MLB is determined to grow the industry internationally.
How long does it take for Major League Baseball to arrange what probably is a series of games in Paris? Apparently three years. Reuters news agency broke a story that the people who run the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise are negotiating with someone to play some games in Paris, France in 2025. If the story is accurate, Major League Baseball will play its first game in Paris approximately one year after the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics ended. In 1992, Major League Baseball had a plan to play spring training games in Barcelona, Spain, featuring the New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals in the lead up to the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. A breakdown in negotiations between MLB and the players association over money ended the notion. Baseball was a minor event at the 1992 Barcelona Games. The National Basketball Association did stage a game in Paris in 2020 but has not been able to return to France because of the COVID-19 pandemic although the league is hoping to play a game in Paris in 2023.
An MLB spokesperson said there is an “extensive international play plan” but left it at that. Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association want to grow the industry internationally. The 2022 Collective Bargaining Agreement mandated that Major League Baseball return to play games in places such as Mexico City and Monterey in Mexico, San Juan, Puerto Rico and London. MLB could also play games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. MLB over the years has played in Japan and in Australia. This fall, the National Hockey League will play regular-season games and exhibition matches in Finland, in the Czech Republic, in Germany and in Switzerland. The National Football League will stage three games in London, one in Frankfurt, Germany and one in Mexico City this fall.
Evan Weiner’s books are available at iTunes – https://books.apple.com/us/author/evan-weiner/id595575191
Evan can be reached at evan_weiner@hotmail.com
