Birmingham 2022 today (Tuesday 3 September) announces a change in venue for netball, following the recent growth in popularity of the sport.
After a massive increase in its profile since Team England’s gold medal-winning heroics on the Gold Coast in 2018 and England’s hosting of the Netball World Cup in July, the sport moves from the Coventry Indoor Arena to the NEC, increasing capacity and allowing more netball fans the opportunity to enjoy the sport in the summer of 2022.
Liz Nicholl CBE, President of the International Netball Federation welcomed news of the venue change for netball: “We are delighted by Birmingham 2022’s decision to relocate netball for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and fully support this decision. While the Coventry Arena is an excellent venue, this move to the NEC will increase the capacity significantly. This will be welcomed by the netball family and the significant fan base that our sport now attracts, as seen at the recent Netball World Cup in July 2019 when over 110,000 tickets were sold.”
Ian Reid, Chief Executive Officer for Birmingham 2022, explained the venue changes
announced today: “As is common practice for all major multi-sport events, we have been considering how best to optimise the mix of venues available to us, making sure we’re being as efficient as possible in terms of usage and cost, and ensuring that we are developing a fantastic experience and showcase for the sport, the athletes, the spectators, and the host city and region.
“We are delighted to be able to relocate netball into a larger venue as this sport’s profile has massively increased since the 2017 bid.”
The latest venue update has now been approved by the Commonwealth Games
Federation’s Executive Board, ahead of its General Assembly in Rwanda, which will see a team from Birmingham 2022 presenting an update on preparations for the event to representatives from the 71 Commonwealth nations and territories from across the globe.
The Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games will be held in venues across Birmingham and the West Midlands from 27 July until 7 August 2022 and will be a once in a lifetime opportunity to put the city on the map and to showcase the fantastic venues and facilities available in the region.
For more information about all of the sports and venues that will feature at Birmingham 2022, take a look at the new-look website at www.birmingham2022.com where you can also sign-up to receive the latest Games news and updates on jobs and volunteering.
