SCOTLAND WINS BID TO HOST EUROPEAN NETBALL WORLD CUP QUALIFIERS 2022
16th December 2021
Netball Scotland has today announced that they have been awarded the rights to host the European Netball World Cup Qualifiers 2022 (ENWCQ 2022).
The tournament, showcasing 6 European Nations, will take place in Emirates Arena, Glasgow across 14th-18th October 2022 inclusive.
The competing Nations – Scotland, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Wales, Gibraltar and Isle of Man – will be fighting it out to qualify for the Netball World Cup 2023 hosted by South Africa.
Claire Nelson, CEO of Netball Scotland said: “We are delighted to have been awarded hosting rights for the European Netball World Cup Qualifiers in 2022. The pinnacle of the global netballing calendar, the Netball World Cup is the event that all nations strive to qualify for and compete at, so being able to have the backing of our home crowd as we take on the rest of Europe gives us an important advantage.
Here in Scotland we have built a strong reputation for delivering world-class events and we look forward to working with the City of Glasgow and key Partners to ensure that we put on an exceptional Qualifiers for teams, fans and global netball audiences.”
This news is welcomed by Scotland fans who were treated to two convincing wins by Scottish Thistles over Barbados Bajan Gems in their recent test matches.
World Netball President, Liz Nicholl said: “This is a really important event in the netball calendar and following Netball Scotland’s successful hosting of a test series earlier this month, I have no doubt they will put on a fantastic event.”
Scottish Thistles Head Coach, Tamsin Greenway commented: “The World Cup Qualifiers next year are huge for us, so to be able to host these in Scotland is very exciting news. We look forward to welcoming the other nations and putting on a strong performance both on and off the court.”
A total of 16 nations will progress to the Netball World Cup 2023, England having already secured their place means only 2 from the ENWCQ will make the top 16.
Netball Europe Chair, Catherine Lewis is looking forward to seeing who will claim the remaining two slots: “International Netball is gearing up as we work our way through the COVID-19 Pandemic. It only feels like yesterday that we were watching the Vitality Netball World Cup in Liverpool in 2019 but preparations have been well underway for the 2023 World Cup in South Africa. England will qualify by virtue of their current world ranking leaving two more places for European teams to be at the netball top table event. This netball WCQ is a showcase of the fantastic netball we have in Europe and with a good luck to all the participating teams we look forward to seeing who will take the remaining two slots and the flights out to Cape Town, South Africa!”
Returning to her Captaincy earlier this year, Claire Maxwell stated: ‘The World Cup Qualifiers are a crucial event in the Scottish Thistle’s Calendar. We are delighted that we will have the support of the #ThistlesArmy in Scotland for this pivotal event.”
More information on tickets for the 5-day event will be released in the new year.
