The Wellington Phoenix are delighted the All Whites have qualified for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and are immensely proud of all the club’s past and present players that contributed to their successful campaign.
New Zealand beat New Caledonia 3-0 in the Oceania Qualifiers final at Eden Park in Auckland on Monday night to become the second nation to join co-hosts Canada, Mexico and the United States in the 48-team tournament.
Phoenix players were to the fore.
Former Nix defender Michael Boxall scored the All Whites’ crucial first goal – his first in his 55th international – before current Wellington teammates Tim Payne and Kosta Barbarouses combined to double New Zealand’s lead and Barbarouses provided the assist for their third.
Barbarouses, the club’s reigning player of the year, also found the back of the net in the semi-final against Fiji at Sky Stadium on Friday night, while Payne shone with a goal and three assists in the 7-0 win.
Former Phoenix midfielder Sarpreet Singh was another of the standouts against Fiji with a goal and two assists.
Club captain Alex Rufer was the third current Wellington player in the All Whites’ 23-strong squad, with a further nine past Nix also selected.
Payne, Boxall, Singh, Joe Bell, Liberato Cacace and Callum McCowatt started each of the two qualifiers, while Barbarouses, Rufer, Ben Waine and Logan Rogerson came off the bench in one or both matches and Alex Paulsen and Oli Sail were unused substitutes.
With Phoenix academy graduates Ben Old and Finn Surman two of the All Whites’ most high-profile absentees this window there is a chance there will be an even stronger Nix influence at the FIFA World Cup 2026 in North America.
