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ANZ Championship

ANZ Championship
ANZ Championship logo 2010.jpg
Logo ANZ Championship (from 2010–2016)
Sport Netball
Founded 2007
Inaugural season 2008
Ceased 2016
Replaced by National Netball League and ANZ Premiership
No. of teams 10
Countries  Australia (5 teams)
 New Zealand (5 teams)
Last
champion(s)
ANZ Firebirds.svg Queensland Firebirds (3rd title)
Most titles ANZ Firebirds.svg Queensland Firebirds (3 titles)
Sponsor(s) ANZ
Level on pyramid 1
Official website www.ANZ-Championship.com

The ANZ Championship (also known non-commercially as the Trans-Tasman Netball League) was the premier netball league in Australia and New Zealand. The competition was held annually between April and July, comprising 69 matches played over 17 weeks. It was contested by ten teams, five from Australia and five from New Zealand. The competition was administered by Trans Tasman Netball League, which was formed as a joint venture by the netball governing bodies of both countries. ANZ Bank was naming sponsors of the competition since its inaugural season.

The ANZ Championship was launched in 2008 as a successor to the Commonwealth Bank Trophy in Australia and the National Bank Cup in New Zealand, both of which were retired after 2007. The ANZ Championship saw netball become a semi-professional sport in both countries, with increased media coverage and player salaries. The final champions before the competitions folding were the Queensland Firebirds, who defeated the New South Wales Swifts in the grand final of the 2016 season, becoming the only team to win the tournament 3 times and the only team to win back-to-back titles. 2016 was the last season of the competition. It was replaced by separate Australian and New Zealand leagues in 2017, the National Netball League and the ANZ Premiership respectively.

Netball is the most popular team sport for women in Australia and New Zealand in terms of player participation, with the sport having been established in both countries for more than a century. Both countries started national competitions in the 1920s, and by the close of the 20th century had started their own separate elite competitions. The National Netball League (later the Commonwealth Bank Trophy) was started in Australia in 1997, while a revamped Coca-Cola Cup (later the National Bank Cup) commenced in New Zealand the following year. These competitions were designed to bring a higher profile to the sport in their respective countries, which despite strong local-level participation was still largely amateur.


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