New Zealand at the OFC Men's Nations Cup
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The New Zealand men's national football team has competed in all eleven editions of the OFC Men's Nations Cup, and have won six times, the most recent coming in the 2024 tournament.
On 1 January 2006, Australia ceased to be a member of the Oceania Football Confederation, having elected to join the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and have not taken part in the OFC Nations Cup since.
OFC Nations Cup record
| New Zealand's OFC Nations Cup record | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Year | Host | Round | Pos. | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1973 |  New Zealand | Champions | 1st | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 4 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1980 |  New Caledonia | Group stage | 5th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 8 | N/a | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1996 | Semi-finals | 3rd | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | Squad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998 |  Australia | Champions | 1st | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 1 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000 |  Tahiti | Runners-up | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 3 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | New Zealand | Champions | 1st | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 2 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Australia | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 5 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2008 | Champions | 1st | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 5 | Squad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012 |  Solomon Islands | Third place | 3rd | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 7 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2016 |  Papua New Guinea | Champions | 1st | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 1 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024 |  Fiji,  Vanuatu | Champions | 1st | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | Squad | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 6 titles | 11/11 | 48 | 36 | 4 | 8 | 125 | 39 | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Record by opponent
- As of 30 June 2024
| OFC Nations Cup matches (by team) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
| Australia | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 6 |
| Fiji | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 16 | 8 |
 New Caledonia | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 4 |
| Papua New Guinea | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 2 |
| Solomon Islands | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 26 | 6 |
| Tahiti | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 26 | 4 |
| Vanuatu* | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 37 | 9 |
- Games against New Hebrides are included in statistics of Vanuatu.
1973 Oceania Cup
The first edition of the Oceania Nations Cup (known as the "Oceania Cup") took place in Newmarket Park in Auckland, New Zealand. Five countries participated in one group where each team played each other once. The top two teams progressed to the final where New Zealand defeated Tahiti 2-0 to be crowned champions.[1]
First round
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 4 | +7 | 10 | Advance to final |
 Tahiti | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 8 | |
| New Caledonia | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 5 | +3 | 6 | Advance to third place play-off |
 New Hebrides | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 8 | –4 | 4 | |
| Fiji | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 13 | –11 | 0 |
| New Zealand | 5–1 | Fiji |
|---|---|---|
Brian Turner  (?) David Taylor (?) Geoff Brand (?) Malcolm Bland (?) Alan Vest (?) |
Terio Vakatawa (?) |
| New Zealand | 1–1 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
| Alan Vest (?) |
Erroll Bennett (?) |
| New Zealand | 2–1 | New Caledonia |
|---|---|---|
| Alan Marley (?) Colin Latimour (?) |
Jean Xowie (?) |
| New Zealand | 3–1 | New Hebrides |
|---|---|---|
| Malcolm Bland (?) Brian Hardman (?) Alan Marley (?) |
Raymond Valette (?) |
Final
| New Zealand | 2–0 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
| David Taylor (?) Alan Marley (?) |
1980 Oceania Cup
The second edition of the OFC Nations Cup, held in New Caledonia, consisted of eight teams divided into two groups of four, with the group winners progressing to the final and the runners-up contesting the third place play-off match. After three group matches, New Zealand failed to progress to the knockout stages of the tournament.[2]
Group A
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tahiti | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 5 | +16 | 9 | Advance to final |
| Fiji | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 7 | +3 | 6 | Advance to third place play-off |
| New Zealand | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 8 | –1 | 3 | |
| Solomon Islands | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 21 | –18 | 0 | |
| Tahiti | 3–1 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Alfred Wabealo 61', 73' Erroll Bennett 85' |
Steve Sumner 47' (pen.) |
| Fiji | 4–0 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| D. Chand 10', 39' M. Vuilabasa 31', 63' |
| New Zealand | 6–1 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Groom 6' Mark Armstrong 16', 65', 69' Bill de Graaf 24', 39' |
Kasute'e 66' |
1996 OFC Nations Cup
The third edition of the OFC Nations cup was not held as a cohesive tournament but consisted of four teams and two home-and-away rounds spanning two years. New Zealand played Australia, and Tahiti played the Solomon Islands, with Australia and Tahiti progressing to the final.[3] The two matches between New Zealand and Australia also doubled as the 1995 edition of the Trans-Tasman Cup.
Semi-final
| New Zealand | 0–0 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Australia | 3–0 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Damian Mori 33' Paul Wade 45' (pen.) Joe Spiteri 51' |
Australia won 3–0 on aggregate.
