Netball Super League 2024: Everything you need to know

The Netball Super League is back and it starts with a bang.

All 10 teams will take to the court for an action-packed opening day on Saturday at Nottingham's Motorpoint Arena.

With plans to professionalise and stars on the move, there are plenty of talking points.

And who will earn a place in June's Grand Final?

BBC Sport discusses everything you need to know about this season.

• BBC to show Netball Super League live

'We have to get bums on seats'

The big talking point for 2024 is that this campaign will be the last in its current format as the Super League prepares to relaunch as a professional league in 2025.

England Netball, the sport's governing body, began an open tender process in October for expressions of interest in joining the newly reformed league and the teams who will be involved are expected to be announced before the end of this season.

But while ambitions for creating a better experience for fans are high with more matches in arenas and investment in a better "on-court product", most players currently also work or study alongside their netball careers.

"The players are at the heart of everything we do and it's about being able to pay them better and more fairly," said Super League chief executive Claire Nelson. "We will be looking at improving and increasing what they get paid but it will be a slow and steady move towards full professionalisation."

But Manchester Thunder head coach Karen Greig said it is a period of "uncertainty" for the league and its players.

"We have to get bums on seats and get people to follow our sport," said Greig. "We can put a label on it but what does it look like for the players?

"We've got players that are doctors or teachers with careers. They're not going to be able to just drop everything to become a full-time netballer."

What is the format?

Ten teams make up the 2024 Super League, and fixtures are played home and away across 18 rounds before the top four progress to the semi-finals on 22 June. The third-place play-off and final will then take place on 29 June at Birmingham's Resorts World Arena.

The BBC will show one match per round live across the BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website and app from round two, beginning with defending champions Loughborough Lightning against Team Bath on 24 February from 18:00 GMT.

Teams

Cardiff Dragons; Leeds Rhinos; London Pulse; Loughborough Lightning; Manchester Thunder; Saracens Mavericks; Severn Stars; Strathclyde Sirens; Surrey Storm; Team Bath

England stars on the move

When England reached a World Cup final for the first time in their history in Cape Town last year, it marked the beginning of a new four-year cycle and the start of a new challenge for several of England's Roses.

Most notably, veteran defender Geva Mentor, who has 175 England caps, is returning to the Super League after 14 years away.

The 39-year-old retired from international netball last year and is joining Leeds Rhinos as captain after spending most of her career playing in Australia's Super Netball League.

The professional league attracts the world's best players, with fellow England internationals Helen Housby and Eleanor Cardwell plying their trade down under.

Fran Williams, who captained the Roses at the recent South Africa and Nations Cup series, helped Loughborough Lightning to win a second title last year but has opted for a move to Australia to join West Coast Fever.

Elsewhere, England and Surrey Storm defender Layla Guscoth is taking a year break from the sport and mid-courter Imogen Allison has joined four-time Super League champions Manchester Thunder from Team Bath.

Wales captain Nia Jones returns to Cardiff Dragons along with England mid-courter Elle McDonald while Saracens Mavericks have welcomed back Roses duo Vicki Oyesola and Ellie Rattu, who both came through the pathway at the London franchise.

Can Lightning go back-to-back?

With the prospect of professionalisation on the horizon, teams will be out to impress and showcase why they should be part of the new project.

Loughborough Lightning are strong contenders to retain their title, having kept hold of most of their key players and will also welcome back shooter Ella Clark, who suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury in the 2022 Grand Final, which Lightning lost to Manchester Thunder.

• Loughborough Lightning: The sporting franchise focused on women

Hot on the tails of the more established Super League sides are London Pulse, who only joined the league in 2019 but reached a maiden final last year.

With a plethora of England internationals in their side, including fan favourite Funmi Fadoju and exciting young shooters Olivia Tchine and Berri Neil, Pulse will undoubtedly be bidding for another final.

Manchester Thunder were stung by their semi-final loss to Lightning last year; the four-time champions could equal Team Bath's record of five trophies should they take the crown this time.

Meanwhile, the loss of Guscoth and last year's captain Yasmin Brookes could make Surrey Storm's bid for a second consecutive semi-final tricky while Saracens Mavericks have recruited well and will be determined to break their five-season run of finishing fifth, just outside the play-off places.

The addition of Mentor to Leeds Rhinos is a brilliant bit of business to add experience to their ranks and Severn Stars continue to build on what was a solid season for them last year.