Netball Australia Reveals ‘Made in Netball’

Netball Australia has launched Made in Netball, a 10-year national strategy designed to expand the sport’s total playing and non-playing community to two million people by 2035, positioning the organisation for long-term sustainability ahead of major milestones including the 2027 Netball World Cup and a potential Brisbane 2032 Olympic debut.

Unveiled by chair Liz Ellis AO, the strategy outlines a unified plan to reinforce netball’s position as one of Australia’s most accessible and community-driven sports.

Ellis said the initiative responds to both growing demand and a need for a more coordinated long-term vision across the sport’s national and state-based systems.

“It’s a pivotal decade for netball.”

“We want to ensure the game continues to grow, inspire, and deliver opportunities for participants from every background,” Ellis said. 

Chief Executive Stacey West said the plan is centred around strengthening pathways, enhancing community engagement, expanding digital capability, and elevating the profile of its elite competitions and national teams.

The strategy articulates several headline ambitions:

• Growing the total netball community to two million by 2035.
• Cementing the Australian Diamonds as the most recognisable female national team and maintaining world No.1 performance standards.
• Positioning Super Netball as Australia’s leading women’s sports league and the world’s most followed netball competition.
• Embedding governance and operational excellence to deliver a “gold standard” administration model.
• Creating a national framework to broaden First Nations participation and pathways.
• Delivering a comprehensive data strategy, including a new digital hub and fan app to unite the sport’s participation, competition, and fan ecosystems.

The organisation sees digital transformation as fundamental to modernising the sport, improving member services, and strengthening commercial opportunities across broadcast, sponsorship, and fan engagement.

The launch comes at a time of heightened visibility for netball, with the Diamonds competing in major global tournaments over the next three years. National captain Liz Watson said the strategy provides clear direction for how athletes can contribute to the sport’s broader growth.

Netball Australia will begin rolling out the first phase of Made in Netball immediately, with further implementation milestones expected in the lead-up to the centenary celebrations in 2027.

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