Road to LA28: Shaoxing, China to host Women’s Softball Asia/Oceania Olympic Qualifier

The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) has awarded the hosting rights of the Women’s Softball Asia/Oceania Olympic Qualifier for LA28 to China. The six-team event, one of three continental qualifiers, will grant one place to the softball tournament at the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games.

Four teams from Asia and two from Oceania will compete for the Olympic berth. The participating teams and competition format will be confirmed at a later stage.

The qualifier will be staged in 2027 (exact dates to be confirmed) at the Shaoxing Baseball Softball Culture Center in Shaoxing, China.

China will host a Women’s Softball Olympic Qualifier for the second consecutive edition. In 2019, Shanghai hosted the qualifier for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, where Australia secured its Olympic ticket with an undefeated campaign.

The first team to qualify for the LA28 softball competition will be the highest-ranked team — excluding host USA — at the WBSC Women’s Softball World Cup Finals, to be played in Redcliffe, Australia, from 5 to 11 April.

In addition to the Asia/Oceania Qualifier, two more continental events — the Europe/Africa and the Americas Olympic Qualifiers — will each award one spot in LA28.

A Final Qualification Event, to be held no later than March 2028, will determine the sixth and final participating team. The second- and third-placed teams from each continental qualifier will compete in this event, with the winner claiming the last Olympic berth.

Shaoxing Baseball Softball Culture Center

The 160,000-square-metre Shaoxing Baseball Softball Culture Center was built for the Hangzhou 2022 Asian Games. It is the largest baseball-softball complex in China and features state-of-the-art facilities, including artificial turf, LED lighting, and video boards on all fields. The venue previously hosted the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup 2024.

The complex includes two international-standard softball fields and two baseball fields, along with a multifunctional indoor arena, swimming pool, rooftop football pitch in an adjacent building, and an on-site hotel designed to accommodate large-scale events.

Its architectural design draws inspiration from the artistic heritage and textile culture of Shaoxing Water Town. Curvilinear elements inspired by silk belts, scrolls and traditional tiled roofs are reflected in the façade, which uses perforated aluminium panels to evoke the flowing imagery of Jiangnan landscapes.

Hosting the Women’s Softball Asia/Oceania Olympic Qualifier represents a further step in the venue’s long-term legacy plan.

The Fengtai Softball Stadium in Beijing hosted the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games Softball Event.