World Baseball Classic: Full list of teams, schedule, and how to watch

The full World Baseball Classic rosters will be announced the night of Feb. 9. With that in mind, here is everything to know.

The fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic is set to begin in the next few weeks, with many MLB stars taking part and putting country ahead of club. Because of the competition, the likes of Ronald Acuña and more will miss some of spring training, but it’s a worthwhile cause.

This year’s World Baseball Classic was originally supposed to take place in 2021, but was canceled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With many of those same concerns behind us — or at the very least put on hold — the competition can now take place.

Which countries are in the World Baseball Classic?

20 nations have qualified for the WBC, and they were divided into four pools based on proximity. The top two teams from each pool will qualify for the eight-team, single-elimination style tournament. These are the pools:

Pool A:

• Chinese Taipei
• Cuba
• Italy
• Netherlands
• Panama

Pool B:

• Australia
• China
• Czech Republic
• Japan
• South Korea

Pool C:

• Canada
• Colombia
• Great Britain
• Mexico
• United States

Pool D:

• Dominican Republic
• Israel
• Nicaragua
• Puerto Rico
• Venezuela

World Baseball Classic schedule

The World Baseball Classic begins on March 7, with the Netherlands and Cuba playing at 11 p.m. ET. The rest of the group stage schedule will be played at various times.

Pool A will play from March 8-12. Chinese Taipei, Cuba, Italy, Netherlands and Panama will all play each other one time. Pool B will play from March 9-13, with Australia, China, Czech Republic, Japan and South Korea all facing off. Pool C will be contested from March 11-15, featuring Canada, Colombia, Great Britain, Mexico and the United States. And lastly, Pool D will also play from March 11-15, featuring the Dominican Republic, Israel, Nicaragua, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.

Beyond group play, the quarterfinal, semifinal and final schedule can all be found below:

How to watch the World Baseball Classic

Fox Sports has exclusive rights to the WBC in the United States, and games will be broadcast on Fox, Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, the Fox Sports App, and Fox Deportes in Spanish. To stream these channels, the games should be available via services like Fubo.

World Baseball Classic past winners

Japan won the first two World Baseball Classic tournaments, establishing their baseball dominance in front of an international audience. The Dominican Republic won in 2013, thanks to an undefeated run to the title. The United States won the last WBC in 2017, with Puerto Rico finishing in second place.

World Baseball Classic rosters

The WBC rosters will be announced on Thursday, Feb. 9 on MLB Network at 6 p.m. ET. Check back to FanSided.com’s MLB coverage for live roster breakdowns.