The All Whites have locked in their final preparation schedule before next month’s FIFA World Cup, with two friendlies in Florida against Haiti and England the only competitive run-outs before Darren Bazeley’s squad opens its tournament against Iran in Los Angeles. NZ Football has confirmed the side will play Haiti at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale on Wednesday 3 June (NZT), then take on England at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on Sunday 7 June, before camp moves to San Diego for the final week of build-up.
Coach Darren Bazeley says the back-to-back games are the kind of test the All Whites need against opposition who match the profile of their group rivals. “Haiti are a good side and are ranked at a similar level to us, so we feel that provides a perfect test as we get ready to kick off against Iran in LA,” Bazeley told NZ Football. Haiti sit at #83 in the latest FIFA rankings while New Zealand are #85, which on paper makes it the closest-matched contest the All Whites will play all winter. In comments to Friends of Football Bazeley added that the staff had targeted that profile from the moment of the draw. “Since the draw, we have been working to lock in two games against fellow FIFA World Cup opposition to put us in the best place to perform at the tournament, and the combination of facing Haiti and England, both in Florida, is something we feel does exactly that.”
The Haiti match will be the first senior international between the two football nations. Haiti are at their first World Cup in 52 years and share New Zealand’s status as a long-overlooked outsider at the tournament, and Bazeley’s staff sees that as the point of the exercise rather than a problem to be sidestepped.
The England assignment is a very different kind of stress test. Thomas Tuchel’s side, ranked #4 in the world, gives the All Whites a top-tier benchmark four days out from the opener and helps simulate the level of opposition Belgium will bring at the back end of pool play. “Having both games in Florida is hugely beneficial as it means we don’t lose any of our preparation time with travel days, and the players can properly rest and recover between matches,” Bazeley said.
Then comes the main event. The All Whites are in Group G alongside Belgium, Egypt and Iran, the closing pool of a tournament that for the first time runs to 48 nations and 104 matches. New Zealand opens against Iran (FIFA #20) at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Tuesday 16 June, kick-off 1pm NZT, before flying north to face Egypt (FIFA #34) at BC Place in Vancouver on Monday 22 June at 1pm NZT, and closing pool play against Belgium (FIFA #8) at the same Vancouver venue on Saturday 27 June at 3pm NZT.
This is only the third World Cup the All Whites have ever qualified for, after 1982 in Spain and 2010 in South Africa. Sixteen years ago the side famously held Italy, Slovakia and Paraguay all to draws and went home as the only team in the tournament unbeaten without making the round of sixteen. The 2026 group looks tougher in pure ranking terms, with Belgium one of the world’s perennial dark horses and Iran a stiff defensive test, but it also lands at a moment when New Zealand has its most match-sharp, Europe-based squad ever assembled.
Captain Chris Wood, who is fresh off another strong Premier League season at Nottingham Forest and has just helped put the club one match from a Europa League final, sits at the heart of the group. With 45 goals in 88 appearances he is already the most-capped All White and the side’s all-time top scorer, and he will be 35 by the time New Zealand kicks off against Iran. Around him are players who have spent the last two seasons earning regular minutes in the English Championship, the Bundesliga 2 and across the European leagues, a structural change from the part-amateur set-ups of the past.
Bazeley will name his 26-player tournament squad in mid-May, the deadline that gives him just enough time to bring the group into camp, fly through Los Angeles to Florida, and reach Fort Lauderdale with a clean week of training before the Haiti match. After that the schedule barely lets up, with England, the Iran opener, and the cross-country pivot to Vancouver all bunched into a tight 24-day window.
For domestic fans, broadcast plans are also taking shape. TVNZ has confirmed a pay-to-view package covering all 104 matches, ending months of speculation about whether free-to-air coverage would be available across the full tournament.
The pieces are finally fitting together. From the Auckland qualifier just over a year ago that sealed New Zealand’s spot, through the December draw and the long Northern winter waiting to see who the side would face, the picture is now complete. Florida in early June, then Los Angeles, then Vancouver, sixteen years on from the unbeaten run in South Africa, the All Whites have a clear shot at writing the next chapter.
Are you setting the alarm for 3 June and 7 June to watch the warm-ups, and how do you rate New Zealand’s chances of getting out of Group G in front of a 48-team field? Have your say in the comments below.
This article was written by AI, briefed to report the facts, hopefully without some of the bias people bring to the job 🙂
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