1998 OFC Nations Cup
Six teams competed in the 1998 OFC Nations Cup which was held at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia. The six teams were divided into two groups of three, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the semi-finals. New Zealand defeated Australia in the final to earn a spot at the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup.[4]
Group A
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| Tahiti | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | +3 | 3 | |
| Vanuatu | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 13 | –11 | 0 |
| New Zealand | 1–0 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
Paama  13' (o.g.) |
Semi-final
Final
2000 OFC Nations Cup
As in the previous edition of the Nations Cup, the 2000 tournament included six teams divided into two groups of three. The top two teams from each group progressed to the knockout stages with Australia defeating New Zealand in the final to claim the title of Oceania champion, and secure a place at the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup.[5]
Group B
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | +4 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| Vanuatu | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | –1 | 3 | |
| Tahiti | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 5 | –3 | 0 |
| New Zealand | 2–0 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
| Kris Bouckenooghe 27' Chris Jackson 78' |
| New Zealand | 3–1 | Vanuatu |
|---|---|---|
| Chris Killen 47', 84' Jonathan Perry 56' |
Richard Iwai 14' |
Semi-final
| New Zealand | 2–0 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Simon Elliott 51', 55' |
Final
| Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Shaun Murphy 40' Craig Foster 66' |
2002 OFC Nations Cup
The sixth edition of the OFC Nations Cup saw eight teams participate in two groups of four teams each. Each team played the other once, and the top two teams progressed to the knockout stages. After defeating Vanuatu in the semi-final, New Zealand went on to defeat long-time rivals Australia to be crowned OFC Champions and qualify for the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup.[6]
Group B
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 2 | +17 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage |
| Tahiti | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 7 | –1 | 6 | |
| Solomon Islands | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 9 | –6 | 1 | |
| Papua New Guinea | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 12 | –10 | 1 |
| New Zealand | 9–1 | Papua New Guinea |
|---|---|---|
| Killen 9', 10', 28', 51' Campbell 27', 85' Nelsen 54' Burton 87' De Gregorio 90+' |
Aisa 35' (pen.) |
| New Zealand | 6–1 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Vicelich 28', 45' Urlovic 42' Campbell 50', 75' Burton 88' |
Fa'arodo 73' |
Semi-final
| New Zealand | 3–0 | Vanuatu |
|---|---|---|
| Burton 13', 65' Killen 23' |
Final
| New Zealand | 1–0 | Australia |
|---|---|---|
| Nelsen 78' |
2004 OFC Nations Cup
The 2004 OFC Nations Cup - which doubled as FIFA World Cup qualifying for the Oceania region[7] - consisted of two rounds. The first round saw six nations compete in a single group where each team played the other once. The top two teams progressed to a home-and-away finals series to determine the winner of the Nations Cup.
Due to a shock 4–2 loss to Vanuatu, New Zealand failed to place in the top two, resulting in Australia taking on the Solomon Islands in the two-legged final, eventually winning 5–1 away and 6–0 at home to claim the title of OFC Champions for a fourth time.[8]
Group stage
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | |
|
|
|
|
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Australia |
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 21 | 3 | +18 | 13 | Advance to final | — | — | 1–0 | 6–1 | 9–0 | — | |
| 2 | Solomon Islands |
5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 6 | +3 | 10 | 2–2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 3 | New Zealand |
5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 17 | 5 | +12 | 9 | — | 3–0 | — | — | 10–0 | — | ||
| 4 | Fiji |
5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 10 | −7 | 4 | — | 1–2 | 0–2 | — | — | 1–0 | ||
| 5 | Tahiti |
5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 24 | −22 | 4 | — | 0–4 | — | 0–0 | — | 2–1 | ||
| 6 | Vanuatu |
5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 9 | −4 | 3 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 4–2 | — | — | — |
| Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Bresciano 40' |
| New Zealand | 3–0 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Fisher 36' Oughton 81' Lines 90' |
| Vanuatu | 4–2 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Chilia 37' Bibi 64' Maleb 72' Qorig 88' |
Coveny 61', 75' |
| Fiji | 0–2 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Bunce 8' Coveny 56' |
2008 OFC Nations Cup
The 2008 tournament doubled as FIFA World Cup qualification matches for the Oceania region and consisted of just four teams in one group with matches spread out over two years. Each team played the other twice with New Zealand - the top team of the group - being crowned the OFC Nations Cup champions as well as earning a spot in the play-off match against the 5th best Asian team for a spot at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.
