Little League World Series in Europe
| Most recent season or competition: 2019 Little League World Series qualification | |
| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1960 |
| Countries | European and African |
| Most recent champion(s) |  Emilia Romagna Little League, Bologna, Italy |
| Most titles |  Arabian American Little League, Dhahran, Saudi Arabia (17) |
Europe first participated in the Little League World Series in 1960. Teams from Europe were given a berth in the LLWS each year between 1960 and 2000 (with the exception of the temporary ban of international teams in 1975). In 2001, the region was split into two co-terminus regions: Europe (later EMEA) Region and Transatlantic Region. The Europe Region comprised mostly native European teams while the Transatlantic Region comprised mostly American expatriates. This distinction was eliminated in 2008; from 2008 to 2012, teams made up of either native Europeans or American expatriates were eligible to qualify from the Europe Region.
Starting with the 2013 LLWS, the region was renamed the Europe and Africa Region. African countries were added as a result of a major reorganization of the international (non–U.S.) regions. This move was triggered by Little League's announcement that Australia would receive its own LLWS berth starting in 2013. Two Middle Eastern countries, Israel and Turkey, have been part of European regions since they instituted Little League programs, as they were then members of the European zone of the International Baseball Federation and remain in the same zone under baseball's modern international governing body, the World Baseball Softball Confederation. Israel and Turkey have stayed in the renamed Europe and Africa Region to this day.[1]
No team from the European region has ever reached the final of the Little League World Series. The best finishes for a European team occurred in 1979, 1993 and 1994, when European teams reached the semifinals. Aviano, Italy, made it that far — in the 8-team format — in 1979. Kaiserslautern, Germany and Dhahran, Saudi Arabia made the International final in back-to-back years in 1993 and 1994.
Europe and Africa Region Countries
|
European champions (1960–2000)
| Year | Champion | City | LLWS | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | Berlin Command LL |  Berlin |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1961 | Pirmasens Housing Area LL | Pirmasens |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1962 | Poitiers Post LL |  Poitiers |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1963 | İzmir LL |  İzmir |
Fourth Place | 0–2 |
| 1964 | Wiesbaden LL | Wiesbaden Air Force Base |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1965 | Rota LL |  Rota |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1966 | Rhein-Main LL | Rhein-Main Air Base |
Seventh Place | 1–2 |
| 1967 | Rota LL | Rota |
Seventh Place (tie) | 0–2 |
| 1968 | Wiesbaden LL | Wiesbaden Air Force Base |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1969 | Wiesbaden LL | Wiesbaden Air Force Base |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1970 | Wiesbaden LL | Wiesbaden Air Force Base |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1971 | Madrid LL | Madrid |
Fourth Place | 1–2 |
| 1972 | Torrejon Air Base LL | Madrid |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1973 | Bitburg AB LL | Bitburg Air Base |
Seventh Place | 1–2 |
| 1974 | Athena Airport LL |  Athens |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1975 | No participant | |||
| 1976 | Kaiserslautern LL | Kaiserslautern |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1977 | Torrejon Air Base LL |  Madrid |
Seventh Place | 1–2 |
| 1978 | Torrejon Air Base LL | Madrid |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1979 | Aviano Air Base LL | Aviano |
Fourth Place | 1–2 |
| 1980 | Torrejon Air Base LL | Madrid |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1981 | SHAPE LL |  Waterloo |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1982 | Torrejon Air Base LL |  Madrid |
Fifth Place | 2–1 |
| 1983 | Arabian Gulf LL | Al Khobar |
Seventh Place | 1–2 |
| 1984 | Brussels Sports Association LL | Brussels |
Seventh Place | 1–2 |
| 1985 | Arabian Gulf LL | Al Khobar |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1986 | Torrejon Air Base LL | Madrid |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1987 | Aramco LL | Dhahran |
Fifth Place (tie) | 1–1 |
| 1988 | Aramco LL | Dhahran |
Fifth Place | 2–1 |
| 1989 | Aramco LL | Dhahran |
Sixth Place | 1–2 |
| 1990 | Falcon LL | Ramstein Air Base |
Seventh Place (tie) | 0–2 |
| 1991 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
Eighth Place | 0–3 |
| 1992 | Kaiserslautern LL | Kaiserslautern |
4th Place, Group Stage | 0–3 |
| 1993 | Kaiserslautern LL | Kaiserslautern |
