The New Zealand women's national football team (recognised as Aotearoa New Zealand by FIFA)[3] is governed by New Zealand Football (NZF). They are nicknamed the Football Ferns.
Nickname(s) | Football Ferns[1] | ||
---|---|---|---|
Association | New Zealand Football | ||
Confederation | OFC (Oceania) | ||
Head coach | Jitka Klimková | ||
Captain | Ali Riley | ||
Most caps | Ria Percival (166) | ||
Top scorer | Amber Hearn (54) | ||
FIFA code | NZL | ||
| |||
FIFA ranking | |||
Current | 28 2 (15 March 2024)[2] | ||
Highest | 16 (December 2013, July 2015 – March 2016) | ||
Lowest | 30 (December 2023) | ||
First international | |||
New Zealand 2–0 Hong Kong (Hong Kong; 25 August 1975) | |||
Biggest win | |||
New Zealand 21–0 Samoa (Auckland, New Zealand; 9 October 1998) | |||
Biggest defeat | |||
North Korea 11–0 New Zealand (Brisbane, Australia; 24 February 2004) | |||
World Cup | |||
Appearances | 6 (first in 1991) | ||
Best result | Group stage (1991, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2023) | ||
Olympic Games | |||
Appearances | 4 (first in 2008) | ||
Best result | Quarter-finals (2012) | ||
OFC Women's Nations Cup | |||
Appearances | 11 (first in 1983) | ||
Best result | Champions (1983, 1991, 2007, 2010, 2014, 2018) |
The New Zealand national team has taken part in the FIFA Women's World Cup six times, making their debut in 1991.[4] New Zealand co-hosted the 2023 World Cup alongside Australia.[5] They have failed to go past the group stage in all occasions.
The New Zealand Women's Soccer Association was founded in 1975. By invitation, the team took part in the Asian Women's Championship in 1975 and won the championship.[6] They have since then played in the Oceanic Championship.
As Australia left the OFC, New Zealand had no serious and competitive rivals in Oceania. This made New Zealand's qualification to the World Cup and Olympics easier having contested every edition of both tournaments since 2007.
New Zealand co-hosted the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup along with Australia after being awarded it on 25 June 2020 as the favourites over other bidder Colombia. The Football Ferns automatically qualified as co-host. Despite winning their opening match against Norway, they suffered a shocking loss to debutants Philippines and later drew to Switzerland in their final match, and were eliminated. This was the first time the hosts were eliminated from the group stage. They only managed to score one goal during the tournament.[7]
The New Zealand women's national football team are also known by their nickname the "Football Ferns".[1] Like their male counterparts, the team has traditionally worn all white kits. For the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup, the Football Ferns switched to an all black first choice kit reminiscent of the New Zealand national rugby union team, as well as the country's national teams in other sports, including rugby league, field hockey, netball, basketball, volleyball, and limited overs cricket. The away kit pairs the traditional white shirts and socks with turquoise shorts.[8]
Worst Ranking Best Ranking Worst Mover Best Mover
New Zealand's FIFA world rankings | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rank | Year | Games Played |
Won | Lost | Drawn | Best | Worst | ||||
Rank | Move | Rank | Move | ||||||||
22 | 2021 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.[10][11]
Win Draw Lose Fixture
11 April Friendly | New Zealand | 0–3 | Nigeria | Antalya, Turkey |
16:00 UTC+3 | Report |
|
Stadium: Mardan Sports Complex Referee: Arda Kardeşler (Turkey) |
10 July Friendly | New Zealand | 2–0 | Vietnam | Napier, New Zealand |
17:30 NZT | Report | Stadium: McLean Park Attendance: 6,215 Referee: Rebecca Durcau (Australia) |
14 July Friendly | New Zealand | 0–1 | Italy | Auckland, New Zealand |
19:00 | Report |
|
Stadium: Keith Hay Park Attendance: 0 (Behind closed doors) |
20 July FIFA WC Group | New Zealand | 1–0 | Norway | Auckland, New Zealand |
19:00 NZT |
