Europe first participated in the Little League World Series in . 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 ). 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.
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...
) regions. This move was triggered by Little League's announcement that
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
would receive its own LLWS berth starting in 2013. Two Middle Eastern countries,
Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
and
Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, 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
The International Baseball Federation (IBAF) is the former international governing body of baseball. It has since been superseded by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC), and continues to exist as the WBSC's baseball division. Betwee ...
and remain in the same zone under baseball's modern international governing body, the
World Baseball Softball Confederation
The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) is the international Sports governing body, governing body for the sports of baseball, softball, Baseball5 and Blind baseball. It was established in 2013 by the merger of the International Baseba ...
. Israel and Turkey have stayed in the renamed Europe and Africa Region to this day.
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 , and , when European teams reached the semifinals. Aviano, Italy, made it that far — in the 8-team format — in 1979.
Kaiserslautern
Kaiserslautern (; ) is a town in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, 666 kilometers (414 m ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
and
Dhahran
Dhahran (, ) is a city located in the Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia, Eastern Province, Saudi Arabia. With a total population of 143,936 as of 2022, it is a major administrative center for the History of the oil industry in Saudi Arabia, Saudi ...
,
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...
made the International final in back-to-back years in 1993 and 1994.
Europe and Africa Region Countries
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
European champions (1960–2000)
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
Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...
sent a team to the European qualifier in 2001 and
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
did the same in 2003
). In 2008,
Little League removed the native players rule and split the EMEA and Transatlantic region into the
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
and
Middle East-Africa regions. The following teams represented the European region after 2000:
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.
LLWS performance
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.
LLWS Performance
Europe and Africa Region (2013–)
As noted above, the Europe Region was expanded to include Africa in 2013. Results are as of the
2024 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, although a different format was used in 2023 where four participants in the qualification tournament advanced to the regional tournament.
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.
LLWS Performance
By country
Table includes results from Europe, EMEA, Transatlantic and Europe and Africa regions through the
2024 Little League World Series. ''Italics'' indicates team is no longer either a part of the European region or the African region that participate in the joint regional championship.
See also
*
*
References
External links
Little League homepageLittle League EMEA region
{{LLWS
*Europe
Baseball leagues in Europe
International baseball competitions in Europe