Softball Seniors

Little League International has changed the rules for the Softball Senior League. There, district teams may take part in the international tournaments instead of league teams. That means we can enter the European championship in the Czech Republic with a team from District Netherlands (made up of players from all over the country).

Our aim is still that as many girls as possible get to experience the national championship. Taking part matters more than winning! But of course it is also brilliant to go to the European championship with the strongest possible team, to compete seriously and have a shot at reaching the World Series.

That is why in 2024 we ran a pilot together with the regional coordinators, and it went well. So this year we are doing it the same way:

• A player registers and follows the training programme in her own region.
• The selected players play the national championship with their league team.
• Scouting is done during the national championship by objective, experienced softball coaches.
• In consultation with the coaches of the league teams, 25 players are invited to the pre-selection for the European championship team.
• The pre-selection includes players from every league team.
• The selection works on a sliding scale. The winner of the national championship supplies the most players, the team that finishes last supplies the fewest. The number depends on how many teams play the national championship.
• These 25 players begin the preparations for the European championship: training and practice games.
• Finally a squad of 16 players is picked to play the European championship. Here too we use a sliding scale, so all the leagues are represented in the team as well.
• The selected team “the Netherlands” plays the European championship in the Czech Republic.

Any questions about this? Feel free to get in touch with us.