In a historic 3-2 victory over the United States on Tuesday, 17 March 2026 at loanDepot Park in Miami, Venezuela captured its first-ever World Baseball Classic (WBC) title. Venezuela only lost one game in the WBC tournament, to the Dominican Republic in the first round (Pool D).
Following the win, the Venezuelan government declared Wednesday, 18 March 2026, a national holiday.
The win serves as a testament to the Dominican Republic’s role as the primary laboratory for Latin American baseball talent, where the Venezuelan squad’s “made-in-the-DR” preparation provided the competitive edge necessary to secure the title on the global stage. A large number of Venezuelan team members got their professional start in the MLB baseball academies located in the Dominican Republic. Several Venezuelan team staff personnel are also from the DR.
Team Venezuela took the trophy and a total of US$6.75 million in prize money for the championship run.
The WBC payout is cumulative, rewarding teams for each stage they advance:
• Participation fee: US$750,000 (awarded to all 20 teams)
• Advancing from pool play: US$1,000,000
• Quarterfinal win (vs. Japan): US$1,250,000
• Semifinal win (vs. Italy): US$1,250,000
• Championship bonus: US$2,500,000
• Total payout: US$6,750,000
Individual players on the winning roster are expected to receive bonuses ranging between US$100,000 and US$120,000 each.
The Venezuela vs USA game was decided in the 9th inning when Eugenio Suarez hit a decisive RBI double. Maikel Garcia was named the Tournament MVP. He set social media in the DR on fire when asked by journalist Moises Mejia about how he viewed the support of Latin American fans, and he responded for hi it was only about Venezuela.
Venezuela’s 2026 World Baseball Classic victory is being celebrated as a triumph for the “made-in-the-DR” development model. Beyond the final score, the victory highlights the deep structural ties between the Venezuelan roster and the Dominican Republic’s baseball infrastructure.
A significant majority of the Venezuelan lineup consists of players who were scouted and signed as teenagers and subsequently spent their formative professional years training at MLB Academies located in the Dominican Republic. These “boys from down south” benefited from the high-performance training environments in Boca Chica and Guerra, where they played alongside and against Dominican talent in the Dominican Summer League (DSL).
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Diario Libre
18 March 2026