| Netball in Australia | |
|---|---|
 A netball game held in Australia | |
| Country | Australia |
| Governing body | Netball Australia |
| National team | Australia |
| Nickname | Diamonds |
| First played | Early 1897 |
| Registered players | 360,000 |
| National competitions | |
| Club competitions | |
| International competitions | |
| Audience records | |
| Single match | 2015 Netball World Cup, 16,752, 16 August 2015, Sydney Super Dome |
Netball is the most popular women's team participation sport in Australia. In 1985, there were 347,000 players, and by 1995, participation had exceeded 360,000. Throughout much of Australia's netball history, the game was largely a participation sport and historically struggled to draw large crowds as a spectator sport. However, this shifted significantly with the introduction of elite domestic leagues.
Between 2005 and 2006, 56,100 Australians attended one or two netball matches; of these, 41,600 were women. A further 46,200 attended three to five matches, 34,400 of whom were women. Another 86,400 attended six or more matches, 54,800 of whom were women. Overall, 188,800 people attended netball matches in that period, including 130,800 women. At that time, netball was the 10th most popular spectator sport for women, trailing Australian rules football (1,011,300), horse racing (912,200), rugby league (542,600), motor sports (462,100), rugby union (232,400), football (212,200), harness racing (190,500), cricket (183,200), and tennis (163,500). In 2004, the country set an attendance record for a netball match when a crowd of 14,339 watched the Australia–New Zealand test at the Sydney Super Dome. This has since been surpassed by modern leagues.
Netball—initially called "women's basketball" (distinct from the form of basketball played by women)—was reportedly introduced to Australia as early as 1897, although most sources agree it was formally established around the start of the 20th century. Interstate competition began in 1924, with the All-Australia Women's Basket Ball Association formed in 1927. An All-Australian Tournament, later called the Australian National Netball Championships, was first contested between states in 1928, when it was won by Victoria. During the 1930s, university participation was largely unorganised, and players were not required to register. This was viewed positively, as it encouraged participation from those who might not have otherwise played. Australia's national team toured England in 1957. This tour resulted in a number of Commonwealth countries meeting to standardise the rules of the game. The sport officially adopted the name "netball" in Australia in 1970.
In Australia, 80% of all netball is played at clubs. The number of netball clubs nationwide has been in decline since the 1940s. Between 1985 and 2003, only two Western Australian towns—Brookton and Pingelly—decreased the distance players had to travel to compete. Prior to the creation of the trans-Tasman ANZ Championship in 2008, the National Netball League was the major competition in Australia. It included teams from the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia. After the 2016 ANZ Championship season, Netball Australia withdrew from that competition and established Super Netball as the country's new premier domestic league.
The typical netball demographic is an 18- to 24-year-old, unmarried, Australian-born woman employed full-time. The average player in New South Wales has played the game for 10.8 years. Most New South Wales–based school-aged players participate at school and with friends. Girls from non-English-speaking backgrounds were found to be more likely to play for fun than their English-speaking counterparts, who often played for their school or parents. They were also less likely to have mothers who played netball (18.2%, compared with 35.2% for English-speaking girls). Most New South Wales–based adult players engage with the sport for fun and its physical benefits.
The country has hosted several major international netball events, including:
- The 1967 (Perth), 1991 (Sydney), and 2015 (Sydney) World Netball Championships.
- The netball tournaments at the 2006 and 2018 Commonwealth Games.
- The 2011 International Challenge Men's and Mixed Netball Tournament in Perth.
The Australian national netball team is the most successful team in international netball history. The team won the inaugural World Tournament in 1963 in England, and has won nine of the first twelve Netball World Championships. In addition to being the current world champions, the Australian Diamonds are ranked first on the World Netball Rankings.
Australia defeated the Silver Ferns to win the World Youth Netball Championships in the Cook Islands in July 2009. Australia also fields a men's national team, which competed in the 2009 and 2011 International Challenge Men's and Mixed Netball Tournaments.