| Fiji | 0–2 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Vicelich 37' Smeltz 86' |
| New Caledonia | 1–3 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| M. Hmaé 55' |
Report | Sigmund 16' Smeltz 65', 75' |
| New Zealand | 3–0 | New Caledonia |
|---|---|---|
| Smeltz 49', 76' Christie 69' |
Report |
| New Zealand | 0–2 | Fiji |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Krishna 63', 90' |
Notes
- The New Zealand vs Fiji match was originally scheduled for 13 October 2007, but was postponed by FIFA after Fijian goalkeeper Simione Tamanisau was denied a visa by the New Zealand immigration authorities. The match was first rescheduled to be played in the neutral country of Samoa,[11][12] but subsequently moved again to Fiji.[13]
2012 OFC Nations Cup
The ninth edition of the OFC Nations Cup was held in Honiara, Solomon Islands with eight teams in the competition. The teams were divided into two groups of four, each playing the other teams once. The top two teams of each group progressed to the knockout stages which consisted of semi-finals a final round to determine the winner of the OFC Nations Cup.
Tahiti won the competition for the first time in its history after tournament favourites New Zealand lost to New Caledonia in the semi-final. Tahiti's triumph was also the first time a nation other than Australia or New Zealand has won the OFC Nations Cup.
The group stage of the 2012 Nations Cup also doubled as World Cup qualifying matches, with the top two teams from each group progressing to stage 3 of qualifying. The winner of the 2012 Nations Cup would also represent Oceania at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup.
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification | |
|
|
| |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Zealand |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 7 | Semi-finals and World Cup qualifying third round | — | 1–1 | — | 2–1 | |
| 2 | Solomon Islands |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | +1 | 5 | — | — | — | — | ||
| 3 | Fiji |
3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 2 | 0–1 | 0–0 | — | 1–1 | ||
| 4 | Papua New Guinea |
3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 1 | — | 0–1 | — | — |
| Fiji | 0–1 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Smith 11' |
| Papua New Guinea | 1–2 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Hans 89' (pen.) |
Smeltz 2' Wood 52' |
| New Zealand | 1–1 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
| Wood 13' |
Totori 56' |
Semi-final
| New Zealand | 0–2 | New Caledonia |
|---|---|---|
| Kaï 60' Gope-Fenepej 90+3' |
Third place match
| Solomon Islands | 3–4 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Teleda 48' Totori 54', 87' |
Wood 10', 24', 29' Smeltz 90' |
2016 OFC Nations Cup
Group B
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Zealand |
3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 | +8 | 9 | Qualification to Nations Cup knockout stage and World Cup qualifying third round |
| 2 | Solomon Islands |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 3 | |
| 3 | Fiji |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 3 | Qualification to World Cup qualifying third round |
| 4 | Vanuatu |
3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 8 | −5 | 3 |
| New Zealand | 3–1 | Fiji |
|---|---|---|
| Tzimopoulos 16' Fallon 41'Wood 61' (pen.) |
Report (FIFA) Report (OFC) |
Krishna 45+2' (pen.) |
| Vanuatu | 0–5 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Report (FIFA) Report (OFC) |
Wood 4', 5' McGlinchey 10'Fallon 19'Barbarouses 45' |
Semi-final
Final
2024 OFC Nations Cup
Group A
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New Zealand |
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | +7 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Vanuatu (H) |
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 3 | |
| 3 | Solomon Islands |
2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | −4 | 0 | |
| 4 | New Caledonia |
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Withdrew |
| New Zealand | Cancelled | New Caledonia |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand | 3–0 | Solomon Islands |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Knockout stage
Semi-finals
| New Zealand | 5–0 | Tahiti |
|---|---|---|
|
Report |
Final
Statistics
Record players
| Rank | Player | Matches | Tournaments |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ivan Vicelich | 20 | 1998, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 |
| 2 | Simon Elliott | 12 | 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2008 |
| Chris Killen | 12 | 2000, 2002, 2008 and 2012 | |
| 4 | Vaughan Coveny | 11 | 1996, 1998 and 2004 |
| Shane Smeltz | 11 | 2004, 2008 and 2012 | |
| 6 | Chris Wood | 8 | 2012 and 2016 |
Top goalscorers
| Rank | Player | Goals | Tournaments (goals) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shane Smeltz | 10 | 2004 (0), 2008 (8) and 2012 (2) |
| Vaughan Coveny | 10 | 1996 (0), 1998 (4), 2002 (0) and 2004 (6) | |
| 3 | Chris Wood | 9 | 2012 (5) and 2016 (4) |
| 4 | Chris Killen | 7 | 2000 (2), 2002 (5), 2004 (0), 2008 (0) and 2012 (0) |