Dr. Alida Shanks
She has a PhD from Massey University that focuses on the history of women’s football and how to take a holistic and practical approach to address gender equity and a sense of belonging in community sports organisations. Alida brings a unique perspective with her research expertise, experience in strategic planning and community engagement, and passionate advocacy for women in sport.
Email: alida.shanks@gmail.com
New Zealand’s appearance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup drew international headlines through three unique and contemporary stories. However, all three were largely overlooked by local media. Instead, New Zealand media stuck to traditional coverage, with around two-thirds of published articles covering match reports, team news, or match analysis.
New Zealand’s place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup was only its third appearance, and its first in the sixteen years since 2010, having debuted in 1982. Qualification was aided by the expansion of the finals from 32 to 48 teams, which gave the Oceania Confederation its first guaranteed spot, plus a ‘half’ spot for a second team to contest. As the region’s dominant side, the All Whites, New Zealand’s men’s national team, were all but assured of that place.
New Zealand’s first match was against Iran, the first country in World Cup history to compete on the soil of a host nation, the United States (U.S.), with which it is actively at war. In the lead-up to the FIFA World Cup, the Iran-U.S. conflict was covered extensively by international media. There were a number of high-profile challenges such as several Iranian officials, including football federation president Mehdi Taj, were denied U.S. visas and entry, and the Iranian team was based in Mexico due to security and reception concerns, commuting to California and Washington on match days. Analysts noted that the ongoing hostilities and failing ceasefires made FIFA’s ‘football unites the world’ slogan questionable.
Coverage by New Zealand media was limited, with most published stories running copy directly from Agence France-Presse (AFP). There was one opinion piece published by The Post, and New Zealand Football’s own media release focused on “shutting out the noise”. One New Zealand media article covered “how the All Whites are preparing for World Cup chaos” and mentioned a list of potential issues, such as weather and risk of injury. However, there was no mention of Iran or any potential risk linked to playing Iran.
The second extraordinary and locally overlooked story was that of the sudden rise in social media popularity of New Zealand defender Tim Payne. Leading into the FIFA World Cup, Argentinian influencer Valen Scarsini identified Payne as the “least known” player competing at the World Cup. Payne had just over 4,700 Instagram followers on May 27th, 2026, which leapt to over one million followers in just two days. By June 6th, his followers had reached more than five million, approximately equivalent to the entire population of New Zealand.
Scarsini inspired the popularity boost for Payne by urging his millions of social media followers to “make Payne a World Cup hero” by flooding Payne’s social media with likes and comments. Even a viral Spanish-language song, “No Payne, no gain”, was launched by Argentinian football fans.
However, there were fewer than ten articles by local New Zealand media on Payne’s newfound fame. Of the over 400 reported media requests that Payne received, presumably only a small percentage came from his home country.
The third unique story to make headlines was that of New Zealand defender Tyler Bindon and his mother, Jenny Bindon, becoming the first mother-son duo to compete in respective World Cups. Tyler came on late in the second half of New Zealand’s first game against Iran, his debut at a World Cup. His mother, Jenny, played in two World Cups for New Zealand as a goalkeeper, in 2007 when Tyler was two years old, and again in 2011.
The news of this World Cup record first broke in international media and on social media on June 17th, the day after the game Tyler made his appearance. The story did not make headlines in New Zealand media until two days later.
One in four New Zealanders watched the FIFA World Cup, meaning the audience was not just die-hard football fans. In addition, the topics of the international stories linked to New Zealand’s appearance at the World Cup are all contemporary and show that with a global tournament like the World Cup, it is not just about football. New Zealand was involved in two firsts at a World Cup with the Iran-U.S. conflict and the Bindons’ appearances. Neither involved match statistics, yet both are important. The three stories showed how politics, fan culture, influencers, and digital media can shape attention around players and teams. However, the New Zealand media did not deviate from its game plan of reporting predominantly on the games themselves.
Play-by-play analysis and ‘player rankings’ might still have a place for some, but New Zealand media needs to recognize that newsworthy events during the FIFA World Cup are broader than the game itself. As we learned, “no Payne, no gain” – New Zealand media needs to change its game plan.
