Have you ever wondered what it’s like to suit up in a Major League uniform, step into a big league ballpark, and take the field in an atmosphere that only the best players in the world are familiar with?

Major League Baseball’s Dream Cup is an experience like no other, offering exactly that opportunity to its participants -- with an average age of 29 years old among those involved -- and along the way creating new fans and growing the sales of MLB products and sponsorship. Taking place in the baseball-rich country of Japan, the Dream Cup is the largest amateur baseball tournament in the country. Over the three years since the event’s inception, the number of players and teams involved have more than tripled in size, while social engagement across multiple social media platforms has more than quadrupled in some areas.

All baseball teams in Japan are eligible for the amateur tournament, with the host districts including Hokkaido, Tohoku, Kanto, Hokushinetsu, Tokai, Kansai, Chugoku, Shikoku and Kyushu Okinawa. Beyond the district tournament is a national event, and championship venues have included Ginowan Stadium Meiji Jingu Stadium and in 2019, Petco Park in San Diego, home to the Padres.

While the experience continues to grow and expand, players are treated to many of the luxuries that big league baseball players experience, from Major League hospitality throughout the championship rounds of the tournament, official MLB on-field gear, impressive flights and ground travel, big league clubhouse access, pregame ceremonies and postgame parties, as well as meeting the media for interviews.

Former Major League players have made appearances throughout the events, and while the tournament offers participants a glimpse of the big league life, it is also an opportunity to create new fans of the game. More than 10 teams have been organized by players who never before belonged to a team, and others have been formed by those who want to join a new baseball community each year.

MLB’s Dream Cup is an opportunity not to be missed, with a chance to live the life of a Major Leaguer and grow the game along the way.