CTBC Bank (中國信託銀行) is the title sponsor of the 2023 World Baseball Classic’s first-round Pool A games, which are to be held from March 8 to 13 next year at the Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium.
Taiwan is one of the host countries of the fifth edition of the tournament, the biggest and highest-level baseball competition in the world.
Being a host, together with Japan and the US, shows that Taiwan is recognized as one of the world’s top-ranked baseball countries and a trustworthy host for sports competitions.
Photo courtesy of CTBC Bank
Taiwan are to face the Netherlands, Cuba, Italy and Panama in Pool A, contending for two spots in the quarter-finals, which are to be held in Japan.
Taichung Mayor Lu Shiow-yen (盧秀燕), Baseball Federation of Asia (BFA) president Jeffrey Koo Jr (辜仲諒), CTBC Bank chairman Morris Li (利明献) and World Baseball Classic president Jim Small on Thursday attended a news conference at Taichung City Hall to launch the event.
Koo revealed the draw and said that it is great to be hosting the event.
Good weather and a high-quality stadium make Taichung an excellent city for the teams to compete in, he said.
The BFA is the biggest supporter of the Taiwan team, which has always aspired to become No. 1 in the world, he said.
“Baseball has become like a business card that introduces Taiwan to the world,” Li said.
Taiwan hosted the WBSC U-12 Baseball World Cup and the WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup this year, and the World Baseball Classic should again put Taiwan on the world stage, he said.
CTBC invites baseball fans to cheer for Taiwan at the stadium, and is giving ticket purchasing priority to its cardholders.
Holders of CTBC credit cards and debit cards can purchase one of 500 ticket packages from Wednesday next week to Friday through the tixCraft ticketing Web site.
From Nov. 29 to Dec. 1, cardholders can purchase tickets to the four games that Taiwan are to play in, with 5,000 tickets available for each match.
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