
reached an agreement to allow the participation of professional players in international competition.
Team USA uses a minor league selection to beat Cuba in the gold medal game at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, Australia.
Cuba regains the world title, defeating Australia for the Gold medal at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens, Greece.
On July 7, 2005, the IOC voted not to include baseball on the 2012 Summer Olympics
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympic Games, officially known as the "London 2012 Olympic Games", are scheduled to take place in London, England, United Kingdom from 27 July to 12 August 2012...
program, citing a failure to include the best players in the world and issues with anti-doping.
Baseball makes its last Olympic appearance and Korea takes the Gold medal at the 2008 Summer Games
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
in Beijing, China.
The IBAF, under President Harvey Schiller
Harvey Schiller
Harvey W. Schiller, Ph.D., is Chairman of the Board and CEO of Global Options Group, a multidisciplinary international risk management and business solutions company. In addition, Dr...
, attempts to reinstate baseball onto the Olympic Programme, but the IOC vote of August 2009 keeps baseball off the 2016 program, as concerns over baseball's previous issues were too much to overcome.
In February 2011, Dr. Harvey Schiller is appointed as a member of the IOC's Women and Sport Commission.
On April 1, 2011, the IBAF, under first-year President Riccardo Fraccari
Riccardo Fraccari
Riccardo Fraccari is an Italian baseball umpire and president of the International Baseball Federation. He enjoyed a very successful career as an umpire in Italian Baseball, which led him to being named the best amateur umpire in the world. Mr. Fraccari participated in 7 Olympic Games as an...
, and the International Softball Federation
International Softball Federation
thumb|Map of member states.|400px|rightThe International Softball Federation is the international governing body for the sport of softball. The ISF is a non-profit corporation recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the General Association of International Sports Federations .The...
announce that they are studying how to prepare a joint proposal in order to revive play of both sports at the 2020 Summer Olympics
2020 Summer Olympics
The 2020 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, will be a major international sports and cultural festival, celebrated in the tradition of the Olympic Games....
.
International Events
The International Baseball Federation currently oversees and organizes the following world championship tournaments:- IBAF Baseball World Cup
- IBAF Women's Baseball World CupWomen's Baseball World CupThe Women's Baseball World Cup is an international tournament in which national women's baseball teams from around the world compete. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation...
- IBAF 18U Baseball World Championship
- IBAF 16U Baseball World Championship
- IBAF 12U Baseball World Championship
The first-ever 12U Baseball World Championship
12U Baseball World Championship
The IBAF 12U Baseball World Championship is an under-12 international baseball competition sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation , which was first held in 2011 in Taiwan...
was played in Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
from July 8 to 17, 2011. Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
won the first title.
In addition, the IBAF is the sanctioning body for the World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...
, which is hosted by Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
and the Major League Baseball Players Association
Major League Baseball Players Association
The Major League Baseball Players Association is the union of professional major-league baseball players.-History of MLBPA:The MLBPA was not the first attempt to unionize baseball players...
.
The IBAF discontinued the Intercontinental Cup
Intercontinental Cup (baseball)
The Intercontinental Cup is a baseball tournament between the members of the International Baseball Federation . It was first held in 1973 in Italy, and was held every other year following until 1999....
, which was an invitational event and last held in 2010.
International Baseball Demographics
Estimated data, according to the IBAF, as of April 2011:
- Number of countries with an organized baseball league: 77
- Number of total participants in organized baseball competitions worldwide: 35,000,000 (million)
- Number of female athletes: 300,000
- Number of athletes with a disability: 200,000
- Number of visually impaired athletes: 2,175
- Number of registered youth baseball teams: 273,366
- Number of Players (ages 7-18) registered by youth leagues: 3,999,760
IBAF Global Baseball Video
Organizational Structure
The IBAF comprises five continental confederations that currently represent a total of 118 national member federations.- IBAF Africa: African Baseball & Softball AssociationAfrican Baseball & Softball AssociationThe African Baseball and Softball Association , is the governing body of baseball and softball within Africa. As of June 2011, there are 24 members.The confederation is responsible for operation of Baseball at the All-Africa Games.-Members:...
(ABSA) - 18 member countries - IBAF Oceania: Baseball Confederation of OceaniaBaseball Confederation of OceaniaThe Baseball Confederation of Oceania is the governing body of baseball within Oceania, and is responsible for the Oceania Baseball Championship.The Baseball Confederation of Oceania was established in 1989, it currently has 15 member nations....
(BCO) - 13 member countries - IBAF Asia: Baseball Federation of AsiaBaseball Federation of AsiaThe Baseball Federation of Asia is the governing body of the sport of baseball in Asia. The federation is governed by the International Baseball Federation.-Members:-Rankings:...
(BFA) - 21 member countries - IBAF Europe: Confederation of European BaseballConfederation of European BaseballThe Confederation of European Baseball , is the governing body of baseball within Europe. The CEB was founded in 1953 with 5 members, which were Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. As of today, there are 38 members, excluding Armenia...
(French:Confédération Européenne de Baseball) (CEB) - 39 member countries - IBAF Americas: Pan American Baseball ConfederationPan American Baseball ConfederationThe Pan American Baseball Confederation , is the governing body of baseball within the Americas.-Members:-Rankings:...
(Spanish:Confederación Panamericana de Béisbol) (COPABE) - 27 member countries
Presidents
Leslie MannLes Mann
Leslie Mann , was a professional baseball player who played outfield in the Major Leagues from 1913-1928. He played for the Boston Braves, St...
: 1938 Jaime Mariné: 1939 to 1943 Jorge Reyes: 1944 to 1945 Pablo Morales: 1946 to 1947 Chale Pereira: 1948 to 1950 Pablo Morales: 1951 to 1952 Carlos M. Zecca: 1953 to 1968 FIBA: Juan Isa: 1969 to 1975 (FIBA from 1973 to 1975) FEMBA: William Fehring: 1973 to 1974 FEMBA: Carlos J. García: 1975 Manuel González Guerra: 1976 to 1979 Robert E. Smith
Robert Smith (baseball)
Dr. Robert E. "Ish" Smith, , is the former President of the International Baseball Federation, which is the international governing body for the sport of baseball, and the United States Baseball Federation....
: 1981 to 1993 Aldo Notari
Aldo Notari
Aldo Notari was the president of the International Baseball Federation from 1993 to 2006.-References:...
: 1993 to 2006 (*) Harvey Schiller
Harvey Schiller
Harvey W. Schiller, Ph.D., is Chairman of the Board and CEO of Global Options Group, a multidisciplinary international risk management and business solutions company. In addition, Dr...
: 2007 to 2009 Riccardo Fraccari
Riccardo Fraccari
Riccardo Fraccari is an Italian baseball umpire and president of the International Baseball Federation. He enjoyed a very successful career as an umpire in Italian Baseball, which led him to being named the best amateur umpire in the world. Mr. Fraccari participated in 7 Olympic Games as an...
: 2009 to present
(*) Aldo Notari died during the period as the president, thus the first vice president,
Tom Peng of Taiwan, served as acting president from July 2006 to 2007.Awards
See also: Baseball awardsBaseball awards
Professional baseball leagues and amateur-baseball organizations around the world, various sportswriting associations, and other interested groups confer awards on various baseball teams, players, managers, coaches, executives, broadcasters, and writers for excellence in achievement, sportsmanship,...
of the International Baseball Fedederation (IBAF)
- Senior Athlete of the Year
- Junior Athlete of the Year
- Coach of the Year
- Umpire of the Year
- Member Federation Executive of the Year