Third Place (tie) | 2–2 |
| 1994 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
Third Place (tie) | 2–2 |
| 1995 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd Place, Group Stage | 1–2 |
| 1996 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
4th Place, Group Stage | 0–3 |
| 1997 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd Place, Group Stage | 1–2 |
| 1998 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd Place, Group Stage | 1–2 |
| 1999 | Ramstein American LL | Ramstein Air Base |
4th Place, Group Stage | 0–3 |
| 2000 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd Place, Group Stage | 1–2 |
Europe/Europe, Middle East & Africa Region (2001–2007)
In 2001, with the LLWS expanding to sixteen teams, the European region split into two co-terminous regions. The Europe region consisted of teams that were primarily made up of players native to each country; no team could have more than three players from the United States, Canada, or Japan. The Europe region was named the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) region between 2004 and 2007; however, no Middle Eastern or African team participated in qualifiers for the EMEA Series berth (although Kenya sent a team to the European qualifier in 2001[2] and South Africa did the same in 2003[3]). In 2008, Little League removed the native players rule and split the EMEA and Transatlantic region into the Europe and Middle East-Africa regions. The following teams represented the European region after 2000:
| Year | Champion | City | LLWS | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Khovrino LL |  Moscow |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
| 2002 | Khovrino LL | Moscow |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
| 2003 | Khovrino LL | Moscow |
3rd place, Pool D | 1–2 |
| 2004 | Kutno LL |  Kutno |
4th place, Pool C | 0–3 |
| 2005 | Brateevo LL | Moscow |
4th place, Pool C | 0–3 |
| 2006 | Brateevo LL | Moscow |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
| 2007 | Windmills LL |  Apeldoorn |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
Transatlantic Region (2001–2007)
The Transatlantic region encompassed the same territory as the Europe/EMEA region, but consisted of teams that were made up of at least 51% American, Canadian, or Japanese citizens.
Regional championship
Below are the champions of the Transatlantic region, along with participants for each year. The year's winner is indicated in green.
| Year |  Austria
|
Belgium
|
 England
|
Germany
|
Italy
|
Netherlands
|
Saudi Arabia
|
Spain
|
 United Arab Emirates
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Vienna LL Vienna |
Belgium Int'l LL Brussels |
London Area Youth LL London |
Eifel LL Bitburg/Spangdahlem |
Naples LL Naples |
No Participant | Arabian American LL Dhahran |
Rota LL Rota |
No Participant |
| 2002 | N/A Austria |
N/A Belgium |
N/A England |
N/A Germany |
N/A Italy |
N/A Netherlands |
Arabian American LL Dharhan |
N/A Spain |
No Participant |
| 2003 | AIBC Little League Vienna |
SHAPE and Waterloo LL Brussels |
London Area Youth London |
Ramstein LL Ramstein |
Naples LL Naples |
Brunssum/Schinnen LL Brunssum |
Arabian American LL Dharhan |
Rota LL Rota |
No Participant |
| 2004 | No Participant | SHAPE and Waterloo LL Brussels |
London Area Youth London |
Ramstein American LL Ramstein |
Naples LL Naples |
Geilenkirchen-American/Brunssum/Schinnen LL Brunssum/Geilenkirchen |
Arabian American LL Dharhan |
Madrid LL Madrid |
No Participant |
| 2005 | No Participant | SHAPE and Brussels LL Brussels |
East Anglia LL Suffolk |
Ramstein LL Ramstein |
Naples LL Naples |
Brunssum/Schinnen LL Brunssum |
Arabian American LL Dharhan |
Rota LL Rota |
No Participant |
| 2006 | No Participant | SHAPE and Waterloo LL Brussels |
London Area Youth LL London |
Ramstein LL Ramstein |
Naples LL Naples |
No Participant | Arabian American LL Dharhan |
No Participant | Dubai LL Dubai |
| 2007 | No Participant | No Participant | London Area Youth LL London |
Stuttgart American LL Stuttgart |
Naples LL Naples |
No Participant | Arabian American LL Dharhan |
No Participant | Dubai LL Dubai |
LLWS performance
| Year | Champion | City | LLWS | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd place, Pool C | 1–2 |
| 2002 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd place, Pool C | 2–1 |
| 2003 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd place, Pool C | 1–2 |
| 2004 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
3rd place, Pool D | 1–2 |
| 2005 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
| 2006 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
Int'l Semifinal | 2–2 |
| 2007 | Arabian American LL | Dhahran |
4th place, Pool C | 0–2 |
Europe Region (2008–2012)
From 2008 to 2012, Europe had its own region.
