| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Inaugural season | 2024 |
| Region | Latin America, United States, East Asia |
| TV partner(s) | Kiswe |
| Related competitions | Latin American Series |
 2024 Intercontinental Series | |
The Intercontinental Professional Baseball Series (IPBS; Spanish: Serie Intercontinental de Béisbol Profesional) is a planned international club tournament contested by winter league professional baseball teams. It is an alternative to the Caribbean Series. The first edition is scheduled to take place in 2024, from January 26 to February 1, in Barranquilla, Colombia.
The inaugural series will notably feature a Cuban team made up of expatriate and defected players in the United States, rather than the officially-sanctioned champion of the Cuban Elite League.
Background
The Intercontinental Series grew out of the Latin American Series, which was held between 2013 and 2019 as the premier club tournament for winter leagues not recognized by the Caribbean Professional Baseball Confederation (CPBC). The impetus for the Latin American Series eventually faded, as the CPBC expanded the Caribbean Series by inviting the league champions from Colombia, Panama, and Curaçao. However, after three years of participation, the Colombian league was not invited to the 2024 Caribbean Series stemming from a financial dispute.
Instead, organizers in Colombia explored the idea of reviving the discontinued Latin American Series. "The idea is that the countries that had already been there [at the Latin American Series] participate, along with those from different continents. We want to bring together more countries to have this celebration, as we did with the Latin American Series," said Édison Rentería, a Colombian baseball executive and brother of Édgar Rentería.[1]
The tournament was criticized by Jordan Díaz, who said that Colombian baseball should seek a return to the Caribbean Series instead of "returning to the past."[2]
It was announced that the Cuban team would be organized by FEPCUBE, an association of expatriate Cuban ballplayers, rather than the Baseball Federation of Cuba (FCB). It marks the first international tournament to include a team not sanctioned by the Cuban government, composed almost entirely of defectors.[3] The team is expected include Aroldis Chapman, Yandy Díaz, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Yennier Canó, and other players who are all ineligible to play organized Cuban baseball.[4] However, the Colombian Ministry of Sport distanced itself from the tournament, characterizing it as a "private, invitational event" and noting that the Cuban Baseball Federation, not FEPCUBE, is the only authority recognized by both the Colombian Baseball Federation and the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC).[5]
Participants
| Country | League | First edition |
|---|---|---|
 Colombia |
Colombian Professional Baseball League | 2024 |
 Cuba |
FEPCUBE[a] | 2024 |
 Curaçao |
Curaçao Professional Baseball League | 2024 |
 Japan |
Nihonkai League Baseball | 2024 |
 South Korea |
2024 | |
 United States |
Western League | 2024 |
Notes
- a The Cuban team will be made up of expatriate Cuban players, rather than those from the top-level Cuban Elite League.
References
- ↑ "Colombia albergará la Serie Intercontinental de Béisbol Profesional en 2024" (in Spanish). Caracol TV. 24 September 2023.
- ↑ "Jordan Díaz sienta su voz de protesta en contra de Edinson Rentería" (in Spanish). Vavel. Oct 25, 2023.
- ↑ "Organizers of the Intercontinental Series also invited the Cuban Baseball Federation". Cuban Baseball Digest. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
- ↑ "Anunciado el roster preliminar FEPCUBE 'Patria y Vida' que jugará en la Serie Intercontinental de Béisbol". Diario de Cuba. 29 December 2023.
- ↑ Romero, Francys [@francysromeroFR] (January 10, 2024). "El Ministerio de Deportes de Colombia y el Comité Olímpico Colombiano (COC) aclaran en un comunicado, seguramente presionado por @InderCuba y la @CubanaBeisbol que no reconocen la Serie Intercontinental" (Tweet) – via Twitter.