The first Blind Baseball European Championship is due to be held over two days in Bologna ©WBSC

Five nations are set to compete at the inaugural Blind Baseball European Championship in the Italian city of Bologna next Saturday (October 7) and Sunday (October 8).

Hosts Italy are set to be joined by France, Germany, The Netherlands and Britain.

Each of the five nations competed at the first World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Blind Baseball World Cup last year, in which Italy beat Britain in the final.

The Leoni Stadium in Bologna is due to host matches at the European Championship.

Each of the five teams are set to face-off in a round-robin opening stage, playing each other once in games of one hour or five innings.

The top two are set to advance to the gold medal match, and the teams third and fourth to the game for bronze.

A coaches clinic is also planned alongside the Blind Baseball European Championship.

WBSC Europe is set to organise the tournament in collaboration with the Italian Blind Baseball Association (AIBXC), Italian Paralympic Committee, the Emilia Romagna region and the city of Bologna.

Baseball for the blind was invented by the AIBXC, and the Italian Blind Baseball League dates back to 1997.