Regional Championships
Below are the champions of the Europe region, along with participants for each year. The year's winner is indicated in green. A Dash, "-", indicates country had no participant that year.
| Year |  Belarus
|
Belgium
|
 Bulgaria
|
 Czech Republic
|
England
|
Germany
|
 Hungary
|
 Ireland
|
Italy
|
 Lithuania
|
 Moldova
|
Netherlands
|
Poland
|
 Serbia
|
 Sweden
|
Turkey
|
 Ukraine
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | - | Brussels LL Brussels |
Doupnitza LL Doupnitza |
South Moravia LL South Moravia |
London Area Youth LL London |
Baden Wuerttemberg LL Mannheim |
- | Ireland LL Dublin |
Emilia LL Emilia |
Vilnius LL Vilnius |
Kvint LL Tiraspol |
Windmills Utrecht LL Utrecht |
BUKS Gepardy Zory LL Zory |
- | Malardalen LL Malardalen |
Turkiye LL Istanbul |
Kirovograd Center/Nove Celo LL Kirovograd |
| 2009 | Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
- | Doupnitza LL Doupnitza |
South Moravia LL South Moravia |
London Area Youth LL London |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
- | - | Marche LL Marche |
Vilnius LL Vilnius |
- | Alkmaar LL Alkmaar |
Żory/Rybnik/ Jastrzębie LL Slask |
- | - | Mediterranean LL Istanbul |
Kirovograd Center/Nove Celo LL Kirovograd |
| 2010 | Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Flanders East LL Antwerpen |
- | South Moravia LL South Moravia |
London Youth Area LL London |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
- | - | Friuli Venezia Giulia LL Friuli V.G. |
Vilnius LL Vilnius |
Kvint LL Tiraspol |
Kennemerland LL Haarlem |
Zory/Jastrzebie/ Rybnik LL Slask |
- | - | - | Kirovograd Center LL Kirovograd |
| 2011 | Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Flanders West LL Flanders |
- | South Moravia LL South Moravia |
London Area Youth LL London |
- | - | - | Emilia LL Emilia |
Vilnius LL Vilnius LL |
Kvint LL Tiraspol |
Rotterdam LL Rotterdam |
Kutno LL Kutno |
- | Stockholm LL Stockholm |
- | Kirovograd Center LL/Nove Celo LL Kirovograd |
| 2012 | Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Flanders East LL Antwerpen |
- | South Moravia LL Prague |
London Area Youth LL London |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
MOBSSZ Debrecen/Janossomorja LL Budapest/ Debrecen/ Jánossomorja |
- | Lazio LL Lazio |
Kaunas LL Kaunas |
- | Nord-Holland LL Alkmaar |
Kutno LL Kutno |
Serbia LL Belgrad |
- | - | Kirovograd Center LL Kirovograd |
LLWS Performance
| Year | Champion | City | LLWS | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Emilia LL | Emilia |
4th place, Pool C | 0–3 |
| 2009 | KMC American LL | Kaiserslautern |
4th place, Pool D | 0–3 |
| 2010 | KMC American LL | Ramstein AB |
Group Stage | 1–2 |
| 2011 | Rotterdam LL | Rotterdam |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
| 2012 | KMC American LL | Ramstein AB |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
Europe and Africa Region (2013–)
As noted above, the Europe Region was expanded to include Africa in 2013. Results are as of the 2017 Little League World Series.
Europe-Africa Qualifier
Starting in 2018, a qualification tournament was added into the Europe and Africa regional tournament as a way of expanding for other countries and teams to be involved. Ten teams have an automatic bid into the regional tournament based on participation and enrollment figures. Additional countries wishing to enter the tournament are placed into the qualifier tournament. The format of the qualifier tournament is a round robin with four teams advancing to an elimination round where the two semifinal winners advanced to the double-elimination regional tournament.
| Year | Teams | Final 4 | Semifinalists (Advanced to Regional) |
Qualifier Tournament Champions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Austria Belarus Croatia Hungary Poland Switzerland
|
1 Austria 2 Hungary3 Belarus4 Croatia
|
Austria Belarus
|
Championship was canceled due to inclement weather. |
| 2019 | Belgium Croatia Hungary Poland Switzerland
|
1 Croatia 2 Switzerland3 Belgium4 Hungary
|
Croatia Belgium |
Croatia
|
Regional Championships
Below are the champions of the Europe and Africa, along with participants for each year. The year's winner is indicated in green. A Dash, "-", indicates country had no participant that year.
