Sweden national baseball team

The Sweden national baseball team is the national baseball team of Sweden. The team competes in the bi-annual European Baseball Championship, where Sweden on two occasions has claimed the bronze medal.

Sweden national baseball team
Information
Country Sweden
FederationSwedish Baseball and Softball Federation (SBSF)
ConfederationConfederation of European Baseball
Manager Jim Sasko[1]
WBSC World Rank33rd (August 2017)[2]
World Baseball Classic
Appearances0
Olympic Games
Appearances0
WBSC Premier12
Appearances0
World Cup
Appearances3 (First in 1994)
Best result15th
Intercontinental Cup
Appearances0
European Championship
Appearances28 (First in 1962)
Best result 3rd (2 times, most recent in 1993)
Women's World Cup
Appearances0

The team's manager is Jim Sasko.[1]

History

Baseball has been played in Sweden since at least 1904, but it wasn't until 1952 that the first game was played by a national team. In that year Sweden played against Finland and lost, 4–9.

Ten years later Sweden's national federation became members of the Confederation of European Baseball, and the national team took part in its first European Baseball Championship, where Sweden lost all four games by a combined score of 16–55. In the next tournament two years later Sweden managed to win its first ever game in the European Championship, 5–0 over France.

Sweden played its first official game on home soil in 1974, a 9–1 win over Great Britain in the qualifications for the European Championship that were held the following year.

In 1981 Sweden took home bronze at the European Championships in the Netherlands (only four teams took part). This achievement was duplicated in 1993, when Sweden hosted the tournament for the first time.

Sweden played in the World Cup for the first time in 1994 and also participated in 2005 and 2009, but always finished near the bottom. In 2009 Sweden was one of eight host countries.[3]

International tournament results

Olympic games
Summer Olympics recordQualification
YearHostRoundPositionWLRSRA
1912SwedenExhibition only01313

Sweden played host to the first ever international exhibition baseball match to be held at the Olympic Games. The players of the Västerås Baseball Club represented their home nation in the game against a team composed of members of the United States Olympic delegation. In addition, three pitchers and a catcher were recruited from the American delegation to help fill the Swedish roster.

Sweden has not succeeded in qualifying during any of the years the sport has been officially included in the Olympics, nor has it participated in any further baseball exhibitions at the Olympics since 1912.

World Cup

Sweden participated in the World Cup on three occasions.

European Baseball Championship

Sweden has participated in the European Baseball Championship on 29 occasions, every time since 1962.

     
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References
  1. "Jim Sasko new manager of Swedish National Team". Mister-baseball.com. 22 March 2017. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  2. "World Rankings". WBSC. Retrieved 29 August 2017.
  3. Pälviä, Kristian (7 June 2016). "Basebollens historia i Sverige - sedan 1912" (in Swedish). Swedish Baseball and Softball Federation (SBSF). Retrieved 29 August 2017.


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