Venezuelan youth baseball denied visas for US tournament

(NewsNation) — A youth baseball team from Venezuela will be unable to participate in this weekend’s Senior League World Series in South Carolina after players were unable to obtain travel visas due to a proclamation signed by President Donald Trump that limits entry into the United States for several countries.

Venezuela is among the countries that are included in the order, which prevented the Cacique Mara team from Maracaibo, Venezuela, from participating in the tournament. Little League International confirmed that the team would not be able to play in the 12-team tournament, which includes six U.S. teams and six international squads and begins Friday, NewsNation affiliate WSPA

reported this week.

The team learned this week that they had been denied travel visas due to the executive order that Trump signed in early June. The news outlet Ultimas Noticias reported that players from Venezuelan players traveled to the U.S. Embassy in Colombia to obtain visas but were told they were “ineligible” based on the Trump order.

Another team from Venezuela won the Senior World Series in 2024. Tournament officials reported that a team from Victoria, Mexico, will take the place of the Venezuelan squad in this weekend’s event.

Little League International called the team’s inability to participate in the tournament “extremely disappointing, especially to these young athletes,” the organization said in a statement provided to WSPA.

The president of the Venezuelan team said that players are “demoralized” by not being able to travel to the United States, Yahoo! Sports reported.

“All they know how to do is play baseball,” Kendry Gutiérrez said in a statement that was translated by World Baseball. “They want to compete and honor Venezuela and Latin America. They didn’t pose any threat; they’re 15-year-old kids who want to win the World Cup.”

The Trump presidential proclamation limits entry from some countries but provides exceptions to athletes traveling to the United States for major sporting events, including the World Cup and Olympics. However, the Senior World Series is not considered a major sporting event, which is determined by the Secretary of State, Yahoo! Sports reported.

The United States is scheduled to host major events in the upcoming years, including the FIFA World Cup in 2026 and the Summer Olympics in 2028.