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The Netball World Cup will be a biennial event from 2027, so who benefits? And who may be disadvantaged?
The Netball World Cup will be a biennial event from 2027, so who benefits? And who may be disadvantaged?

ABC News

time7 hours ago

  • Business
  • ABC News

The Netball World Cup will be a biennial event from 2027, so who benefits? And who may be disadvantaged?

Netball's governing body has unveiled a new global events strategy that will see the World Cup held every two years instead of four, as well as significant format and schedule changes to the major tournament. An extra piece of silverware will be introduced for Sydney 2027 that'll give teams finishing lower in the group stages a plate to fight for, while the top sides continue to compete for the cup. Qualification from 2029 onwards will operate very differently — in a move that has upset Asia — and there'll be a permanent shift on the calendar to November. A designated window later in the year should help to avoid clashes with other codes and less interruptions to the top-flight domestic leagues played in Australia, New Zealand and England. Beyond this, World Netball plans to run a separate biennial event and a men's World Cup. As a result, both the FAST5 World Series and Netball World Youth Cup will be paused indefinitely. It is also assessing the appetite for an international club competition. In a press release, the governing body said it believes these drastic steps are necessary to sustain the sport long-term, and that it was taking hold of its own destiny as uncertainty surrounds the future of the Commonwealth Games. But it's certainly rare for a sport to host its World Cup every two years, and this is the change that has sparked the most debate. Largely, World Netball. As part of the hosting agreement, either a percentage of profits or a fixed sum will be handed over to the governing body. Increasing this revenue would help World Netball to grow on a faster scale and spread its global footprint. It may also lead to further visibility and bigger sponsorship deals. ABC Sport understands previous agreements fixed the profit sharing with World Netball at 55 per cent. The worth of that is now estimated to be over $1 million. Cyrus Medora was the chief executive at Netball Singapore for two decades before retiring at the end of last year, and oversaw its hosting of the 2011 World Cup. "From a non-financial perspective, I think all participating countries would benefit from more regular and intense competition," Medora said. "Plus, the publicity and exposure could lead to increased financial support for the smaller netball countries from their sports ministries." Previously, some member organisations, like Netball Jamaica, have needed to crowdsource funding to afford to send their team to the major tournament. This is a team ranked in the top three, so there are genuine concerns about the financial strain an increase in World Cups might cause for poorer nations. According to Medora, the cost to send a team, coaches and support staff can typically amount to over $70,000 if you're staying at a lower-level hotel. Aussie Diamonds vice-captain Paige Hadley said the disparity could lead to countries opting in and out, "and not going to every World Cup". Do we want the showpiece event to only feature teams that can afford to be there? Since World Netball went public with its new events strategy, it has provided further details in a member update to explain its decision-making. Here, it dropped a bombshell about the qualification process. "In order to deliver the best netball event in the world for the best athletes in the world, the current qualification process will be changed," it read. "Regional qualifiers will no longer take place after 2027, and qualification will be based purely on world rankings." Previously, the top five ranked teams have qualified, as well as the host. Then two teams from each of the five regional qualifying tournaments held across Africa, the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania fill the remainder of the 16 participating spots. This change could easily wipe Asia from the World Cup altogether. Its highest-ranked team is Sri Lanka at number 22, and several countries from the region are said to be extremely disappointed; questioning what advantage they get from being a World Netball member — which incurs a fee of about $2,500 annually — if they're ruled out of contention. Scottish Thistles head coach Kath Tetley originally hails from Australia and has held several high-profile administrative roles in the sport over her career. Tetley was the general manager of the Sydney 2015 World Cup and believes the change may not be a bad thing if it encourages each nation to step up and maintain its world ranking. "I actually think it challenges us to be good and be consistent more often, especially with a faster 24-month rotation of the cycle rather than 48 months to build towards success," she said. World Netball argues the revenue generated by biennial World Cups will help it better support regions and members. Though, how much of that revenue will flow onto the rest of the world is anyone's guess, and right now there are only a few obvious options for potential hosts. By the end of 2027, Australia will have hosted four times, New Zealand and England three times, Singapore and Jamaica twice, and Trinidad and Tobago, Scotland and South Africa once. Medora believes the cost of a World Cup really depends on the logistical expenses that differ between countries, and that smaller nations may only be able to host once every 20 years. "It is extremely costly to host the event and only a few countries will have the financial resources and technical know-how," Medora said. "For Singapore, I believe we would now need at least $6-7 million to host now … Back in 2011, it was about $4.8 million. "Countries would need substantial funding from their sport ministries and tourism boards, while sponsorships, ticket and merchandise sales are also vital. "Overall, we generated about $2.4 million at current rates in net revenue and were fortunate that the government waived the 22 per cent withholding tax when making payments to World Netball and the 15 other countries." Tetley said the onus would be on World Netball to offer additional support in the early stages of the transition. "I would expect ticketing, fan packages and commercial global interest will continue to flourish and thus enable World Netball to create a support structure for nations that qualify to request financial support … Perhaps grants for nations based on a method of application via the World Netball integrity unit," she said. England's Rose Helen Housby said she would, "rather go back to the same country and play on the world stage than not do it at all". "I loved going to Cape Town and for us to push the boundaries more often, but being realistic, I don't mind where they're played as long as we get to play." Beyond the players' perspective, is there enough buy-in from fans? Would they be happy visiting the same countries repeatedly? The majority of top-paying spectators come from the trans-Tasman region. "In 2011, we had over 5,000 overseas spectators and 4,400 came via appointed travel agents in Australia and New Zealand," Medora said. "Hopefully, with the event held every two years, these fans will continue to travel." There's a lot to digest and because of that, the reaction has been mixed. Most seem to be thrilled about the introduction of a men's World Cup, and there's widespread sentiment that the plate and cup divisions in the women's major tournament is a step in the right direction. But when it comes to an increase in frequency of World Cups and the new qualification process, it depends on who you ask. Especially seeing as most member organisations claim there was little to no consultation from World Netball before such drastic decisions were made.

