They're not Classic rookies anymore! Great Britain ready to build on '23's breakout

Great Britain, historically, has not been known as a baseball powerhouse. But they enter the 2026 World Baseball Classic having automatically qualified for the tournament for the first time in their history, which vaults their status from “first-time entrants” to “expected to compete against the heavy hitters.”

At the helm of this GB squad is Brad Marcelino, who will be taking over managerial duties from ’23 skipper Drew Spencer. Marcelino, a coach in the D-backs’ organization and a British Baseball Hall of Famer, was the bench coach for the team in 2023 and has decades of experience with British baseball. He may not be leading the team with the highest quantity of MLB talent, but in his words, he will be molding “a bunch of freaking tough dogs.”

In the 2026 tourney, Great Britain will be competing in Pool B in Houston at the Astros’ Daikin Park. It'll be facing off against the United States, Mexico, Italy and Brazil for a chance at advancing beyond pool play for the first time in the country’s history. Here's everything you need to know ahead of this year's international affair.

2023 WBC Performance

After falling just shy of the 2017 World Baseball Classic, losing to Israel in its final qualifying game, Great Britain made it to its first WBC in 2023 after beating Spain in the final Qualifier. They pulled off a stunning upset with a victory over Colombia in pool play, marking the team’s first win in the WBC, before being knocked out with a 2-1 loss to Mexico. However, the Brits automatically qualified for the 2026 WBC when the U.S. beat Colombia, since it guaranteed that GB finished in the top four in their pool.

2026 WBC schedule

Before Great Britain heads to the World Baseball Classic, it will face off against some MLB competition in the Cactus League. GB will play an exhibition game against the Brewers on March 3 and the Padres on March 4 before beginning official Classic competition. The squad’s first scheduled game in this year’s Classic is on Friday, March 6, at 1 p.m. ET at Daikin Park in Houston. It’ll be playing against Mexico, which knocked Great Britain out of the 2023 tournament. From there, GB is set to square off against the United States on March 7 at 8 p.m. ET before meeting Italy on March 8 and Brazil on March 9 to round out pool play.

All games will be broadcast in the U.S. via FOX media. The TV broadcast partner in Great Britain is yet to be announced.

Best WBC performance

Great Britain only has a small WBC sample size to pull from, but its 2023 win over Colombia was a rousing victory for a country not known for its baseball legacy. In that game, Britain overcame an early 3-0 deficit with a go-ahead two-run double from Jaden Rudd and a solo home run from Harry Ford to add some necessary insurance. MLB reliever Ian Gibaut closed out the 7-5 victory, earning the save after pitching the eighth and ninth.

To even have a chance of competing on the WBC stage involved an impressive run through the 2022 Qualifiers in Regensberg, Germany. The Brits clinched that double-elimination bracket by beating France in the first round, 14-4, and Germany in the second round, 8-1, before emerging victorious in a 10-9 thriller against Spain to qualify for their first World Baseball Classic.

Biggest baseball accomplishments in country history

We’ve already established that Team GB’s WBC victory in 2023 was a watershed moment in the nation’s baseball history, so let’s set that aside for a moment.

Great Britain made more baseball history this past year in the Under-23 European Baseball Championship, where it defeated the Czech Republic to capture its first European title at any age level. It was its first international gold medal in nearly 90 years. Back in 1938, it beat the United States, four games to one, in an event called the Amateur World Series that later came to be known as the first world championship of amateur baseball.

Also in 2025, the Great Britain national baseball team competed at the European Championships, losing to Spain in the quarterfinals. Their best finish in the Euros is runner-up, which it achieved in 2023, 2007 and 1967.

In 2026, Great Britain will be making its first appearance in the Premier12 qualifier tournament, which is organized by the World Baseball Softball Confederation and requires the participating nations to be among the top 20 in WBSC World Rankings. If it finish within the top four in this tournament, it will advance to the 2027 Premier12 main tournament.

The Great Britain national team has never competed in Olympic baseball, though it performed well enough at the 2007 European Championships to make it to the 2008 Olympic qualifying tournament before pulling out due to lack of funding.

However, with the recent momentum it's gained from its U-23 performance and two consecutive World Baseball Classic appearances, Great Britain has begun making much stronger inroads into the international baseball tournament landscape.

Notable MLB players on the team

Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr., who hails from the Bahamas (a British colony until 1973 when it became an independent nation), will be a co-captain of Team Great Britain and will rep GB for the first time in 10 years. He last suited up for Great Britain as an 18-year-old at the 2016 World Baseball Classic qualifiers. Another Bahamian with MLB service time as an infielder, Lucius Fox, will be suiting up alongside him – could there be an all-Bahamian double-play combo for GB this Classic? It’s officially in play.

2023 WBC participant, Michael Petersen, who was born in Middlesex, England and notably struck out Nolan Arenado on three pitches in the last Classic, is on GB’s roster once again. Petersen made his MLB debut in 2024 with the Dodgers and has appeared for the Braves and Marlins since then.

Anchoring the pitching staff alongside Peterson is Vance Worley, who also played for GB in 2023 and pitched in MLB for eight seasons. Other players on Britain’s squad with Major League experience include Tristan Beck, Nate Eaton and Trayce Thompson. And one other guy …

Minor League prospects on the squad

Even after a recent cross-country trade from the Mariners to the Nationals, No. 71 overall prospect Harry Ford -- whose parents are both from England -- will represent Great Britain in the Classic once again, this time as a co-captain with Chisholm. He played for GB in the 2023 WBC, going 4-for-13 with two home runs and four RBIs in four games, including a three-run homer against Canada and a solo shot in the win over Colombia.

Two other Minor Leaguers to watch who are suiting up for Great Britain are Cubs infield prospect BJ Murray and D-backs outfield prospect Kristian Robinson, both of whom are also Bahamian. Other Minor Leaguers on GB’s squad include Brendan Beck (in the Yankees’ system), Matt Koperniak (Cardinals), Ryan Long (Orioles) and Gary Gill Hill (Rays).

Story to watch: How can Great Britain build off of its 2023 momentum?

Britain’s amateur-to-pro baseball pipeline is still in development (with plenty of youth leagues and facilities working to strengthen that pipeline), and in the Majors today, Petersen is the only player actually born across the pond. But with the London Series in 2023 and ’24 and Great Britain’s victory in the ’23 tournament helping galvanize regional support for baseball, and with a new manager who has strong ties to both MLB and British baseball, the team’s outlook is bright.

Other questions ahead of upcoming tournament

What will GB’s team celebrations be this time around?

In the 2023 Classic, Team Great Britain’s dugout celebration after home runs involved donning a crown and royal-looking robe. It also celebrated big plays by pretending to sip tea, which is synonymous with living in Great Britain, out of a dainty tea cup.

So, what’s left for 2026 after those impressive displays? Will there be other nods to the monarchy or to beloved afternoon rituals? As the world watches, whatever GB cooks up will inevitably be compared to its fun celebrations from a few years ago.