National High School Baseball Championship opens in Korea

Miryang City hosts the 103-team competition on three fields, with the championship game at the SSG Landers Incheon Field. The winners will be the Korean High School National Champions.

The 2026 Shinsegae E-Mart Cup National High School Baseball Tournament, hosted and organised by the Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA) and sponsored by Shinsegae E-Mart and Miryang City, opened on Wednesday, March 25, in Miryang, in the southern Gyeongsangnam Province.

Now in its fifth edition, the tournament includes all U-18 teams registered with the association in 2026, making it the largest high school baseball competition in Korea, with a total prize pool of 60 million KRW (US$45,000). The 103 participating teams in 2026 are a record.

Games will take place across three venues in Miryang: Sunshine Miryang Sports Park Baseball Fields 1 & 2 and Gagok Baseball Stadium. Incheon SSG Landers Field will host the championship game, allowing the players to experience a Korea Baseball Organisation (KBO) league environment.

KBSA and Myriang City announced that all games will feature the ABS (Automated Ball-Strike System). In 2025, the tournament introduced ABS from the Round of 16 at Mokdong Baseball Stadium. The official KBSA YouTube channel will stream all games.

The Champions will receive a 30 million KRW prize (US$22,500), while 20 million KRW (US$15,000) will go to the runner-up. The two semifinal losers will finish third and receive 5 million KRW (US$3,750) each.

"We hope that this tournament, the largest ever, will serve as a stepping stone for high school baseball to take another leap forward through full ABS implementation and live broadcasting of all games," stated KBSA President Hae-young Yang.