Netball's ANZ Premiership is not delivering says former Silver Fern
Netball's ANZ Premiership is not delivering says former Silver Fern

RNZ News

time15 hours ago

  • Sport
  • RNZ News

Netball's ANZ Premiership is not delivering says former Silver Fern

Kelly Jackson of the Central Pulse and Ellie Bird of the Tactix tussle for the ball, 2025. Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2025 Kelly Jackson of the Central Pulse and Ellie Bird of the Tactix tussle for the ball, 2025. Photo: © Photosport Ltd 2025 Former Silver Fern Margaret Foster believes the ANZ Premiership has failed to produce the improvements to the game that Netball New Zealand had hoped for and is backing the change to the player eligibility rule. This week Netball New Zealand announced it had updated the Silver Ferns' eligibility criteria , paving the way for greater flexibility for athletes who wish to play overseas. That means the likes of goal shoot Grace Nweke, who has been playing for the New South Wales Swifts in the Australian League, could become available for selection for the Ferns this year. Until now players had to be playing in New Zealand to be considered for selection for the national side. "I get what they (Netball New Zealand) hoped to achieve to keep them all back here but no it (ANZ Premiership) is not delivering," Foster told RNZ. While it would be nice to have all of New Zealand's top athletes playing here, Foster said it was unrealistic with overseas clubs and competitions offering more money. "We're not in a privileged position where we're this massive professional sport where athletes are earning lots of money. "You want to have your best players available in your calendar year, that's why football do it well. "Regardless of where you are playing your netball you need to have your best athletes available." The Trans-Tasman Netball League ran for nine years between 2008 and 2016. Foster, who also coached in that competition, believed the game and therefore quality of the play here would improve by rejoining the Australian competition. "We definitely need to get back into the top league in the world which is the one based in Australia." Magic's Head Coach Noeline Taurua (R) and Assistant Coach Margaret Foster. 2011. Photo: Anthony Au-Yeung / PHOTOSPORT Also this week, Silver Ferns captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio announced she would miss this year's internationals . Foster said Silver Ferns coach Dame Noeline Taurua would be relieved that Ekenasio's decision may be offset by the possible return of Nweke to the Ferns' attacking circle. "A hundred percent thank goodness. Having the two power houses out that would be devastating for the Silver Ferns programme. "But knowing that the likes of a Grace who is playing over there in a tougher competition and playing against the top players in the world, that can only bode well for us." The Silver Ferns would play a series against South Africa in September, before the Constellation Cup series with Australia in October. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

Several Silver Ferns likely to test new eligibility policy
Several Silver Ferns likely to test new eligibility policy

