One-year countdown to Netball World Cup 2019
With the first whistle to be blown exactly one year from today, the countdown for Netball World Cup 2019 is about to begin in earnest for the Liverpool-hosted event.
The format and make-up of teams for the 15th staging of Netball’s premier competition from July 12-21, which is contested every four years and involves 16 teams, is starting to fall into shape.
The International Netball Federation (INF) recently confirmed Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, South Africa and Malawi as the five teams to automatically qualify for the event.
A Silver Ferns squad of up to 16 will be selected on August 14, for the upcoming Netball Quad Series involving the Australian Diamonds, England Roses and South Africa Proteas followed by the Constellation Cup series against Australia, these key events heralding the start of each team’s respective build-ups to the Netball World Cup.
Following their historic Commonwealth Games gold medal win, England – who qualify for next summer’s tournament as host nation – have moved ahead of New Zealand in the world rankings for the first time and will be seeded second for the tournament.
The top six seeds for next year’s World Cup are:
Australia (#1)
England (#2)
New Zealand (#3)
Jamaica (#4)
South Africa (#5)
Malawi (#6)
The automatic qualifiers join Northern Ireland, Scotland, Samoa and Fiji, who all qualified through their respective regional qualifying tournaments earlier this year.
The final list of qualified teams will be confirmed officially by the INF in September. Two further teams will be seeded according to world rankings and the remaining eight teams will be drawn into groups for the Preliminaries Stage One phase of the competition.
Six places at the tournament are still up for grabs in the remaining three regions – Africa, Americas and Asia – and will be confirmed at regional qualifying tournaments held in August and September.
Liverpool is variously recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the most successful footballing city in England, a cultural powerhouse, one of the best places in the world for a night out and a UNESCO City of Music – but these only begin to tell the story.
The waterfront is the city’s heart both geographically and spiritually, and it’s here that the Netball World Cup will take place at the Arena and Convention Centre Liverpool (ACC Liverpool), a multi-purpose events and convention venue.
Apart from the Netball, there’s plenty for the spectators to enjoy in the historic city with Silver Ferns shooting legend Irene van Dyk already signed up to lead an exclusive tour.
If you want to be part of this special event, check out the detailed package options at www.silverfernstravel.co.nz
During the Netball Quad Series, the Silver Ferns will clash with Commonwealth Games winners, the England Roses, as part of a blockbuster double header at Spark Arena in Auckland on September 15, which also features the Australian Diamonds against the South Africa Proteas.
The Series then heads to ASB Baypark Arena in Tauranga on September 18 where the Silver Ferns take on the Proteas before the remaining matches are played in Australia.
Tickets for the double header at Spark Arena are available from Ticketmaster, and tickets for the Silver Ferns match in ASB Bay Park Arena Tauranga are available from Ticketek.
Prices start at $40 for an adult and $25 for a child with family tickets from $99.