Veteran defender Michael Boxall says qualifying the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup won’t be enough for New Zealand’s All Whites.
“We want to represent Oceania and do that properly,” he says.
“That means not only qualifying but really putting on a strong showing, presuming we qualify, when we get there.
“We really want to represent Oceania well, represent New Zealand well, and make New Zealanders proud of us with our performances, but also hopefully the performances leading to points. So we’re working hard to make sure that come 2026 we’re in a position where we can potentially get out of the group and go from there.”
Main photo: Michael Boxall … is aiming high with the All Whites.
New Zealand get their FIFA World Cup qualification campaign up and running on Friday October 11, 2024, with the Oceania Football Confederation becoming the fifth of the planet’s six confederations to kick off the long journey to North America.
With the region having, for the first time, a direct pass to the global sporting jamboree, Boxall (36) knows this is a golden chance to help lead an improving All Whites side to what would be just a third World Cup appearance.
“It would be so special to help get New Zealand back to the World Cup,” the 50-cap All White told FIFA.
“It was a year before I turned professional, the last time that we were there [at South Africa 2010]. I’ve played with a few of the players from that squad, but just playing with the national team is so special. It’s just, it’s hard to describe, it’s just like a really special group of guys.
“We have players now at really good levels and who are playing all over. You’ve got some in Serie A, you’ve got Premier League players, Champions League players, and then obviously myself, and others in Australia and whatnot, just all over the world.
“Whenever we come together, though, it’s just something like the Kiwi in us just loves being around other Kiwis, and it’s an awesome group to be a part of.”
The initial challenge for Boxall and his Kiwi team-mates is against a Tahiti side that may well present their sternest test in a four-nation group that also contains Vanuatu and Samoa.
Although the top two teams in both of the OFC’s second-round groups progress to the final qualification phase, there is little margin for error.
That’s in part due to the fact that there are no home-and-away fixtures, with only three group matches to navigate at this point of qualification, but also due to rising standards across Oceania, as Boxall tells FIFA.
“Even though there is more to be done, the development in Oceania has come pretty far. I think we’ve seen a lot of good players coming out of the Solomon Islands, Fiji, and elsewhere and plying their trade professionally, so that’s really awesome to see.
“Now, with the one-and-a-half spots we have, we’re going to have more Oceania teams having the chance to be at the World Cup, and then I think the investment won’t be far behind. So I think that’ll be great for young footballers growing up in the so-called smaller islands.”
Being part of that World Cup would also have special meaning for Boxall who went to college in the United States, before playing professionally in both Canada and now at MLS club Minnesota United, where he has spent the past seven seasons.
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A revered figure, and club captain at the ‘Loons’, Boxall knows just how big the World Cup is going to be in his second home.
“When the US decides to do something, they do it properly and pump a lot of money into it. So, obviously, an event like this, with the world’s eyes on it, I think they’ll step up and it’ll be a massive event.
“When it’s spread across three countries, I think, yeah, it’s going to be crazy. I think each country and each city’s going to have their own little quirks and it will be amazing.
“I’m definitely fortunate to call this club, Minnesota, and this country home and it would be a dream come true to help us qualify for the next World Cup here.
“I got my first cap in 2011, almost a decade and a half with these guys and the camaraderie that we have amongst all the New Zealand boys, it just means a lot. I think I was happier for my first call-up to the national team than I was signing my first professional deal, so that’s kind of how much the national team means to me.”
A career spent almost exclusively outside his homeland, much of it in the frigid American Midwest, means the occasional escape can be welcome, both physically and metaphorically.
“I moved here [to Minnesota] when my daughter was six months old,” Boxall told FIFA.
“She’s almost eight, and my son was born here, so I’ve been here seven years, and it’s a great, great place to raise the family if you survive the winters, which can be pretty tough. The cold just doesn’t compare, to almost anywhere, it just does not compare.
“It gets to like minus 20, minus 30 Celsius. I mean, there are days where it’s like minus five, minus 10, and when the sun’s out it’s kind of not too bad but of course then being away for so long you miss some things from home.
“The stuff that I miss the most is probably that which my body’s grateful that I can’t get here, things like New Zealand chocolate, for example. My family, my sister and parents will send over care packages every now and then, but not too often, thankfully, because yeah, they don’t last long in my house!”
Acknowledgement
We thank FIFA for providing this story.
New Zealand fixtures
Game to be played on Friday October 11, 2024
FIFA World Cup 2026 – OFC Qualifier
New Zealand v Tahiti
VFF Freshwater Stadium, Port Vila, Vanuatu, 3pm (NZT)
Game to be played on Monday October 14, 2024
International friendly
New Zealand v Malaysia
North Harbour Stadium, Albany, 7pm
November
Game to be played on Friday November 15, 2024
FIFA World Cup 2026 – OFC Qualifier
New Zealand v Vanuatu
FMG Stadium Waikato, Kirikiriroa Hamilton, 7.30pm
Game to be played on Monday November 18, 2024
New Zealand v OFC Qualifier Round One Winner (Samoa)
Go Media Stadium, Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, 7.30pm
This story was first published on October 10, 2024.
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