Joint Media Release: The Ball is Out on Adelaide Volleyball World Championships

The Albanese Labor Government has benched Premier Malinauskas’ plans to host the 2025 World Beach Volleyball Championships in Adelaide.

In June last year, the Premier announced that South Australia had been awarded the opportunity to host the FIVB World Beach Volleyball Championships when it comes to Australia for the first time.

Securing the World Championships was a big win for South Australia, and a big win for our volleyballers to be able to compete on the world stage here at home. It represented an exciting opportunity for SA to be a part of the Green and Gold Runway in the lead up to the Brisbane Olympics.

However, Senate Estimates last week revealed that the Federal Labor Government has failed to come to the party with the $6.5 million needed for SA to host the event.

Despite the funding proposal going through the Albanese Government’s budget process, it was clearly knocked back - with the money nowhere to be seen in their recent 2024-25 Budget.

Federal Shadow Minister for Sport, Senator Anne Ruston said that it was incredibly disappointing to see that federal funding support for this important international sporting showcase has been knocked back by the Albanese Government.

“Clearly, Premier Malinauskas has failed to lobby his Labor mates in Canberra in order to secure the federal funding required.

“This demonstrates Prime Minister Albanese’s complete lack of appreciation for the importance of hosting international sporting events, and his contempt for South Australia.

“We do not want to see the World Beach Volleyball Championships go the same way as the Victorian Commonwealth Games.

“This Olympic sport deserves the same support and recognition as other international sporting events receiving federal funding in the home states of the Prime Minister and Federal Sports Minister,” Shadow Minister Ruston said.

South Australian Shadow Minister for Sport, Recreation and Racing, Vincent Tarzia MP said that Peter Malinauskas must now intervene and secure this event for South Australia for not one dollar more.

“This has clearly been mismanaged by Labor,” Mr Tarzia said.

Premier Malinauskas must demand that the Prime Minister reconsiders his decision not to provide critical funding for this important international sporting event for our state.

ENDS