RNZ News

time2 days ago

  • Sport
  • RNZ News

Several Silver Ferns likely to test new eligibility policy

The Silver Ferns beat Australia in October's Constellation Cup. Photo: Marty Melville Analysis - Top Silver Ferns will be keen to test Netball New Zealand's new eligibility framework , with at least half a dozen likely being chased by coaches in Australia's netball league. The Netball New Zealand Board has updated its Silver Ferns' eligibility criteria, paving the way for greater flexibility for athletes who wish to play overseas. Pressure has been mounting on the national body to relax its rules after shooter Grace Nweke decided to compete in the Australian league , which ruled her out of playing for the Silver Ferns this year. But athletes will now be considered for Silver Ferns' selection through a formal exemption process under revised criteria, which appear to be open to interpretation. There are no guarantees that Nweke will get an exemption to play for the Silver Ferns later this year when they meet South Africa and Australian in separate test series. But Netball New Zealand Board chair Matt Whineray said a holistic approach will be taken when considering each case. It would not be surprising if Silver Ferns Kate Heffernan, Maddy Gordon, Kelly Jackson, and Karin Burger are being pursued, as well as captain Ameliaranne Ekenasio. Maddy Gordon. Photo: PHOTOSPORT The Queensland Firebirds, who are coached by New Zealander Kiri Wills, finished with the wooden spoon in this year's Suncorp Super Netball (SSN) competition. Wills will be eager to make some big recruitment moves in the next few weeks. Whineray said it had taken the board some time to review the policy as it worked through "different interests across the system", including the thoughts of the Silver Ferns' coach. The old policy was designed to encourage the country's top netballers to play in the New Zealand domestic league, so it remained strong. "What we are trying to do is balance a bunch of interests here so how do we maintain the integrity of that domestic competition, how do we respond to the aspirations and development desires of our Silver Ferns and how do we think about putting the best Silver Ferns team out on the court, so it's a culmination of all those things that we are looking to balance," Whineray said The increasingly global landscape in elite netball also factored into the decision. The Australian league attracts some of the best players in the world. England's Super League is also going from strength to strength. "This recognises that global competition for talent and that's what you see is driving some of those interested players to play in these other competitions." Australia's SSN competition pays the best. Currently the highest paid Silver Ferns can earn around $136,000, which also includes their ANZ Premiership retainer. If you take away the ANZ Premiership component then the optimum earnings for the highest paid Silver Ferns is in the vicinity of $70,000. RNZ understands that international defenders can earn around NZ$120,000 in the SSN, while midcourters are signed for about $100,000. If players are given exemptions, overall they would be better off financially once they received an SSN and Silver Ferns retainer, where they could make as much as $190,000 per year. In terms of any specific criteria, Whineray said number of Test caps won't come into it. "No there isn't and there hasn't been in the past, I know that was the narrative that it was 100, that just happened to be the number of Tests previous players who had received exemptions, had played. "What this criteria does is allow us to make sure the players fully understand the decisions they are making, it allows us to have the conversations with them in terms of their growth and development and their existing Silver Ferns' development plans. "It allows us to consider the needs of that high performance system and then thinks about how we think about the strong and sustainable domestic competition. So we've got all of those in the mix and the balance of those so it's a broader range of criteria - before there were none, there were no explicit considerations and now we've got them." Talented goal keep Kelly Jackson. Photo: PHOTOSPORT Whineray said the process for applying for an exemption will be handled quickly so players can make decisions about where they will play next year, with the season about to wrap. "We'll be very responsive with this process, we need this process to happen in a way which enables contracting to happen so our approach is to be quick in response to any of the players and we will start having those discussions and then we will consider them as a board." Silver Ferns' coach Dame Noeline Taurua has supported Nweke's decision to play in Australia in an effort to improve her game. Dame Noeline has spoken about the need for New Zealand's top players to get more international exposure if they want to be competitive. Netball New Zealand is still working on signing off on a broadcast deal for the 2026 domestic competition. There is a risk players will have to take pay cuts if the national body can't get a deal similar to previous years. But Whineray said that was not a factor in relaxing the eligibility rules. "It isn't a factor in this, this has been under consideration for a little bit longer but what I can say in relation to the ANZ Premiership next year is that that will be going ahead, we have the balance sheet capacity to make that happen so that's what we are planning to do." Grace Nweke joined the Swifts this year in Australia. Photo: Jason McCawley / Getty Images Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.

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