| Year | Austria
|
Belarus
|
Belgium
|
Croatia
|
Czech Republic
|
France
|
Germany
|
Hungary
|
Italy
|
Lithuania
|
Moldova
|
Netherlands
|
Poland
|
 Romania
|
Serbia
|
Spain
|
 Uganda
|
 United Kingdom
|
Ukraine
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | East Austria LL Vienna |
Sugar Storm LL Skidel |
- | - | South Moravia LL Brno |
Haute Normandie LL Rouen |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
- | Emilia LL Emilia |
Vilnius LL Vilnius |
- | Rotterdam LL Rotterdam |
- | - | Serbia LL Belgrade |
- | - | London Area Youth LL London |
Rivne LL Rivne |
| 2014 | - | Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Flanders East LL Antwerp |
- | South Moravia LL Brno |
Aquitaine LL Aquitaine |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
- | Emilia LL Emilia |
Vilnus LL Vilnus |
Kvint LL Tiraspol |
Kennemerland LL Haarlem |
BUKS GepardyŻory LL |
- | Serbia LL Belgrade |
Catalunya LL Catalunya |
- | London Area Youth LL London |
Kirovograd LL Kirovograd |
| 2015 | East Austria LL Vienna |
Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Brussels LL Brussels |
- | South Moravia LL Brno |
- | KMC American LL Ramstein |
Central LL Budapest |
Emilia LL Emilia |
- | Kvint LL Tiraspol |
Rotterdam LL Rotterdam |
Zory/ Jastrzebie/ Rybnik LL |
- | - | Catalunya Barcelona |
AVRS Secondary School LL Kampala |
London Youth Baseball LL London |
Kirovograd Center LL Kirovograd |
| 2016 | Austria East LL Vienna |
Brest Zubrs LL Brest |
Flanders East LL Antwerp |
Croatia North LL Zagreb |
South Czech Republic LL Brno |
Ile-de-France 2 LL Paris |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
Central/ Eastern LL Budapest |
Emilia LL Emilia |
Kaunas LL Kaunas |
- | Kennemerland LL Haarlem |
- | - | - | Catalunya LL Barcelona |
- | London Youth Baseball LL London |
Kirovograd Center LL Kirovograd |
| 2017 | East Austria LL Vienna |
Sugar Storm LL Skidel |
Flanders West LL Brussels |
Croatia North LL Zagreb |
South Czech Republic LL Brno |
- | KMC American LL Ramstein |
Central/ Eastern LL Budapest |
Emilia LL Emilia |
- | - | Den Haag LL The Hague |
Zory/ Rybnik/ Jastrzebie LL |
CSS Calarasi LL Calarasi |
- | Catalunya LL Barcelona |
- | London Youth Baseball LL London |
Rivne LL Rivne |
| 2018 | East Austria LL Vienna |
Sugar Storm LL Skidel |
Brussels LL Brussels |
- | Northwest Czech Republic LL Prague |
Ile-De-France LL Paris |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
- | Friuli Venezia Giulia LL Ronchi Dei Legionari |
Vilnius LL Vilnius |
- | Kennemerland LL Haarlem |
- | - | - | Catalunya LL Barcelona |
- | London LL London |
Kirovograd Center LL Kirovograd |
| 2019 | Austria East LL Vienna |
Sugar Storm LL Skidel |
Brussels LL Brussels |
Croatia North LL Karlovac |
South Czech Republic LL Brno |
Ile-De-France LL Paris |
KMC American LL Ramstein |
Central LL Budapest |
Emilia Romagna LL Bologna |
Kaunas LL Kaunas |
- | Amsterdam LL Amsterdam |
Kedzierzy Kozle LL |
- | - | Catalunya LL Barcelona |
- | South/East London LL London |
Kyiv Baseball School LL Kyiv |
LLWS Performance
| Year | Champion | City | LLWS | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | South Moravia LL | Brno |
Round 1 | 1–2 |
| 2014 | South Moravia LL | Brno |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
| 2015 | AVRS Secondary School LL | Kampala |
Round 2 | 1–2 |
| 2016 | Emilia LL | Emilia |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
| 2017 | Emilia LL | Emilia |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
| 2018 | Catalunya LL | Barcelona |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
| 2019 | Emilia Romagna LL | Bologna |
Round 1 | 0–3 |
By country
Table includes results from Europe, EMEA, Transatlantic and Europe and Africa regions through the 2018 Little League World Series. Italics indicates team is no longer a part of European region.
| Country | European Championships |
Record in LLWS |
PCT |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saudi Arabia |
19 | 18–39 | .316 |
| West Germany/Germany |
16 | 9–39 | .188 |
| Spain |
10 | 4–24 | .143 |
| Italy |
5 | 1–14 | .067 |
| Russia |
5 | 1–14 | .067 |
| Belgium |
2 | 1–5 | .167 |
| Czech Republic |
2 | 1–5 | .167 |
| Netherlands |
2 | 0–6 | .000 |
| France |
1 | 1–2 | .333 |
| Uganda |
1 | 1–2 | .333 |
| Turkey |
1 | 0–2 | .000 |
| Greece |
1 | 0–3 | .000 |
| Poland |
1 | 0–3 | .000 |
| Total | 65 | 37–158 | .190 |
See also
References
- ^ "Regions Realigned for 2013: Australia to Play in Little League Baseball World Series" (Press release). Little League Baseball. August 29, 2012. Archived from the original on September 23, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2012.
- ^ "2001 Little League Baseball". Archived from the original on 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
- ^ "2003 Little League Baseball". Archived from the original on 2018-01-10. Retrieved 2010-08-27.
External links
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