Khaberni - Darren Beazley, coach of the New Zealand team, confirmed that his team was placed in a "good group" after the draw placed them beside Belgium, Egypt, and Iran in the 2026 World Cup, while the New Zealand media indicated that its history in the tournament is no different from "the Pharaohs".
The draw was held at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., and New Zealand was the last team revealed after more than two hours from the beginning of the ceremony.
The team, ranked 86th worldwide, will compete in Group Seven with Belgium ranked eighth, Iran ranked 20th, and Egypt ranked 34th, when the expanded tournament featuring 48 teams across the United States, Canada, and Mexico kicks off in June and July next year.
“The 'All Whites' coach said: A good group... tough, but it's nothing to be scared of, and I'm satisfied with the result. Now we know, now the work begins. It’s a good group, and there’s a lot of work to be done, but we can start planning properly now,” he added.
He added that falling into other potential groups could have led to a much harder path. “They are all good teams, but when you look at some of the other groups, it certainly could have been a tougher group for us.”
Former New Zealand coach Ricky Herbert described the draw as a "positive sign", saying: “It’s probably a good group to be in. Belgium will be very strong, but Iran and Egypt are there to be targeted by the players.”
The New Zealand "Stuff" newspaper believes that the chances of qualifying are very feasible because the Oceania team lost 3 matches in 1982 and drew as many in 2010, which is similar to what happened with Egypt which hasn’t won in 7 encounters yet, two draws and five losses.
"Stuff" added that Iran only has 3 wins out of 18 matches which makes winning against them possible, but Belgium is the toughest considering they are in the first tier and because of their history in the tournament.
