Four teams are competing in the league - the Cartagena Tractors, the Bulls of Sincelejo, the Tribe of Santa Marta and Neighbourhood Below Barranquilla.

A two-month season is due to begin today with double-headers of fixtures at the Eduardo Porras Stadium in Sincelejo and the Bolivariano La Paz in Santa Marta.

Colombian Softball Federation President Edwin Díaz said: "Liga Élite is intended as a top-level competition."

The league is expected to represent the first step towards the professionalisation of men’s softball in Colombia.

Teams have 20-man squads, with each squad able to feature two overseas players.

Last year the Colombian Softball Federation created the Liga Especial Softbol Femenino, a four-team women’s league, aimed at promoting and boosting women’s sport in Colombia and recovering the Colombian women’s softball team’s position in the world rankings.

The 2023 Central American and Caribbean Games is due to take place in El Salvador from June 23 to July 8, with softball among 38 sports scheduled for the programme.