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…