The World Netball Rankings are a ranking system for national netball teams. They were originally known as the IFNA World Rankings and previously known as the INF World Rankings. They are published by World Netball. They were first introduced in February 2008 and have been developed and maintained by the cricket statistician, David Kendix. Australia and New Zealand have dominated the World Netball Rankings. Between 2008 and 2018 they were the only two teams to have ever held the number one and/or number two places. In July 2018, England became the first team to break their dominance when they were ranked number two. In July 2019, Jamaica were ranked number two for the first time.
Current rankings
History
Australia
Australia is regularly ranked number one in the World Netball Rankings. They have never dropped below number two.
New Zealand
New Zealand is regularly ranked number two in the World Netball Rankings. In January 2011, after winning the 2010 Commonwealth Games tournament, they replaced Australia at the top of the rankings for the first time. In 2013 they were again ranked number one. After finishing fourth at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, New Zealand dropped, for the first time in their history, to third. In July 2019, they dropped to fourth.
England
Between 2008 and 2018, England was regularly ranked number three in the World Netball Rankings. However in July 2018, they moved up to number two. This saw England became the first team to be ranked in the top two apart from Australia and New Zealand. In October 2024, England were ranked number two for a third time after defeating Australia in Australia during their 2024 series and then winning the 2024 Taini Jamison Trophy Series.
Jamaica
Between 2008 and 2018, Jamaica was regularly ranked number four in the World Netball Rankings.
Wales
Between 2008 and 2024, Wales averaged 9th in the World Netball Rankings. In March 2022, they qualified for the 2022 Commonwealth Games after being ranked 8th.
Qualification
Fast5 Netball World Series
The top six teams, based on the World Netball Rankings, are invited to play in the Fast5 Netball World Series.
Commonwealth Games
Teams qualified for the 2018, 2022 and 2026 Commonwealth Games based on their World Netball Rankings.
Netball World Cup
The top six ranked teams qualified automatically for the 2019
Calculation
All test matches played by a team in the last four years, including matches in the Netball World Cup and Netball at the Commonwealth Games, are considered in the calculation. The ranking of teams is determined by comparing teams' ratings, which is the average points earned per match in the last four years.
Points per match
Teams earn points for each match, with the specific amount determined based on the outcome of the match (win or loss) and the rating of their opponents.