Monday’s 3-0 victory over New Caledonia qualified New Zealand for the 2026 World Cup. Veteran Michael Boxall and Kosta Barbarouses scored in a second-half surge to let the All Whites return to the championships for the first time since 2010.
In his 55th international, Boxall scored his first goal for New Zealand with a header on the hour-mark. Five minutes later, Barbarouses volved over the custodian to send a throng of more than 25,000 into ecstasy at Eden Park. Change Elijah. Just added the third goal in the 80th minute to guarantee New Zealand advance to their third World Cup following the 1982 and 2010 finals.
Following intercontinental playoff losses, New Zealand missed out on the last three World Cups. However, the All Whites were a shoo-in since Oceania was awarded a berth at the championship game for the first time.
With Japan qualifying with a home victory over Bahrain last week, New Zealand became the second country through to the event co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico.
“I’m quite glad to support and enable the team to move past its boundaries.”
Players from New Zealand don white T-shirts bearing “Qualified” and mist shower each other with champagne.
The festivities were subdued somewhat with a seeming hip injury to captain Chris Wood limping off early in the second half.
Ranked 152nd in the world and mostly composed of amateur football players, New Caledonia battled valiantly to keep the match scoreless for more than sixty minutes of the Oceania final.