|
Report | Stadium: Eden Park Attendance: 42,137 Referee: Yoshimi Yamashita (Japan) |
25 July FIFA WC Group | New Zealand | 0–1 | Philippines | Wellington, New Zealand |
17:30 NZT | Report |
|
Stadium: Wellington Regional Stadium Attendance: 32,357 Referee: Katia García (Mexico) |
30 July FIFA WC Group | Switzerland | 0–0 | New Zealand | Dunedin, New Zealand |
19:00 NZT | Report | Stadium: Forsyth Barr Stadium Attendance: 25,947 Referee: Tori Penso (United States) |
23 September Friendly | Chile | 3–0 | New Zealand | Santiago, Chile |
19:00 UTC−3 | Report | Stadium: Estadio Bicentenario de La Florida Attendance: 5,341[12] Referee: Nadia Fuques (Uruguay) |
26 September Friendly | Chile | 2–1 | New Zealand | Santiago, Chile |
11:00 UTC−3 | Report |
|
Stadium: Quilín Complex Attendance: 0 (Behind closed doors) |
2 December Friendly | Colombia | 0–0 | New Zealand | Bogotá, Colombia |
16:00 UTC−5 | Report | Stadium: Estadio El Campin Referee: Angelina Rodas (Paraguay) |
5 December Friendly | Colombia | 1–0 | New Zealand | Bogotá, Colombia |
15:00 UTC−5 |
|
Report | Stadium: Estadio Metropolitano de Techo Attendance: 0 (Behind closed doors) Referee: Zulma Quiñónez (Paraguay) |
7 February OFC Olympic Qualifying | New Zealand | 3–0 | Tonga | Apia, Samoa |
13:00 UTC+13 | Report | Stadium: FFS Football Stadium (Field 1) Referee: Ben Aukwai (Solomon Islands) |
10 February OFC Olympic Qualifying | New Zealand | 6–0 | Samoa | Apia, Samoa |
17:00 UTC+13 | Report | Stadium: FFS Football Stadium (Field 1) Referee: David Yareboinen (Papua New Guinea) |
13 February OFC Olympic Qualifying | Vanuatu | 0–5 | New Zealand | Apia, Samoa |
16:00 UTC+13 | Report | Stadium: FFS Football Stadium (Field 2) Referee: Kavitesh Behari (Fiji) |
16 February OFC Olympic Qualifying | New Zealand | 7–1 | Fiji | Apia, Samoa |
17:00 | Report |
|
Stadium: FFS Football Stadium (Field 1) Referee: David Yareboinen (Papua New Guinea) |
19 February OFC Olympic Qualifying | Solomon Islands | 1–11 | New Zealand | Apia, Samoa |
17:00 |
|
Report | Stadium: FFS Football Stadium (Field 1) Referee: Norbert Hauata (Tahiti) |
6 April Friendly | New Zealand | 4–0 | Thailand | Christchurch, New Zealand |
15:00 UTC+13 | Report | Stadium: Rugby League Park Attendance: 6,031 Referee: Casey Reibelt (Australia) |
9 April Friendly | New Zealand | 0–0 | Thailand | Christchurch, New Zealand |
19:00 UTC+12 | Report | Stadium: Rugby League Park Attendance: 3,503 Referee: Rebecca Durcau (Australia) |
25 July Olympics GS | Canada | v | New Zealand | Saint-Étienne, France |
06:00 UTC+13 | Stadium: Stade Geoffroy-Guichard |
28 July Olympics GS | New Zealand | v | Colombia | Décines-Charpieu, France |
06:00 UTC+13 | Stadium: Stade de Lyon |
31 July Olympics GS | New Zealand | v | France | Décines-Charpieu, France |
10:00 UTC+13 | Stadium: Stade de Lyon |
Position | Name | Ref. |
---|---|---|
Head coach | Jitka Klimková | [13] |
Caps and goals are current as of 19 February 2024 after the match against Solomon Islands.[38]
No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
22 | GK | Brianna Edwards | 27 January 2003 | 1 | 0 | Wellington Phoenix |
21 | GK | Victoria Esson | 6 March 1991 | 22 | 0 | Rangers |
1 | GK | Anna Leat | 26 June 2001 | 15 | 0 | Aston Villa |
4 | DF | Mackenzie Barry | 11 April 2001 | 14 | 0 | Wellington Phoenix |
4 | DF | CJ Bott | 22 April 1995 | 42 | 3 | Leicester City |
14 | DF | Katie Bowen | 15 April 1994 | 105 | 4 | Inter Milan |
3 | DF | Claudia Bunge (captain) | 21 September 1999 | 28 | 0 | HB Køge |
5 | DF | Michaela Foster | 9 January 1999 | 15 | 1 | Wellington Phoenix |
11 | DF | Ally Green | 17 August 1998 | 11 | 2 | AGF |
DF | Meikayla Moore | 4 June 1996 | 63 | 4 | Glasgow City | |
7 | DF | Ali Riley (captain) | 30 October 1987 | 159 | 2 | Angel City |
13 | DF | Rebekah Stott | 17 June 1993 | 100 | 4 | Melbourne City |
2 | DF | Kate Taylor | 21 October 2003 | 15 | 1 | Wellington Phoenix |
8 | MF | Daisy Cleverley | 30 April 1997 | 36 | 2 | HB Køge |
