* Saturday February 1: South Africa v Uganda (17:00); England v Malawi (19:00)
Sunday February 2: Malawi v Uganda (16:00); England v South Africa (18:00)
By Duncan Mlanjira
The Vitality Netball Nations Cup 2025, involving hosts England and African sides Malawi, South Africa and Uganda fighting for glory across two weekends of February in Nottingham and London, will be beamed live on DStv through SuperSport Events channel.
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The action gets underway on the late afternoon of Saturday, with South Africa taking on Uganda, followed by hosts England pitting their skills against Malawi in the early evening.
On Sunday, February 2, Malawi will be up against Uganda and as England face South Africa, while Saturday, February 8 closes out the round-robin phase with Malawi v South Africa and England v Uganda.
The tournament features a round-robin phase in which six matches will be played across February 1, 2 and 8, followed by a third place playoff and final on Sunday, February 9.
The full broadcast details (all live on SuperSport Events) are:
Saturday February 1
17:00: South Africa v Uganda; 19:00: England v Malawi.
Sunday February 2
16:00: Malawi v Uganda; 18:00: England v South Africa
Saturday February 8
17:00: Malawi v South Africa; 19:00: England v Uganda
Sunday February 9
15:30: Third Place Playoff; 18:00: Final
Weather update
The first weekend’s matches will be played at the Motorpoint Arena in Nottingham, while the second weekend will bring the action to London’s Copper Box Arena.
The top two teams on the standings after the round-robin phase will meet in the final on Sunday, February 9, preceded by the third-place playoff between the remaining two nations.
England will be hoping to build on their successful international window in September and October last year, which saw them beat world No 1 Australia for just the third time, as well as overcome New Zealand with a 2-1 series win.
Vitality Roses head coach, Jess Thirlby is quoted in a statement as saying she believes the tournament will be a challenge, as up-and-coming nations continue to be a threat on the international stage.
“It’s important always to make sure we’re paying attention to these emerging — who is on the rise in world netball way out from what will be the next Commonwealth Games in 2026 and Netball World Cup in 2027.
“They’ve always got ability and talent in abundance, and when they harness that they’re a real threat on the international stage,” Thirlby is quoted as saying.
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On her part, Spar Proteas assistant coach Zanele Mdodana believes their invitation to the Vitality Netball Nations Cup is an indication that South Africa is a rising force in the sport.
“Participating in the Vitality Netball Nations Cup is massive for us,” she is quoted as saying. “To get the invitation says the world wants to see what the Spar Proteas are doing, and they want to keep [their finger] on our pulse.
“It’s exciting for the girls to be able to play against higher-ranked teams — yes, we’ve played Malawi and Uganda, and we’ll meet them there again, but also the opportunity to play against England, who have really stepped up their game and caused a couple of upsets.
“So it’s going to be important for us to gauge and challenge ourselves against a team that’s ranked higher than us, and we’re looking forward to that experience.”
To stay abreast of the tournament, viewers are encouraged to upgrade or manage their subscription by downloading the MyDStv app on their mobile app store or visit www.dstv.com.
“You can also catch all the action while on the move,” says DStv. Stream all matches on the DStv Stream app by downloading it from the app store today!
There is no better place to get your season-long ticket to the best sport the world has to offer than DStv!”
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