A goal in each half earned Finland a 2-0 win against New Zealand’s All Whites in their FIFA Series fixture at Auckland’s Eden Park.
Joel Pohjanpalo opened the scoring for the visitors in the 25th minute, heading in from a corner at the far post after rising high above his marker, Francis de Vries.
Finland added a second goal in the 85th minute, when the New Zealand defence did not deal with a fast break, and Jaakko Oksanen steered the ball into the net from right in front.
New Zealand created goalscoring chances for Ben Waine, Tim Payne and Jesse Randall but could not convert them into goals.
Main photo: Tim Payne shows his disappointment after shooting narrowly wide.
The match drew a crowd of 17,603.
READ MORE: Finland exploit defensive lapses to beat All Whites 2-0 in FIFA Series >>>>
Watch the highlights
Result
Game played on Friday March 27, 2026
New Zealand 0
Finland 2 (Joel Pohjanpalo 25′, Jaakko Oksanen 85′)
Line-ups
New Zealand
1. Max Crocombe (Gk), 2. Tim Payne (24. Callan Elliot 64′), 3. Francis de Vries (15. James McGarry 44′), 4. Tyler Bindon, 16. Finn Surman, 11. Elijah Just (7. Logan Rogerson 79′), 19. Ben Old (25. Andre de Jong 80′), 20. Callum McCowatt (9. Jesse Randall 45′), 8. Marko Stamenic (captain) (6. Joe Bell 80′), 23. Ryan Thomas (10. Lachlan Bayliss 65′), 18. Ben Waine (17. Kosta Barbarouses 64′).
Subs not used: 12. Alex Paulsen (Gk), 22. Michael Woud, 21. Bill Tuiloma, 14. Alex Rufer.
Finland
23. Viljami Sinisalo (Gk), 3. Samuli Miettinen, 17. Nikolai Alho (2. Matti Peltola 80′), 21. Ville Koski (4. Tony Miettinen 45′), 6. Leo Walta, 10. Naatan Skyttä (22. Onni Valakari 59′), 11. Adam Markhiyev (24. Jaakko Oksanen 45′), 13. Juho Lähteenmäki (15. Ryan Mahuta 45′), 16. Anssi Suhonen (25. Doni Arifi 67′), 7. Oliver Antman (18. Topi Keskinen 67′), 20. Joel Pohjanpalo (captain) (26. Kasper Paananen 45′).
Subs not used: 1. Lukas Hradecky (Gk), 12. Jesse Joronen, 5. Miro Tenho, 8. Oiva Jukkola.
Officials
Referee: Casey Reibelt.
Assistant referees: Arvin Shanmuganathan, Ashley Beecham.
Fourth official: Jack Morgan.
Fixtures
Games to be played on Monday March 30, 2026
#Current FIFA world rankings
Cape Verde (#65) v Finland (#75)
Eden Park, Auckland, 4pm
New Zealand (#85) v Chile (#55)
Eden Park, Auckland, 7pm
General sale tickets are available through Ticketek.
This story was first published on March 28, 2026.