6 | MF | Macey Fraser | 11 July 2002 | 3 | 2 | Utah Royals |
18 | MF | Grace Jale | 10 April 1999 | 27 | 9 | Perth Glory |
7 | MF | Katie Kitching | 6 September 1998 | 6 | 2 | Sunderland |
6 | MF | Malia Steinmetz | 18 January 1999 | 27 | 0 | Nordsjælland |
16 | FW | Jacqui Hand | 19 February 1999 | 23 | 7 | Lewes |
10 | FW | Ruby Nathan | 11 October 2005 | 5 | 1 | Canberra United |
9 | FW | Gabi Rennie | 7 July 2001 | 31 | 2 | Åland United |
20 | FW | Indiah-Paige Riley | 20 December 2001 | 21 | 6 | PSV |
15 | FW | Paige Satchell | 13 April 1998 | 48 | 2 | London City Lionesses |
17 | FW | Hannah Wilkinson | 28 May 1992 | 122 | 31 | Melbourne City |
The following players have been called up within the last 12 months and remain eligible for selection.
†Current New Zealand co-captain
Bold players are still active.
# | Player | Years | Caps | Goals |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ria Percival | 2006– | 166 | 15 |
2 | Ali Riley | 2007– | 159 | 2 |
3 | Betsy Hassett | 2008– | 157 | 16 |
4 | Abby Erceg | 2006–2022 | 146 | 6 |
5 | Annalie Longo | 2006– | 133 | 15 |
6 | Amber Hearn | 2004–2018 | 125 | 54 |
7 | Katie Duncan | 2006–2019 | 124 | 1 |
8 | Hannah Wilkinson | 2010– | 122 | 31 |
9 | Rosie White | 2009–2021 | 111 | 24 |
10 | Katie Bowen | 2011– | 105 | 4 |
# | Player | Years | Goals | Caps |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Amber Hearn (list) | 2004–2018 | 54 | 125 |
2 | Wendy Sharpe | 1980–1995 | 34 | 51 |
Sarah Gregorius | 2010–2020 | 34 | 100 | |
4 | Hannah Wilkinson | 2010– | 31 | 122 |
5 | Rosie White | 2009–2021 | 24 | 111 |
6 | Maureen Jacobson | 1979–1996 | 17 | 53 |
Wendi Henderson | 1987–2007 | 17 | 64 | |
8 | Betsy Hassett | 2008– | 16 | 157 |
9 | Pernille Andersen | 1998 | 15 | 7 |
Annalie Longo | 2006– | 15 | 133 | |
Ria Percival | 2006– | 15 | 166 |
New Zealand's FIFA Women's World Cup record | Qualification record | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Host | Round | Pos | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Squad | Outcome | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
1991 | China | Group stage | 11th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 11 | Squad | Qualified | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 1 | |
1995 | Sweden | Did not qualify | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 2 | |||||||||
1999 | United States | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 41 | 3 | ||||||||||
2003 | United States | 2nd | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 29 | 2 | ||||||||||
2007 | China | Group stage | 14th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | Squad | Qualified | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 | |
2011 | Germany | 12th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | Squad | Qualified | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 0 | ||
2015 | Canada | 19th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | Squad | Qualified | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | ||
2019 | France | 20th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 5 | Squad | Qualified | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 0 | ||
2023 | Australia New Zealand |
20th | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Squad | Qualified as co-hosts | ||||||||
Total | Group stage | 6/9 | 18 | 1 | 4 | 13 | 9 | 35 | 32 | 28 | 0 | 4 | 252 | 9 |
Summer Olympics record | |||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Host | Round | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Squad |
1996 | United States | Did not qualify | |||||||||
2000 | Australia | ||||||||||
2004 | Greece | Did not enter | |||||||||
2008 | China | Group stage | 10th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 7 | −5 | Squad |
2012 | United Kingdom | Quarter-finals | 8th | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 5 | −2 | Squad |
2016 | Brazil | Group stage | 9th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | −4 | Squad |
