New Zealand was recently crowned winners of the 2019 edition of the INF Netball World Cup.
This is the Oceanian nation’s fifth success since the competition first began in 1963, when the tournament was known as the World Netball Championships.
The England team, affectionately known as the Vitality Roses, narrowly lost out in the semi-finals to the eventual winners, and were placed third after winning the 3rd place play-off against South Africa, taking home bronze. The 2019 championships were held in Liverpool at the Liverpool Arena during the 12th-21st July. This tournament was the 15th edition of the competition.
The trophy was first presented in 1995 and was designed and created in Birmingham by renowned craftsman, Marcus Steele. It was rebranded in 2015 as the Netball World Cup, and underwent significant restoration for its 20th anniversary.
There are three distinct sections to the perpetual trophy, the base, which is made from ebony and bears two bands of silver where the winning team’s names are engraved. Then a striking centre section of intricate silver rods woven into the shape of a net with added gold detail. On top of the net, sits an engraved glass globe of the world.
Australia and New Zealand have so far dominated the championships with the Australian team, known as The Diamonds, taking home 11 titles, and the New Zealand team, known as the Silver Ferns, winning five. The only other team to be successful was Trinidad and Tobago in 1979.
