Cuba opens 2017 World Baseball Classic in Japan

HAVANA, Cuba, Aug 2 (acn) The International Baseball Federation (IBAF) announced that Japan and South Korea will host the first qualifying rounds in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, and Cuba will play on Japanese soil.

As in the previous version, Cubans will begin their journey through Asian lands, where they accompany the hosts, China and Australia, based in the Tokyo Dome.
For South Koreans, it will be the first time they will act as host, as previously such contests were organized in China and Taiwan, plus Japan, which has held this condition in all editions.
Netherlands, Taiwan and the winner of a qualifying round to be played in Brooklyn from September 22 to 25 among Brazil, UK, Israel, and Pakistan will play at the Gocheok Sky Dome in Seoul.
The two best teams of the first round will qualify for the second Asian round, also scheduled for the emblematic Tokyo Park, and also two sides will reach semifinals, which will presumably be at the United States.
The other two pooles of the first round of the 2017 WBC have not been announced yet, but should be hosted on the American continent, as it was the case of the first three editions of the tournament.
The teams of C and D groups are Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Italy, Mexico, Puerto Rico, United States and Venezuela.