2020 | Japan | Group stage | 12th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | −8 | Squad |
2024 | France | Qualified | |||||||||
Total | Quarter-finals | 5/8 | 13 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 8 | 27 | −19 |
OFC Women's Nations Cup record | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Host | Result | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
1983 | New Caledonia | Champions | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 3 | +21 |
1986 | New Zealand | Third place | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 0 |
1989 | Australia | Runners-up | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | +9 |
1991 | Australia | Champions | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 28 | 1 | +27 |
1994 | Papua New Guinea | Runners-up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 2 | +8 |
1998 | New Zealand | Runners-up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 41 | 3 | +38 |
2003 | Australia | Runners-up | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 29 | 2 | +27 |
2007 | Papua New Guinea | Champions | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 | +20 |
2010 | New Zealand | Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 0 | +50 |
2014 | Papua New Guinea | Champions | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 0 | +30 |
2018 | New Caledonia | Champions | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 0 | +43 |
2022 | Fiji | Did not enter | |||||||
Total | 6 titles | 45 | 37 | 1 | 7 | 289 | 16 | +273 |
AFC Women's Asian Cup record | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA |
Invitee | ||||||||
1975 | Champions | 1st | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 3 |
Total | 1 title | 1/1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 3 |
The Algarve Cup is an invitational tournament for national teams in women's association football hosted by the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF). Held annually in the Algarve region of Portugal since 1994, it is one of the most prestigious and longest-running women's international football events and has been nicknamed the "Mini FIFA Women's World Cup".[40]
Algarve Cup record | ||||||||
Year | Result | Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | GF | GA | GD |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2016 | 4th place | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
2020 | 4th place | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 | −4 |
Total | 2/27 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 8 | −4 |
The SheBelieves Cup is a global invitational tournament for national teams in women's soccer hosted in the United States.
SheBelieves Cup record | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Year | Result | Matches | Wins | Draws | Losses | GF | GA | GD |
2016 | Did not enter | |||||||
2017 | ||||||||
2018 | ||||||||
2019 | ||||||||
2020 | ||||||||
2021 | ||||||||
2022 | 4th | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | −6 |
Total | 1/7 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | −6 |
The first head coach of the national women's team was Wellington-based Dave Farrington, who held the role from 1975 to 1979.
Armstrong would also later take the coaching reins of the New Zealand women' side in 1980.
Roy Cox - rated by women's football historian Jeremy Ruane as "the godfather" of the women's game - had a coaching wins ratio of 56% from 1983 to 1987 - and Dave Boardman (1988-94) 55 %.
She later went on to have a hugely successful coaching career at domestic level before taking charge of the national side for a two-match series against Australia in March 1995 – the first woman to hold that position.
Thus four years of frustration ensued, until the appointment in 1995 of a new national coach, Maurice Tillotson.
former captain Wendi Henderson jointly held the role of coach with fellow former international Ali Grant in October 2004
Aged 31, he took over the Football Ferns coaching for two matches against China in 2006.