New Zealand Football has announced the All Whites will travel to Japan this October to take part in the Kirin Cup 2026.  

New Zealand will join Ecuador (FIFA rank 25), hosts Japan (FIFA rank 17), and Panama (FIFA rank 44) for the tournament held in Yokohama and Tokyo.  

On Thursday 1 October, the All Whites will face Panama (Match 1) at Yokohama International Stadium, followed by Japan playing Ecuador (Match 2) at the same venue.  

On Monday 5 October, at Tokyo’s National Stadium, the winner of Match 1 will face the winner of Match 2 for the tournament crown, while the two losing sides will meet in the third-place play-off.  

Kick-off times for the tournament will be confirmed in due course.  

All four teams involved in the Kirin Cup 2026 participated in the FIFA World Cup 2026.  

The Kirin Cup is an invitational football tournament run by the Japanese Football Association since 1978, with Tunisia claiming the title at the last edition in 2022.

“This tournament gives us a great opportunity to continue to challenge ourselves against strong highly ranked sides that all competed at the FIFA World Cup, also the competitive tournament style competition is exactly the kind of games that we want to experience more often as a group,” says All Whites head coach Darren Bazeley. 

“The combination of these competitive games, plus the home matches in Auckland and Christchurch, are a great way to wrap up the year and I know the players are all really looking forward to getting back together again for the first time since the FIFA World Cup.”

Following the tournament in the October FIFA international window, the All Whites’ next games will see the team return home to Aotearoa to face India over two matches: at Go Media Stadium in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland on 12 November and One New Zealand Stadium in Ōtautahi Christchurch on 15 November.

Tickets for the homecoming games, starting from $10 for children and $20 for adults plus ticketing fees, can be booked from Ticketek.co.nz.

Article added: Friday 07 August 2026