The All Whites will have home advantage for the final stage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup Oceania Qualifiers next year.
The Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) confirmed on Monday that Wellington and Auckland would host the semifinals and final in March next year, where countries will play for Oceania's first automatic World Cup berth.
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Wellington's Sky Stadium will host both semifinals on Friday, March 21 (kick-offs 3pm and 7pm), while Auckland's Eden Park will stage the Oceania final on Monday, March 24 (kick-off 7pm).
The Oceania qualifying champion will earn a place at the 2026 edition in Canada, Mexico and the United States, while the losing finalist will be entered into the FIFA Intercontinental Playoff Tournament, along with five teams from other FIFA confederations, with two berths available.
The four nations to contest the semifinals in Wellington will be decided following the final two rounds of group matches, set to be played over the next week during the FIFA international window in New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
New Zealand Football (NZF) boss Andrew Pragnell highlighted the significance of these matches being played in New Zealand.
“It is an honour to host these incredibly significant games in New Zealand and all going well over the week ahead, we will bring together our professional players from around the globe to compete on the international stage as the final hurdle for teams from Oceania to qualify for the biggest sporting event in the world.
“We saw Kiwis turn out in their thousands for the FIFA Women’s World Cup last year, so we look forward to welcoming fans to these games which are the most significant men’s matches played in this country since 2017,” Pragnell said.
Darren Bazeley's All Whites take on Vanuatu at Hamilton's FMG Stadium Waikato on Friday (kick-off 7.30pm) and Samoa at Auckland's Go Media Stadium Mt Smart on Monday (kick-off 7.30pm) in their Group B qualifiers.
New Zealand defeated Tahiti 3-0 in Port Vila, Vanuatu, in the opening qualifying match last month, before beating Malaysia 4-0 in an international friendly.
One victory will likely be enough to put the All Whites through to the semifinals. New Zealand have not qualified for a FIFA World Cup since 2010, but the 2026 tournament has expanded to 48 teams.