Newcastle to benefit from Surfest being added to Challenger Series in 2025

Newcastle will receive unprecedented exposure in 2025 when Surfest is upgraded to become one of the top 16 surfing contests in the world as part of the Challenger Series.

Surfest was today officially added to the Challenger Series - the second highest tier on the World Surfing League (WSL) calendar in a move that will attract more than 120 of the best national and international up-and-coming surfers to Newcastle’s Merewether Beach from 1st to 8th June 2025.

The upgrade of Surfest to become one of the top 16 surfing contests in the world as part of the Challenger Series will deliver unprecedented exposure for Newcastle in 2025.

The announcement follows strong support from City of Newcastle, with Council unanimously backing a Lord Mayoral Minute last month to advocate for the international event, which will be broadcast to an audience of millions.

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said City of Newcastle has a proud history of supporting surfing in the region advising "City of Newcastle has been a sponsor of Surfest for almost 40 years and also helped to attract the Rip Curl Newcastle Cup to the city in 2021.

"That event showcased Newcastle to a global audience of more than 10 million people and injected an estimated $15 million into our economy, even without the international tourists who couldn't attend because of the pandemic.

"Since then, surfing has only grown in popularity. In 2023, the 16 WSL events attracted more than 120 million television viewers globally and social media engagement surpassed 500 million interactions across various platforms.

"Adding Surfest to the Challenger Series for 2025 will provide substantial economic, cultural, and tourism benefits to Newcastle and the wider Hunter region.”

Warren Smith said Surfest will become round one of the Challenger Series in 2025, featuring explosive, high-risk surfing.

"The Challenger Series is where surfing dreams are realised and shattered," Smith added.

"At the end of the six-event series, the top ten male and top five female surfers qualify for the 2026 Championship Tour, so every heat at Merewether Beach will be like a final.

"The series features an incredible mix of young and experienced talent from Australia, North and South America, Europe, Asia and Africa. It also boasts the men's and women's Junior World Champions, as well as the men and women from the Championship Tour who don't make the mid-season cut.

"Some of the big names featured on this year's Challenger Series include Callum Robson, Sally Fitzgibbons and Macy Callaghan, as well as our local contingent of Merewether Surfboard Club members Jackson Baker, Morgan Cibilic and Philippa Anderson.

“I must thank Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes and City of Newcastle, the Port of Newcastle and all our event partners for their support.

"I'd also like to thank the WSL, especially WSL APAC President Andrew Stark, for having the confidence in Newcastle to present the Challenger Series event as a part of Surfest 2025."

World Surf League President Andrew Stark said the 2025 version of Surfest will feature the biggest international field the event has hosted since 2020 and shared "The WSL is extremely excited to see such a historic event like Surfest return to the world stage as a Challenger Series competition in 2025.

“The sport's biggest names have competed at this event for almost four decades, and the continued success of Surfest is a testament to the passion of the local surf community.

"We can’t wait to see the world's best come back to Newcastle and battle it out for the Mark Richards Trophy once again.

"We’d like to thank Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes and the City of Newcastle, as well as the Port of Newcastle, for getting behind this event and bringing international professional surfing back to one of its heartlands.”

Image. Surfers Jackson Baker and Philippa Anderson, Surfest founder Warren Smith, WSL President Andrew Stark, Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes, Stephen Crowe from Port of Newcastle and surfer Ryan Callinan at the Challenger Series announcement.Credit: City of Newcastle