Following today’s Netball Australia announcement, what does ‘preferred bidder’ mean?
After an extensive Expression of Interest process by Netball Australia, Storm in partnership with the University of the Sunshine Coast (USC) has been nominated by Netball Australia as a preferred bidder for one of three new licences under their competition expansion plans.
What are the next steps, does Melbourne Storm now have a netball team?
The Storm and USC consortium will know enter a final negotiation period with Netball Australia to finalise a participation agreement for entry into a new, 8-team national netball league from 2017.
Why partner with the University of the Sunshine Coast?
USC is widely recognised as one of Australia’s leading sports universities and provides expertise in high performance, athlete support services as well as first class training facilities.
Why is Storm interested in netball and establishing a team on the Sunshine Coast?
Storm has a long standing footprint in Queensland and an opportunity became available to further grow the Club’s brand.
Netball is the premier female sport in Australia and the Club is delighted to be part of a significant growth period of the game.
Our interest is genuine, the Club brings a wealth of experience and expertise in running a sporting organisation and we can bring a new dimension to the competition and athletes. With a large fan base in Queensland, Storm can help bring a new reach to netball.
What are the details of the new team (name and staff)?
The consortium will only shift its focus to details such as this should the participation agreement be finalised with Netball Australia after the final negotiation period is complete.
Is the long-term plan to relocate Melbourne Storm to Queensland?
No, Melbourne Storm will remain in Melbourne.
What is the new Netball Australia competition?
Netball Australia has confirmed together with that the existing ANZ Championship format (in partnership with Netball New Zealand) will discontinue after the current season, with both organisations opting to form national netball leagues in their respective countries.
The five existing Australian ANZ Championship teams will transition to the new league, with the three new licences to create an eight-team competition.
