Key Takeaways
- Musco Lighting’s youth sports exchange program returns for a second year, adding a baseball leg that sends Iowa players to France this August.
- A 13-and-under softball team from Shanghai arrives in Oskaloosa, Iowa the week of July 12 for nine days of competition and community events.
- The program launched in 2025, bringing more than 100 youth from China and the United States together in Shanghai for its first exchange.
- The exchange coincides with Musco’s 50th anniversary and its partnerships with Little League, the USA Soccer Foundation, and the Caitlin Clark Foundation.
Musco Lighting is expanding its youth sports exchange program in its second year, adding an international baseball trip to a softball exchange that started in 2025. The week of July 12, a 13-and-under softball team from Shanghai, China will travel to Oskaloosa, Iowa, for nine days of games and community events, according to Musco. In August, a 13-and-under baseball team from the Oskaloosa area will travel to Montigny and Toulouse, France, for a week of competition and cultural connection, the company said. It is the first time the program has included baseball. The 2025 edition sent Oskaloosa-area softball players to Shanghai, so this year the softball visit runs in the opposite direction.
Shanghai Softball Team Headlines the July Visit
The visiting softball delegation centers on the Beisibao U13 team and includes representatives from the Shanghai Baseball and Softball Association, the Shanghai Friendship Association, and the Shanghai Sports Federation, according to Musco. The group will spend nine days in Iowa competing against local players and taking part in community activities built around the visit.
The softball schedule runs July 12 through July 16. The team opens Sunday, July 12 at 5 p.m. at Fareway Fields in Norwalk, Iowa, then shifts to the Lacey Sports Complex in Oskaloosa for a run of games, including a doubleheader on Monday evening and morning and afternoon matchups from Tuesday through Thursday, per the schedule Musco released.
Baseball Exchange Debuts With a Trip to France
This summer also marks the first baseball edition of the program, extending its reach beyond the original China softball connection. Oskaloosa and surrounding-area athletes will travel to Montigny and Toulouse for nine days to compete against and build friendships with French baseball teams, the company said. The nine-day structure mirrors the softball visit, giving each side an extended stay rather than a single tournament stop.
Chris Limpach, Musco’s Director of Europe, Middle East, and Africa, framed the goal in terms of development rather than results. “These exchanges give kids the chance to grow through sports, build friendships, and learn respect for one another,” Limpach said.
How a One-Time Trip Became an Annual Program
The exchange began in 2025, when more than 100 youth from China and the United States gathered in Shanghai, according to Musco. Alongside games, athletes shared meals, sightseeing, and daily bonding activities. One Iowa participant said the trip “was an unforgettable experience that inspired me to keep playing and explore new places,” while another said that despite cultural differences, the players “experience life in many of the same ways.”
The program runs on support from local families, volunteers, and organizations. Musco, headquartered in Oskaloosa with more than 2,100 team members and work in more than 135 countries, ties the exchange to a broader youth sports portfolio that includes partnerships with Little League Baseball and Softball, the USA Soccer Foundation, the Caitlin Clark Foundation, the Gaelic Athletic Association, and the Shanghai Baseball and Softball Association.
Two Sports, Two Continents, and a Bid for Permanence
With softball arriving from Shanghai and baseball heading out to France, the program now spans two sports and two continents in a single summer. Musco, which is marking its 50th year, said the exchange is building toward a lasting annual tradition, positioning year two less as a repeat than as the moment a one-time trip starts becoming a fixture.
Source: Business Wire, July 9, 2026, https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260709216439/en/Musco-Youth-Sports-Exchange-Returns-and-Expands-in-Second-Year
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