The All Whites will play in a four-nation tournament with Chile, Finland and Cape Verde ahead of next year’s FIFA Men’s World Cup, according to African news reports.
Cape Verde’s Rádio Televisão Cabo-verdiana say New Zealand will host the FIFA Series in March.
The channel quotes the president of the Cape Verde Football Federation, Mário Semedo, as saying the tournament will provide their national team, known as the Blue Sharks, with the ideal preparation for the 2026 FIFA Men’s World Cup to be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
In early December, NZ Football confirmed the four-team FIFA Series would be staged in Auckland because of travel and competition requirements.
However, apart from the All Whites, the other three teams have yet to be confirmed by NZ Football or the national bodies of Chile and Finland.
In his interview with Rádio Televisão Cabo-verdiana, Semedo said: “I think this opportunity fits perfectly. They are opponents who have some similarities in terms of playing style and tactical ideas to the teams we will face in our group in the United States.
Therefore, it will also be an important test for our national team, and in fact an excellent opportunity to test ourselves just a few months before the start of the World Cup.”
Here’s how the story was reported in Cape Verde:
Cape Verde are drawn in Group H at the World Cup, with Spain (ranked #1 in the world), Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.
After December’s revision of the FIFA men’s world rankings, New Zealand are #87, Chile are #52, Cape Verde are #67 and Finland are rated #75.
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The March tournament is part of a FIFA programme to encourage competition between teams from different continents.
The All Whites took part in the inaugural FIFA Series in 2024, held in Egypt, where they faced the hosts as well as Tunisia.
The matches will be supported by the Government’s Events Attraction Package, designed to help enable events of this scale and merit.
This story was first published on December 28, 2025.