The Israel Association of Baseball (IAB) and the Czech Baseball Association (CBA) have signed an agreement recognizing Israeli baseball players as holders of European passports, permitting them to play in the Czech baseball leagues. The agreement also allows Czech players to play in the Israeli leagues.

The IAB is a member of the Confederation of European Baseball (CEB), and participates in national tournaments throughout Europe. This agreement extends Israel Baseball’s presence in European baseball, enabling the elite Israeli players to join the Czech leagues. There are 6,780 baseball players in the Czech Republic. There are four leagues for players aged 16 and up, as well as youth teams that include players from age 3. The CBA is the non-profit organization that oversees all the leagues and tournaments throughout Czech Republic.

This agreement is another step in building on the long-time cooperation that Israel baseball has had with the Czech Republic, which includes Israel baseball’s participation in tournaments in Czech Republic and coaching co-operation – Richard Kania, who is the Israel Senior National Team head coach, was first assigned as a European Envoy coach in Israel by CEB in 2008, and since then has been instrumental in developing relations between Israel and Czech baseball.

“The door is now open to Israeli players, who have reached a pinnacle in their local careers, to gain valuable international experience in the Czech leagues, as well as enabling Czech players to join the leagues in Israel,” says IAB President and National Director Peter Kurz. “We have always had an excellent relationship with the CBA. We now look forward to raising the bar on our collaboration and further developing baseball in both countries.”

“We are very excited to be expanding our excellent relations with Israel baseball,” says Petr Ditrich, President of the CBA. “With this agreement, not only will our players benefit from being able to play in each other’s leagues, but we will also extend our cooperation in our youth programs, national teams, coach exchanges, and more.”

Currently, Senior National Team player Tal Erel (pictured bottom third from right), who holds a European passport, is playing in the Czech Premier League for the Tempo Titans club and recently participated in the league's All Star weekend tournament in Prague. Following the signing of this agreement, all players with Israeli passports only, will be able to play in the Czech Republic.