How Netball Australia is facing a financial nightmare after Gina Rinehart withdrew $15M sponsorship when an Indigenous player refused to the wear logo of her company: ‘There’s no more money for the players’
- Netball Australia still in debt after sponsor saga
- Gina Rinehart withdrew $15m from sport
- Fallout continues five months on
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Netball Australia is struggling to repay a $4.2m debt after losing a sponsorship deal from Gina Rinehart’s company Hancock prospecting – despite the Victorian government coming to the rescue after the deal collapsed.
Rinehart pulled the pin on the lucrative Hancock Prospecting deal after Indigenous netballer Donnell Wallam refused to have the Hancock Prospecting logo on her jersey with the backing of her teammates.
This was reportedly due to comments Rinehart’s late father Lang Hancock had made about Aboriginal Australians almost four decades ago.
He suggested in 1984 that Indigenous Australians should be sterilised to ‘breed themselves out’ in coming years.
Wallam was is the national squad but had not yet made her international debut at the time.
Five months on from the saga, Netball Australia is still reeling from the furore, despite Visit Victoria coming to the rescue with a new $15m deal.
Under the new deal players will wear Visit Victoria branding on their uniforms and appear in tourism campaigns to promote the state.
The deal also gives Victoria hosting rights for the 2023 Super Netball Grand final as the state becomes the official home of the Diamonds.
Netball Australia is still in debt after after Gina Rinehart (pictured) withdrew a massive $15m sponsorship deal
Gina Rinehart (right) is pictured with her father Lang Hancock, who started the company Hancock Prospecting. His comments from an 1984 interview have angered members of the Diamonds team
The body appears to show no regrets about Rinehart walking away with a brazen ‘we’re not sorry’ campaign to celebrate the launch of the 2023 Super Netball season.
‘We’re tired of netball stereotypes; a stuffy, safe sport played by quiet, nice girls. We’re sorry we’re not sorry, and we’re not just here if you need. We Are Here,’ the message state.
However the sport remains in a massive financial hole after the Covid-19 pandemic plunged the last three seasons into chaos.
‘$4.2 million is the debt that we have and need to repay,’ Netball Australia chief executive Kelly Ryan admitted at the season launch.
‘We still do have a considerable, sizeable debt that still does need to be repaid. So we’re still very fiscally responsible and making sure that any opportunities for growth will be realised.’
Australian Diamonds star Donnell Wallam (pictured) criticised comments Gina Rinehart’s late father Lang Hancock had made about Aboriginal Australians almost four decades ago, prompting Australia’s richest woman to withdraw her sponsorship
Netball Australia is also dealing with ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement, amid claims by the players union it doesn’t intend to raise the pay of Super Netball players next season due to the financial hole.
‘There’s no more money for the players through to 2026, which aligns with the broadcast deal,’ Australian Netball Players’ Association chief executive Kathryn Harby-Williams recently said.
‘We are not aligned with that approach and will be working with Netball Australia … we have requested financial information, and we hope to come to the table to discuss that.’
Netball Australia unveiled a brazen ‘We’re not sorry’ campaign at this week’s launch of the 2023 Super Netball season
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