South Africa will, from 28 July to 6 August 2023, host the first Netball World Cup (NWC) on African soil. The tournament will take place at the Cape Town International Convention Centre in the Western Cape Province with a total of 16 teams from various countries, including South Africa, competing: Australia, Barbados, England, Fiji, Jamaica, Malawi, New Zealand, Scotland, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, Wales and Zimbabwe. Four African countries, Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe, will participate in the 2023 NWC. All four qualifying countries are currently ranked within the top 20 netball teams globally, with South Africa’s Proteas being the strongest African team.

Ms Cecilia Molokwane, Netball SA President, said that school teams have also been selected to compete in the tournament, providing them with an opportunity to experience the excitement of the NWC in Cape Town to further their aspirations towards their future sporting careers.

“Sport and physical education promote and strengthen social cohesion amongst learners from various socio-economic and cultural backgrounds. In addition, platforms such as the NWC, provide an opportunity for sporting talent to be unearthed and nurtured; today’s young participants are tomorrow’s sport stars. Government, and the DBE, partnering with Sport, Arts and Culture (DAC) in particular, urges South Africans to rally behind the South African Netball team as they will be participating in this historic event,” said Deputy Director for Sport and Enrichment in Education, Mr Bongani Zondi.

South Africans are urged to wear their netball T-shirts every Friday in support of the NWC. Details on tickets, travel packages and more information are available on the official tournament website: www.nwc2023.org.za alternatively, tickets can be obtained from: http://nwc2023.org.za/tickets/buy-your-tickets-here/