New Zealand vs Belgium FIFA World Cup 2026 Preview: Everything you need to know

World Cup - Grp. G

BC Place Vancouver

New Zealand vs Belgium will kick off on 26 Jun 2026 at 23:00 EST.

Match context

A 2-2 draw with Iran on Matchday 1 for New Zealand, the lowest-ranked side in the tournament, was a promising start. However, a 3-1 defeat to Egypt went according to script for a team participating in just its third men’s World Cup, and first in 16 years. A star-studded Belgian side has flattered to deceive, producing a 1-1 draw with Egypt and a disappointing 0-0 stalemate with Iran. Lille central defender Nathan Ngoy was dismissed in the latter match, so he'll miss out here, and Arthur Theate could deputise.

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New Zealand's key players and coach

Tried and tested in the demanding English Premier League, Nottingham Forest striker Chris Wood is undoubtedly New Zealand's talisman and key figure. Motherwell winger Elijah Just scored both of New Zealand's goals in their 2-2 draw with Iran and is one of their most dangerous operators. Wood turned provider in that match, claiming two assists. Coach Darren Bazeley will demand a response from their players after they surrendered a lead against Egypt to concede three second-half goals.

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Belgium's key players and coach

34-year-old Napoli star Kevin De Bruyne remains the creative fulcrum of the side. Coach Rudy Garcia will need a whole lot more from his attacking players, however, with Belgium's only goal at the tournament so far going down as an own goal by Egyptian defender Mohamed Hany, although substitute Romelu Lukaku was heavily involved. One of the more topical talking points is the form and fitness of Lukaku, whose previously untouchable status as the nation's main striker could be called into question here. The 33-year-old started against Iran, so coach Garcia has to make a tricky decision between him and Charles De Ketelaere for the starting berth. Man City winger Jeremy Doku and Arsenal's Leandro Trossard are their other major goal threats.

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Likely New Zealand XI

Crocombe; Payne, Surman, Boxall, Cacace; Bell, Stamenic; McCowatt, Singh, Just; Wood.

Likely Belgium XI

Courtois; Meunier, Theate, Mechele, De Cuyper; Raskin, Tielemans; Doku, De Bruyne, Trossard; Lukaku.

New Zealand's 26-man squad

Goalkeepers: Max Crocombe (Millwall), Alex Paulsen (Lechia Gdansk, on loan from Bournemouth), Michael Woud (Auckland FC).

Defenders: Tim Payne (Wellington Phoenix), Francis de Vries (Auckland FC), Tyler Bindon (Nottingham Forest), Michael Boxall (Minnesota United), Liberato Cacace (Wrexham), Nando Pijnaker (Auckland FC), Finn Surman (Portland Timbers), Callan Elliot (Auckland FC), Tommy Smith (Braintree Town).

Midfielders: Joe Bell (Viking FK), Matthew Garbett (Peterborough United), Marko Stamenic (Swansea City), Sarpreet Singh (Wellington Phoenix), Alex Rufer (Wellington Phoenix), Ben Old (Saint-Étienne), Callum McCowatt (Silkeborg IF), Lachlan Bayliss (Newcastle Jets), Ryan Thomas (PEC Zwolle).

Forwards: Kosta Barbarouses (Western Sydney Wanderers), Eli Just (Motherwell), Jesse Randall (Auckland FC), Ben Waine (Port Vale), Chris Wood (Nottingham Forest).

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Belgium's 26-man squad

Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid), Senne Lammens (Manchester United), Mike Penders (Racing Strasbourg).

Defenders: Timothy Castagne (Fulham), Zeno Debast (Sporting), Maxim de Cuyper (Brighton), Koni de Winter (AC Milan), Brandon Mechele (Club Brugge), Thomas Meunier (Lille), Nathan Ngoy (Lille), Joaquin Seys (Club Brugge), Arthur Theate (Eintracht Frankfurt).

Midfielders: Kevin de Bruyne (Napoli), Amadou Onana (Aston Villa), Nicolas Raskin (Rangers), Youri Tielemans (Aston Villa), Hans Vanaken (Club Brugge), Axel Witsel (Girona).

Forwards: Charles de Ketelaere (Atalanta), Jeremy Doku (Manchester City), Matias Fernandez-Pardo (Lille), Romelu Lukaku (Napoli), Dodi Lukebakio (Benfica), Diego Moreira (Strasbourg), Alexis Saelemaekers (AC Milan), Leandro Trossard (Arsenal).

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Team news & squads

New Zealand vs Belgium Probable lineups

New Zealand

NZL

Formation

Belgium

BEL

Belgium

BEL

Manager

• D. Bazeley

Darren Bazeley has not confirmed a probable lineup for New Zealand, and no injuries or suspensions have been listed for the All Whites ahead of this match. Further updates are expected closer to kick-off.

Rudi Garcia has also yet to name his starting XI for Belgium. No injury or suspension information is currently available for the Red Devils, though Garcia will need to assess the squad following Ngoy's red card against Iran. Updates will be added as official team news is confirmed.

Form

New Zealand have won one, drawn one, and lost three of their last five matches. Their most recent result was a 3-1 defeat to Egypt on June 22 in their second World Cup group game, a match in which they conceded three times after taking an early lead. Their other World Cup outing ended in a 2-2 draw with Iran on June 16. The only win across the five-match run came against Chile, a 4-1 result in March. Defeats to England (1-0) and Haiti (4-0) complete the sequence. New Zealand have scored eight goals and conceded twelve across those five games.

Belgium have won two and drawn three of their last five matches. Their most recent result was a 0-0 draw with Iran on June 21, a match played with 10 men for a significant portion after Ngoy's dismissal. Prior to that, they drew 1-1 with Egypt on June 15 in their World Cup opener. Belgium beat Tunisia 5-0 and Croatia 2-0 in June friendlies and drew 1-1 with Mexico earlier in the year. They have scored seven goals and conceded three across the five matches, with no defeats in the sequence.

Head-to-Head Record

No head-to-head data is available for the previous five meetings between New Zealand and Belgium. Official historical records for this fixture are not included in the available dataset.

Standings

In Group G, New Zealand sit fourth and Belgium third heading into the final matchday.