# Australia–New Zealand soccer rivalry

The Australia–New Zealand soccer rivalry is a sports rivalry that exists between the Australian men's/women's vs. New Zealand men's/women's national teams. It forms a part of a wider Trans-Tasman rivalry between the geographical neighbours of Australia and New Zealand in a range of sports including cricket, rugby league, rugby union and netball. Due to the countries' similar histories, language, and cultural and sporting interests, this wider rivalry is frequently referred to in the press as analogous to a sibling rivalry, although some fans, especially in New Zealand, reject this analogy as condescending.
The rivalry was more intense when Australia and New Zealand were both members of the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) and regularly contested finals of the OFC Nations Cup and for top position in OFC World Cup Qualification campaigns. The rivalry has since been less frequent since Australia left the OFC to join the more competitive Asian Football Confederation (AFC) in 2006. In 2022, Football Australia and New Zealand Football planned a home and away series, to mark the 100th anniversary of the first meeting between the two nations, which was first played in Dunedin back in 1922. Australia has the better record overall in both the men's and women's fixtures.

## History
### Men's

Both Australia and New Zealand's first official internationals were played against each other during the Australian 1922 tour of New Zealand. They played three matches at Carisbrook in Dunedin, Athletic Park in Wellington, and Auckland Domain. The results were two 3–1 wins to New Zealand and a 1–1 draw in Wellington. New Zealand would go on to win four of the first six matches with Australia picking up one win in the first game between the teams in Australia. From 1923 to 1954, the sides played for the "Soccer Ashes" trophy, a razor case carried by a former Private serving in the Gallipoli campaign, containing the ashes of cigars smoked by the teams' captains, Alex Gibb and George Campbell, after the sides first international series in 1923.
Australia and New Zealand would become regular opponents in exhibition matches for the next 36 years, with the trans-Tasman neighbours playing each other on 21 occasions in seven test series during that time period. This included Australia's largest victory over their rivals with a 10–0 win in 1936 at the Basin Reserve in Wellington.
By 2015, New Zealand had only won 13 games out of the 64 times the two teams met.
In 2022, the 'Soccer Ashes' were found in storage, having been lost for nearly seventy years. The teams subsequently announced that they would play a friendly for the Soccer Ashes in England in October 2023.

### Women's

The Australian Women's Soccer Association (AWSA) was founded in 1974 while a New Zealand women's national team was formed the year after when they were invited to take part in the 1975 Asian Ladies’ Football Confederation Cup in Hong Kong. (Later recognised as the first Asian Cup). While the two teams would meet at the tournament, with New Zealand beating their Australian rivals 3–2,$^{:28}$ it wasn't considered the first official meeting between the countries due to the Australian side being a composite of players largely from the St. George-Budapest Club in Sydney.$^{:27}$ This changed in 2022 when Football Australia recognised the former players as official national team members.
What was considered the first official international match between the women's teams until the change in 2022, was on 6 October 1979 when New Zealand travelled to Australia for a three-match series. The game, played at Seymour Shaw Park, ended in a 2–2 draw. This was followed by a second match at the same venue with New Zealand winning 1–0 before the teams moved to Perry Park in Brisbane for the third game with Australia picking up their first win 1–0 ending the series in a draw.

### Governing bodies

The New Zealand Football Association would become officially affiliated with FIFA in 1948, with the Australian Soccer Football Association given FIFA provisional membership in November 1954 and confirmed in June 1956. Both associations, along with Fiji and Papua New Guinea would go on to become the founding members of the Oceania Football Confederation in 1966.

