Typically when you think of Serbia in the context of sports, the names that come to mind are those of Novak Djokovic and Nikola Jokic. There is also a strong soccer tradition with the national team having qualified for each of the last two World Cups. Baseball does not generally come to mind. That said, there is a baseball scene in Serbia and one that is looking to take important steps forward in the coming years. This is a look into baseball in the Balkan nation.
In The Former Yugoslavia
Like its neighbors, Serbia was a part of the former Yugoslavia. Therefore, any look at baseball in the modern state of Serbia must take into consideration the baseball scene that existed in the former Yugoslavia before its breakup. This informs not only the baseball scene of modern Serbia but also of its neighbors.
There was a local baseball-like game called shora that was played in the early to mid 20th century. From what little information I was able to find on shora, it seems this game is still played today with baseball equipment which works given the similarity of the sports. Some baseball was played and some clubs did exist at both federal and local level. A demo of sorts is cited as having taken place as early as 1935 during the halftime break of a soccer match. (per John Chetwynd's book Baseball In Europe: A Country By Country History)
Further baseball would be played from the 1970's thanks to influence from nearby Italy, a regional power. Italian clubs would travel to Yugoslavia and play local clubs. By 1979, a team of 13-15 year olds even played in the European Cadet Championships. Informal local championships were being disputed at adult level by the 1980's.
The attitude of the Yugoslav authorities towards baseball was indifferent at best. Baseball only received recognition as an actual sport in the mid 1980's and even then, as in many countries, the game was chronically underfunded. It paled in importance compared to soccer or basketball. Nevertheless, club teams sprang up in the mid to late 1980's with Slovenia and Croatia becoming recognized as the producers of the best baseball talent in Yugoslavia. They are arguably the strongest national teams today in the post-Yugoslav era. By the end of the decade there were a dozen top flight teams which traveled and represented cities in what are now Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia.
As Yugoslavia Broke Up
The turmoil of the 1990's would completely change the face of the Balkans as a whole. For baseball players within Yugoslavia, an already complicated situation grew even more difficult. Many became refugees and traveling to games became something of an odyssey. And yet, the game survived thanks to some hardy, truly dedicated players who preserved the sport in their home country. I stumbled upon an article from 1993 that discusses baseball and the few men that kept it alive during this troubled period. It is a fascinating read.
A few things that stand out are the fact that players would take it upon themselves to smuggle equipment through UN checkpoints or scrounge for any old and abandoned equipment they could possibly find. Needless to say equipment was scarce enough that some willing men were turned away for lack of equipment to practice and play with.
Spectators were few, and made fewer still by the situation around them. They were attracted by curiosity about this strange game more than anything else. Those who picked up playing largely did so either as a consequence of spending time in America or watching one of the many baseball themed movies that came out during the late 1980's and early 1990's. (Field of Dreams, Mr. Baseball etc.)
The strongest team during these years was an international team made up of foreign diplomats and UN personnel. They had a perfect 1993 season in fact. Many came from countries where baseball had a longer tradition and so forth. Still, this allowed for admission into the International Baseball Federation in 1995 and the Confederation of European Baseball the following year. Locally, the Serbian Baseball League set up shop in 1994 and persists to this day.
Within what is now Serbia, teams had to be split up in order to be able to keep a viable league going. Funding was lost to the breakup of the former Yugoslav league and sanctions prevented travel to any form of international competition or training. There was some help from the US embassy for part of the mid 1990's. The International Baseball Association, precursor of today's WBSC, pitched in equipment as well. Bombed out bridges made even internal travel a nightmare. The 1999 NATO intervention in Kosovo made procuring funding for a stereotypically American sport all but impossible. It was only through creative solutions and sheer tenacity that baseball survived at all in Serbia into the 21st century.
Serbian Baseball In The 21st Century
Since the turn of the millennium, baseball has remained a niche sport within Serbia much like in the other countries of the former Yugoslavia. It has survived though thanks to a mixture of outside support and the same tenacity of local baseball people that kept the game alive through the turmoil of the 1990's. Serbia currently sits in the B tier of European baseball teams and is seeking to break through for the first time into the A tier which would allow it compete in the main tournament of the European Championships.
Pro baseball is still played in Serbia even through the pandemic. Belgrade 96 is the dominant club with twenty championship banners. The national league championship is a best of five series.
Currently, Serbia is ranked 51st by the WBSC on the men's side and the women's softball team is 56th at the time of writing. The men's national team had its strongest showing at the 2004 B tier championship finishing 4th. Serbia also co-hosted a European Championship qualifier in 2022 for the first time. The team also boasts a YouTube channel where you can stream national team games as well as material from the local league. I think a few thousand new subscribers would be a nice boost towards increasing their visibility both in Serbia and beyond.
There is also outside help. There is an American based NGO called the Serbian Baseball Development Association whose mission statement is to grow the game in Serbia specifically. Their activities include procuring equipment, developing the local Little League scene and cooperating with the local pro league. Their social media shows off some of their activities including clinics and silent auctions to drum up funds for their work. The WBSC also offers support as it does to the other member federations.
As far as prognosis is concerned, there is reason for optimism. Serbian baseball has survived circumstances that would have all but killed the game off in other countries. The grit of the local baseball community is beyond question. What they need is stronger support. Luckily, we live in the age of social media and online crowdfunding that makes federations less dependent on government funding. Serbia can also count on a large diaspora in more established baseball countries like Canada or America or even Australia. This means that players from these countries that happen to be of Serbian descent can be found and with some persistence convinced to join the Serbian baseball program. Finding them and convincing them of the viability of the project requires the funds to send scouts to find these players so that they can be convinced. And there is no shame in using foreign born players. National teams all over Europe and beyond do this.
Another key to taking baseball in Serbia to the next level will be infrastructure related. There is one high level baseball complex in Ada Ciganlija that I understand has been open since 2001, but little other quality baseball infrastructure exists on which players can train and fully develop their skills. This is a problem for national baseball teams across Europe and making headway here creates a significant advantage. Again, government permits and funding are usually the biggest obstacles in many countries.
If Serbia can break into the A tier and therefore compete in the main tournament of the European Championships within the next decade, that would be a significant accomplishment. That should be the stated goal of the federation for the short to medium term. From there, with persistence and continued support, further milestones can be attained such as attempting to qualify for a World Baseball Classic or the Olympics should baseball return to the Olympic program. Hopefully, the coming generation of Serbian ball players will be the ones to breakthrough and achieve the first major successes for their national program.
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