The All Whites’ 2026 FIFA World Cup preparations will have its first examination today as New Zealand takes on fellow tournament hopefuls, Haiti.

The World Cup warm up at Chase Stadium in Fort Lauderdale is the home of MLS side Inter Miami, where Argentinean great Lionel Messi plays.

Today’s friendly also marks the first time the All Whites have played the Caribbean Island nation with kick off today at midday NZT.

Football fever rising in Florida, as are the temperatures with the 30C heat, talk of discussion ahead of the match.

New Zealand midfielder Marko Stamenic says the heat can be a big factor.

“It's really tough, tough on the body.

“But as football players, we are used to change, we’re used to having to adapt quite fast. I played in Greece a couple of years ago, so I know kind of the methods to adjust to this heat.

“But yeah, it never gets easy and I know a lot of us are playing in cold environments, especially the last month or two. So, it's a big change for us, but I think we're doing well.”

“We've had a week together as a full squad now to adapt and climatise and I think it's been pretty successful in that sense.

“I think we're really ready for the first test.”

All Whites coach Darren Bazeley says his side will be without two key players for their first World Cup warm up, with Ryan Thomas and Joe Bell sidelined by injury.

Nevertheless, Bazeley says the match against Haiti is a great opportunity to build momentum for their opening match against Iran on 16 June.

“Everybody's in a different stage, finishing seasons or coming a bit of a return to play for some of them.

“So we've definitely got some ideas of minutes for different players, but I think it's a great opportunity for everyone to get some legs in them, get some minutes game time in a good game.

“Haiti is a similar-ranked team to us, we've watched a lot of them. We know some of their strengths and weaknesses.

“It's going to be a tough game in tough environment, climate-wise. So we'll use it to keep progressing our style of play.

“If I'm honest, we want to win the game,” says Bazeley.

Marko Stamenic says a big part of these friendly matches against Haiti and England are about getting minutes into the players legs ahead of the tournament.

“I think we've all had a long and hard season at our own clubs and we've had a little bit of a break now.

“So I think managing the minutes, making sure that everybody is up to pace and everybody is ready”

The All Whites v Haiti kicks off at 12:00pm NZT and can be streamed live and free on TVNZ+.

Article added: Wednesday 03 June 2026