The Rotary Field at Prime Minister's Park has the chalk lines strung out and bases ready to be placed for the upcoming Sr. Men's World Softball Championships. (paNOWStaff/Nick Nielsen)

By Nick Nielsen

Schedule released

Final preparations underway for Sr. Men’s World Softball Championships

Jun 26, 2025 | 1:30 PM

In less than two weeks time, the city of Prince Albert will welcome teams from eight different countries to the WBSC Men’s Softball World Cup, and the excitement in the community is building.

Some minor preparations are already underway at Rotary Field in Prime Minister’s Park and World Cup Bid Committee Chair Ian Litzenberger said they’re right on schedule. The public won’t notice the major changes in the park until July 4.

“We’re rolling quite well, actually. With our exceptional partnership with the city and a lot of local vendors and businesses, we definitely are nearing the finish line to have it World Cup ready and probably the best condition it’s ever been in. We’ve made some significant investments there again this year and have the opportunity to fence in the three diamonds in that park. The city and their crew have been working diligently just to get the field of play just immaculate, and without their efforts we wouldn’t be where we are today.”

This year teams from the Domincan Republic, USA, Venezuela, New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Argentina, and Canada will take to the field. The tournament starts on July 8 with an 11:30 a.m. matchup between Japan and the Dominican Republic, and it’s scheduled to finish on July 13 with an extra day at the end of the tournament to account for rain delays.

However, it’s the date right in the middle of the tournament that hosts a special place in the hearts of the organizing committee – Friday, July 11. That happens to be the birthday of the late Bruce Vance, who’s efforts to promote sports in Prince Albert over the years made him a legend in the city. Litzenberger said Vance had such a big role in making these softball championships happen before his passing, there will be a celebration after the final game on the 11th to honour his legacy.

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“So, that’s going to be recognized as Bruce Vance Day. It’s going to be a great day of ball and we’re going to cap the evening off with fireworks for him just to have a great atmosphere, have a great event and kind of just have that reminder that he was a big piece of the puzzle.”

Aside from honouring Vance on his birthday, there’s also an opening ceremony planned for the first day of the tournament, and a second fireworks display after the first day of games is completed.

There’s also going to be other forms of entertainment with live musical performances on stage between games, a fun zone for restless kids, and a lot of local vendors and food trucks coming out. Between the world class competition and entertainment, and the permanent upgrades to an already great slowpitch field, Litzenberger is excited to see all of this come together and really showcase Prince Albert in the best way possible.

“It’s definitely a big event. There’s a small group of us that have been working on this since October of 2014 with the end goal of all that time to build a world class facility that we can leave as a legacy for the community. It’s pretty mind numbing and humbling at the same time.”

The full schedule for the tournament has been released and you can view that by clicking here. Online ticket purchases are also available.

If you prefer physical tickets, those are currently being sold at the Tourism Centre in Prince Albert until July 5. After that, physical ticket sales will be moving to the box office of the Art Hauser Centre.

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panews@pattisonmedia.com