THE Netball World Cup 2019 has been officially launched in Liverpool ahead of its first qualifying event.

The launch event at St George's Hall featured an exhibition game of netball with women and girls representing a variety of netball-playing nations joining speakers from Netball World Cup 2019, England Netball and Liverpool City Council.

This weekend, Perth will host the first regional qualifier tournament to signal the start of the race for nations from across the world to book a place at the tournament which will take place at the Echo Arena in July 2019.

The main strategic ‘pillars’ of the event were also revealed through the brand 'This is Netball' which will incorporate four pillars; elite sport, empowering women and girls, Liverpool and the world.

Assistant mayor and cabinet member for Culture, Tourism and Events for Liverpool City Council Wendy Simon  said: “Staging prestigious events such as the Netball World Cup is yet another reason why Liverpool is held in high esteem in the sporting world.

“Netball is a hugely popular sport, and I’m sure when the World Cup heads to the Echo Arena Liverpool it will live up to its reputation as a fast-paced, boisterous and hugely entertaining sport.

“But it’s not just sport this city is renowned for – our warm welcome attracts millions of visitors every year and I’m sure the global competitors and spectators taking part in the Netball World Cup will experience this first-hand.”

The Netball World Cup 2019 will take place from July 12 to 21, 2019.

Speaking about the global reach of the Netball World Cup 2019, event director, Lindsay Impett said: “Netball World Cup 2019 will be a truly international tournament and we aim to capture the hearts and minds of people across the globe to raise the profile of netball worldwide.

“Welcoming the world to Liverpool in 2019 is an important part of our event, but so too is supporting the International Netball Federation with the worldwide development of netball.

"Working closely with the INF and England Netball, and in conjunction with UK Sport, Netball World Cup 2019 will support developing netball nations through an international programme that will leave a lasting impact on the sport beyond 2019.”

As host nation, England will qualify automatically for the World Cup, with the remaining 13 teams to qualify through International Netball Federation (INF) world rankings and regional qualifying tournaments in the remaining four regions - Africa, Americas, Asia and Oceania.

The final list of qualified teams will be confirmed officially by the INF in September 2018.