Netball: The 2019 Netball World Cup will be staged in Liverpool

Liverpool will be the host city for the 2019 Netball World Cup after England Netball won the right to stage the tournament.

The announcement was made live on Tuesday’s Sportswomen show on Sky Sports News HQ. The 16-team tournament will be staged at Liverpool's Echo Arena which is located on a World Heritage waterfront site.

It is just the third time that England has hosted the competition in its 56-year history and the first time the showpiece will take place in the north-west of England.

CEO of England Netball Joanna Adams, said “We’re absolutely thrilled to have been awarded the right to stage the World Cup, the biggest competition in netball.

“With participation increasing in the sport, this will provide a welcome incentive to build upon our momentum and increase the visibility of netball in our country.

“This is a massive tribute to the wonderful army of volunteers who have helped us to grow the game in our country. Without their support we would never have been in a position to bid for, let alone win, the rights to host a Netball World Cup.

“Having worked with Liverpool to host major global tournaments previously, we have a proven track record of being able to stage such a prestigious event and we look forward to welcoming the netball world to the north-west.

International Netball Federation president Molly Rhone said: “England put in a strong bid and we are confident that they will deliver an outstanding event in an excellent venue in the city of Liverpool. 

“It is an exciting time for netball right now, which is growing at an unprecedented rate throughout the world.  We look forward to seeing this growth continue to soar and to working with the organising committee in bringing the INF’s most important event to England in 2019.”

Minister for Sport Helen Grant added:  “I’m delighted that the 2019 Netball World Cup will be held in Liverpool. Not only is it a major coup for the city, but for the country as a whole. I have no doubt that by hosting this major event on home soil we will raise the profile of this great sport even further and boost women’s sport generally.”

The 2019 Netball World Cup forms part of UK Sport’s Gold Event Series, which is investing around £40million of National Lottery funding to bring up to 100 world-class events to Great Britain to help build a strong legacy from London 2012 and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games

Liz Nicholl, chief executive of UK Sport and a former chief executive of England Netball, said: “Through the Gold Event Series the UK is building an international reputation for staging world class major sporting events with its compelling mix of state-of-the-art facilities, great infrastructure and technical know-how as well as its army of experienced volunteers.

“I am convinced we can help deliver a remarkable tournament in Liverpool in 2019 that will promote the growth of netball and once again demonstrate the considerable value we place on women’s sport in the UK.”