 | |
| Sport | Netball |
|---|---|
| Also governs | Fast5 netball |
| Jurisdiction | Worldwide |
| Membership | 80+ (2025) |
| Abbreviation | WN |
| Founded | 1960 |
| Affiliation | Association of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations[1] International Olympic Committee[2] International World Games Association[3] |
| Location | MediaCityUK Salford Quays Salford Greater Manchester M50 2AB England |
| President | Liz Nicholl |
| CEO | Fiona Harold |
| Vice president | Shirley Hooper |
| Official website | |
| netball | |
World Netball is the worldwide governing body fornetball. It is responsible for organising theNetball World Cup,Netball at the Commonwealth Games, theFast5 Netball World Series and theNetball World Youth Cup. It also publishes theWorld Netball Rankings and maintains therules of netball. It was originally founded in 1960 as theInternational Federation of Women's Basketball and Netball Associations. After members adopted the name "netball" for the sport, the organisation was renamed theInternational Federation of Netball Associations. Between 2012–13 and 2021, it was known as theInternational Netball Federation, before it adopted its current name.
World Netball is based atMediaCityUK inSalford, England.[2][3][4][5]
In 1957, duringAustralia's tour ofEngland, discussions took place about standardising therules of netball. In 1960, this led to representatives fromAustralia,England,New Zealand,South Africa,Wales and theWest Indies meeting inColombo,Ceylon to establish theInternational Federation of Women's Basketball and Netball Associations. The modern rules of netball were established at this inaugural meeting. It was also agreed to organise the1963 World Netball Championships.[6][7][8][9] By the 1970s, netball was no longer referred to as "women's basketball" and national associations, such as theAll Australia Netball Association, began to the drop the old name for the sport from their names. The world organisation was also renamed theInternational Federation of Netball Associations.[6][10] In 2012–13, the IFNA again changed its name, this time to theInternational Netball Federation.[11][12] In June 2021, the INF announced an official rebrand and became known asWorld Netball.[13][14][15]
| Years | Competition |
|---|---|
| 2012–2018 | World University Netball Championship[21] |
| 1985–1993 | Netball at the World Games[3][22] |
Since 1995, World Netball has been recognised by theInternational Olympic Committee.[23][24] World Netball is also a member of theAssociation of IOC Recognised International Sports Federations.[1] However, IOC recognition does not mean automatic inclusion in theSummer Olympic Games. World Netball applied for netball to be a part of the2020 Summer Olympics but was unsuccessful. In August 2021, World Netball declared its intention to work withNetball Australia to make a compelling case for netball's inclusion at the2032 Summer Olympics. In March 2025, World Netball and Netball Australia met with the 2032 organising committee.[2][23][24][25][26][27]
World Netball has over 80 members. This includes full and associate members. World Netball also has five regional federations, representingAfrica, theAmericas,Asia,Europe andOceania.[28][29]
| Federation | Full Members | Associate members |
|---|---|---|
| Africa Netball[30] | 15 | 3 |
| Americas Netball[31][32] | 18 | 2 |
| Asia Netball[33][34] | 18 | 2 |
| Europe Netball[35][36] | 13 | 3 |
| Oceania Netball[37][38] | 7 | 2 |
| Years | President | Association |
|---|---|---|
| 1995–1999 | Anne Taylor[39][40] | New Zealand |
| 1999–2003 | Sheryl Dawson[41] | New Zealand |
| 2003–2019 | Molly Rhone[42][43] | Jamaica |
| 2019– | Liz Nicholl[43][44][45] | Wales |