Following the successful broadcast of the 2023 Netball World Cup in Cape Town, SuperSport will broadcast the latest high-profile netball series as the Spar Proteas welcome African rivals, Malawi, in the 2024 Spar Challenge.
Broadcast live from the Ellis Park Arena, the elite-level clash will see the 5th-ranked Proteas take on the 6th-ranked Malawi Queens from Thursday, 31 October, to Sunday, 3 November, in a three-test series live on Your World of Champions.
Billed as a tussle for African supremacy as both teams look for the coveted number 1 African ranking, newly appointed Proteas head coach, Jenny van Dyk, is keen to mark her stamp on the team following the departure of Norma Plummer.
Van Dyk will look for a repeat of 2020’s 3-0 series win that asserted the team’s dominant head-to-head record to 25-12, with one test being drawn.
Coach Joana Kachalika’s visiting team will look to rewrite history following a dominant spell for the South Africans since their victory over their African rivals at the 2011 Singapore Netball World Cup.
SuperSport CEO, Rendani Ramovha, is excited that SuperSport is broadcasting the biggest clash in African netball and reigniting SuperSport’s Here for Her, which was relaunched in October following a successful first season.
SuperSport made global history when Africa’s biggest sports broadcaster delivered last year’s Netball World Cup with an all-female, 120-member production crew – a world first.
It put SuperSport’s Here for Her campaign on the global map, which other entities and broadcasters in the world aiming to follow suit.
“The 2023 Netball World Cup was such a major milestone tournament for SuperSport. Over and above the comprehensive on-court coverage, the tournament was broadcast to fans by an all-female production team, something no broadcaster in the world has attempted, let alone delivered with aplomb,” said Ramovha.
“It was a first-of-its-kind and a huge feather in the cap of the overarching Here for Her campaign SuperSport still champions to this day. But, most importantly, it’s a huge step forward in the representation of women both in front and behind the camera.
“The Spar Challenge is yet another moment to celebrate women in sports, encourage the next generation and, it goes without saying, to give SuperSport viewers the best elite level netball action.”
For those who wish to ramp up the atmosphere and support the team in person, tickets are available from R100 for adults and R30 for children from shop.netball-sa.org.za.
Viewers can catch all three test matches live on SuperSport Variety 4, DStv channel 209 with a 15-minute build-up before the start of the Men’s game and a 15-minute post-match wrap, only on Your World of Champions, SuperSport.