Softball is a team sport, immensely popular in the United States. The game is sometimes confused with baseball; the main differences are the balls and the pitches. Softballs are larger in size, and the pitches are thrown underhand. Softball is categorized in three types – fast pitch, modified fast pitch and slow pitch. Fast pitch softball is popular in competitive events and tournaments, while slow pitch is for recreational leagues and amateur games.

The ISF (International Softball Federation) is the official sanctioning body for world softball championship events. It is endorsed by the International Olympic Committee and the General Association of International Sports Federation. ISF organizes World Cup tournaments which are held every four years. Awards given for softball are for the different categories namely women and men fast pitch, junior women and men fast pitch, women, men and coed slow pitch and women and men modified pitch. The ISF also oversees regional softball championships and endorses softball teams for the Olympics softball competitions. Awards given for softball also include the Women World Championships, a fast pitch softball competition for women national teams held every four years. Besides the championship titles and medals, one of the much coveted awards given for softball in the international arena is the honor of being elected to the ISF Hall of Fame.

In the United States, there are many governing bodies due to the popularity of the sport. The major ones are the ASA (Amateur Softball Association), which is the national governing body for the US, the NSA (National Softball Association) and USSSA (United States Specialty Sports Association). The ASA endorses all softball competitions and tournaments in the US, and they have over 240,000 teams. They organize more than 100 national championships annually. The National Pro Fast pitch (NPF) is the only professional female softball league in the United States. It was formerly called the Women's Pro Softball League (WPSL). Unofficial softball teams sprang up around from bars and clubs, thus the name ‘beer-league’ softball was coined. These leagues are mainly slow-pitch.

In the American schools and colleges, fast pitch softball for girls is fast gaining in popularity; the award given for softball in these competitions is not so much the title or the medals; it is the coveted opportunity to be spotted and selected by the college coaches.

Across the oceans, softball in Europe is sanctioned by the European Softball Federation (ESF), which is the governing body for the sport of softball in Europe, while in Australia, the national governing corporation is the ASF (Australian Softball Federation). Softball in Australia was initially started by a US army sergeant. It has since become a major sport in the schools, and is regarded as a popular game.

The ASF organizes eight national championships yearly. The awards given for softball championships are the Esther Deason Shield for the Under 16 Girls,
Arthur Allsopp Shield for the Under 16 Boys, Elinor MacKenzie Shield for the Under 19 Women's, Nox Bailey Shield for the Under 19 Men's, the Joyce Lester Shield for the Under 23 Women's, the Laing Harrow Shield for Under 23 Men's, the Gilleys Shield for the Open Women's and the John Reid Shield for the Open Men's.