A year after featuring an all-U.S. field for the first time since 1975, the 75th Little League World Series will once again feature the best competition from around the globe, including two new expansion teams for both the United States and international competition.

Last year’s field saw Taylor North Little League (Taylor, Mich.) beat West Side Little League (Hamilton, Ohio) in the final. Of course, there will be no such final this year with the re-introduction of teams from outside the United States.

The U.S. has won the Little League World Series three years running, the longest such streak since U.S.-based teams won the tournament five consecutive years from 2005-09. Will the latest streak extend to four, or will an international team step in to take the crown?

MORE: Little League World Series 2022 schedule, scores and channels

The Sporting News has everything you need to know about this year’s tournament:

Little League World Series teams 2022

The 2022 Little League World Series will feature a 20-team field for the first time as international squads return for the first time since 2019. This year’s tournament will add two teams from both brackets — Metro and Mountain in the U.S., and Panama and Puerto Rico internationally — to expand the field to 20 teams.

Also of note: The Little League World Series’ expansion teams begin a three-year rotation in 2022 among Panama, Puerto Rico and Cuba, with the former two taking the first rotation of automatic bids this year. The rotation of auto bids will move to Panama and Cuba in 2023 and Cuba and Puerto Rico in 2024. The third country each year will still have a chance to qualify through its regional tournament (Cuba did not make it out of the Caribbean region this year). 

Here’s a look at the teams set to challenge for the 2022 Little League World Series title:

United States teams

International teams

2022 Little League World Series bracket

You can download a PDF of the full of the full 2022 Little League World Series bracket here.

Little League World Series location

The Little League World Series returns to Williamsport, Pa., which has hosted the event since its inception in 1947.

How old are Little League World Series players?

This year, the eligible age range for participants is 10 to 12. The prior two tournaments accepted only 11- and 12-year-olds. Before then, the age group allowed children as old as 13 years old to play.

What is the LLWS pitch count limit?

The 2022 Little League World Series has differing pitch count rules for its participants this year, considering 10-year-olds are now allowed to compete (unlike the two previous tournaments, which allowed only 11-to-12-year-olds).

Per Little League Baseball regulations, 10-year-olds have a 75-pitch count. Participants who are 11 or 12 can throw as many as 85 pitches in a game. The designated rest period per pitch count is the same for all participants aged 10-12, and remains the same as in previous years:

Little League World Series field size

46 feet: Pitching rubber to home plate 60 feet: Length of basepaths 225 feet: Home plate to outfield fence

The Little League World Series’ return to Williamsport, Pa., means the series will continue to be played at Howard J. Lamade and Little League Volunteer stadiums, both of which have the same dimensions.

Who won the LLWS in 2021?

Taylor North Little League of Taylor, Mich., won the 2021 Little League World Series. It was the first such title for a team from Michigan since 1959. The team beat West Side Little League of Hamilton, Ohio, by a score of 5-2 in the LLWS final (previously beating the team 9-1 in the Great Lakes Regional final).

Taylor North went 7-0 to reach the Little League World Series, going 3-0 in the Michigan state championship tournament and 4-0 in the Great Lakes Regional tournament. The team went 4-1 in the Hank Aaron championship bracket, losing only to Hawaii 2-0 in the third round of the bracket. Michigan avenged the loss in the bracket final, winning 2-1.

List of past Little League World Series champions

Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) claims the most Little League World Series titles, with 17 (with the last win coming in 1996). Next on the list is Japan, which has nine (last won in 2017) and California, last won in 2011.

Each of the last three Little League World Series have produced new champions in Hawaii (2018), Louisiana (2019) and Michigan (2021).