New Zealand who book their spot for the 2026 Fifa World cup by beating the New Caledonia 3-0 in the OFC Qualifying final by strong second-half showing. This is the third appearance for the New Zealand in the world cup as they previously qualify for the 1982 and 2010 Editions.
New Zealand’s emphatic 3–0 victory at a lively Eden Park sealed their place in history, joining the legendary squads of Spain 1982 and South Africa 2010 as the nation’s only teams to reach the FIFA World Cup. As for New Caledonia, they now turn their focus to the FIFA Play-off Tournament™, where they’ll aim to make history by securing their first-ever World Cup berth. check out the World cup 26 schedule here.
New Zealand’s pathway
In the second round (group stage of OFC qualification), New Zealand were drawn into a group (Group B) and played away and home fixtures (including hosting rights announced for matches in late 2024).
They advanced from that group to the third round of OFC qualifying.
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In the third-round knockout stage (held in March 2025 in New Zealand) they played a semi-final and then the final against New Caledonia national football team.
Final match: New Zealand beat New Caledonia 3-0 on 24 March 2025 to claim the direct OFC slot and thereby qualify for the World Cup.
What they said
“This is my fifth attempt to get to a World Cup and I’m so emotional and happy. I was having flashbacks from the last 15 years; I’m just so happy to contribute and help get the team over the line.” Kosta Barbarouses, New Zealand forward
“We’ve gone through heartbreak in [previous campaigns] but once the World Cup expanded we expected this of ourselves. It’s not about getting there, it’s about what we do when we’re there so it’s going to be a big 15 or 16 months to prepare.” Michael Boxall, New Zealand defender
“We had a lot of possession but we had to play differently. We made some changes at half-time and were more forward thinking with our runs and our passes and we made the game safe but it probably wasn’t as safe as we all wanted it to be.” Darren Bazeley, New Zealand head coach
“Even though there is a lot of disappointment, I loved my team. I loved their attitude, the game they played—I loved everything, but it wasn’t enough. We really enjoyed playing here; it was a very challenging experience, especially given our situation, to play in New Zealand’s stronghold but we remain very proud despite it all. Now, we are looking ahead to 2026 to play in the play-off tournament.” Johann Sidaner, New Caledonia head coach