A new European Slowpitch Softball League (ESSL), the brainchild of Austrian slowpitch enthusiast Marc Stein, is now halfway through its first season of play. Six teams representing four countries are taking part, and finals will be held on 13-14 September in Linz, Austria.
ESSL teams are made up mainly of men, but there is no restriction on female players and several teams include at least one.
The concept, a bit like the National Softball League in the UK, is to play league fixtures during four weekend tournaments at different European locations. All teams have to participate in all ESSL weekends to qualify for finals, and individual players need to qualify by attending at least two weekends and playing at least two games on each weekend.
ESSL weekends have already been held on 17-18 May in Germany and 7-8 June in Slovenia. More games will be played on 12-13 July in Austria before the finals in Linz in September.
The league has attracted press and media attention in the countries where ESSL games have been played, and broadcast television coverage is planned for the finals.
Teams
The six ESSL teams (and the countries they represent) are:
Grizzlies (Austria)
Bulldogs (Slovenia)
Dream Team (Slovenia)
Stallions (Slovenia)
Guzzlers (USA)
Los Coyotes (Dominican Republic)
Standard men's slowpitch rules are played in all games, except that base-stealing is allowed.
The aim of the project is to grow the slowpitch format in Europe, and several more teams are planning to join the ESSL in 2015, including a team from Italy. The goal for the future is different divisions throughout Europe, with possible inter-divisional tournaments and the top teams in each division qualifying for finals. The ESSL hopes that one or more teams from the UK will be interested.
The league has a website with news, results, stats etc on: www.softballeurope.com, and expects to publish a Newsletter soon.
Contact
For more information, or to express interest in joining the ESSL in 2015, contact Marc Stein on: mstein@softballeurope.com.