## Men's matches

    As of 18 October 2023
Australia and New Zealand have played 66 official matches. Australia have the better record overall in the fixture, with 42 wins to New Zealand's 13. There have been 11 draws, only two of them goalless. Australia have scored 158 goals to 70 by New Zealand. The record margin of victory in the fixture was Australia's 10–0 win in 1936, while New Zealand's biggest victory was 4–1 in 1923.
* Australia wins
* New Zealand wins
* Draws
| No. | Competition | Date | Home Team | Result | Away Team | Home scorers | Away scorers | Venue | Attendance |
| 1 | Soccer Ashes | 17 June 1922 | New Zealand | 3–1 | Australia | Cook (20, ?), Knott (?) | Maunder | Carisbrook, Dunedin | 8,000 |
| 2 | Soccer Ashes | 24 June 1922 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia | Cook (10) | Bratton (25) | Athletic Park, Wellington | 12,000 |
| 3 | Soccer Ashes | 8 July 1922 | New Zealand | 3–1 | Australia | Ballard (5), Cook (10), Dacre (?) | Brown (?) | Domain Park, Auckland | 15,000 |
| 4 | Soccer Ashes | 9 June 1923 | Australia | 2–1 | New Zealand | Lennard (7), Maunder (90) | Dacre (57) | Brisbane Cricket Ground, Brisbane | 7,000 |
| 5 | Soccer Ashes | 16 June 1923 | Australia | 2–3 | New Zealand | Lennard (?), Gilmore (?) | Campbell (?, ?, ?) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 12,000 |
| 6 | Soccer Ashes | 30 June 1923 | Australia | 1–4 | New Zealand | Maunder (?) | Campbell (46, 51, ?, ?) | Newcastle Showground, Newcastle | 14,000 |
| 7 | Soccer Ashes | 5 June 1933 | Australia | 4–2 | New Zealand | Smith (20, ?), Gorring (80, ?) | Kershaw (55), Chapman (?) | Brisbane Exhibition Ground, Brisbane | 5,000 |
| 8 | Soccer Ashes | 17 June 1933 | Australia | 6–4 | New Zealand | Smith (?, ?, ?), Crowhurst (?), Cameron (?), Hughes (?) | Kershaw (?), Ives (?), Kay (?), Chapman (?) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 5,000 |
| 9 | Soccer Ashes | 24 June 1933 | Australia | 4–2 | New Zealand | Edwards (?), Crowhurst (?), Smith (?, ?) | Kershaw (?, ?) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | — |
| 10 | Soccer Ashes | 4 July 1936 | New Zealand | 1–7 | Australia | Jack Skinner (?) | Cameron (?, ?), Smith (?, ?, ?, ?), Price (?) | Logan Park, Dunedin | 8,000 |
| 11 | Soccer Ashes | 11 July 1936 | New Zealand | 0–10 | Australia | | Smith (5, 32, 53, ?, ?), Price (9), Cameron (28), (48), Donaldson (?) | Basin Reserve, Wellington | 8,000 |
| 12 | Soccer Ashes | 18 July 1936 | New Zealand | 1–4 | Australia | Hagett (?) | Cameron (?, ?), Price (?, ?) | Blandford Park, Auckland | 2,000 |
| 13 | Soccer Ashes | 18 July 1948 | New Zealand | 0–6 | Australia | | Frank Parsons (?, ?, ?), Cunningham (?), Hughes (?, ?) | Basin Reserve, Wellington | — |
| 14 | Soccer Ashes | 28 August 1948 | New Zealand | 0–7 | Australia | | Parsons (?, ?, ?), Hughes (?, ?), Johns (?, ?), Cunningham (?) | Lancaster Park, Christchurch | — |
| 15 | Soccer Ashes | 4 September 1948 | New Zealand | 0–4 | Australia | | Hughes (?), Johns (?, ?), Lawrie (?) | Basin Reserve, Wellington | — |
| 16 | Soccer Ashes | 11 September 1948 | New Zealand | 1–8 | Australia | Arthur Masters (?) | Parsons (6, ?, ?, ?, ?, ?), Cunningham (?), Hughes (?) | Blandford Park, Auckland | 7,000 |
| 17 | Soccer Ashes | 14 August 1954 | Australia | 1–2 | New Zealand | Robertson (75) | King (5), Steele (7) | Melbourne Showground, Melbourne | — |
| 18 | Soccer Ashes | 28 August 1954 | Australia | 4–1 | New Zealand | Robertson (20), Lennard (?), Stewart (?), (?) | Smith (?) | Brisbane Cricket Ground, Brisbane | 7,000 |
| 19 | Soccer Ashes | 4 September 1954 | Australia | 4–1 | New Zealand | Nunn (?, ?), Murphy (?), Stewart (?) | Steele Jr. (?) | Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney | 5,798 |
| 20 | Friendly | 16 August 1958 | New Zealand | 2–3 | Australia | Aird (30), Hume (80) | Nunn (14, 44), Adair (70) | Basin Reserve, Wellington | 6,000 |
| 21 | Friendly | 23 August 1958 | New Zealand | 2–2 | Australia | Steele Jnr (11, 46) | Aird (41 og), Vogler (?) | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 8,500 |
| 22 | 1967 South Vietnam Independence Cup | 5 November 1967 | Australia | 5–3 | New Zealand | Baartz (7), Warren (13), Attila Abonyi (51, 75, 84) | Ray Mears (18), Van Alphen (42 og), Westwater (63 og) | Cong Hoa Stadium, Saigon | 20,000 |
| 23 | Friendly | 9 October 1972 | Australia | 3–1 | New Zealand | Abonyi (26), Baartz (54), Warren (76) | Vest (7) | Senayan Stadium, Jakarta | 7,000 |
| 24 | 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification | 4 March 1973 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia | Turner (57) | Campbell (83) | Newmarket Park, Auckland | 12,000 |
| 25 | 1974 FIFA World Cup qualification | 16 March 1973 | Australia | 3–3 | New Zealand | Utjesenovic (11), Baartz (17), Buljevic (26) | Vest (10), Tindall (49), Hogg (89 og) | Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney | 11,000 |
| 26 | Friendly | 29 February 1976 | New Zealand | 0–1 | Australia | | Harding (78) | Newmarket Park, Auckland | 10,000 |
| 27 | Friendly | 2 March 1976 | Australia | 3–1 | New Zealand | Barnes (7), Ollerton (14), Abonyi (70) | Taylor (74) | Olympic Park, Melbourne | 6,000 |
| 28 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | 27 March 1977 | Australia | 3–1 | New Zealand | Ollerton (60, 80), Kosmina (72), | Nelson (4) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 12,250 |
| 29 | 1978 FIFA World Cup qualification | 30 March 1977 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia | Nelson (34) | Ollerton (18) | Newmarket Park, Auckland | 12,000 |
| 30 | Friendly | 13 June 1979 | New Zealand | 1–0 | Australia | Ormond (58) | | Newmarket Park, Auckland | 4,000 |
| 31 | 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification | 25 April 1981 | New Zealand | 3–3 | Australia | Turner (24), Wooddin (34), Sumner (80) | Krncevic (15), (42), Boden (31) | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 15,000 |
| 32 | 1982 FIFA World Cup qualification | 16 May 1981 | Australia | 0–2 | New Zealand | | Woodin (30), Turner (83) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 15,000 |
| 33 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 22 February 1983 | New Zealand | 2–1 | Australia | Cresswell (47), Herbert (89) | Kosmina (36) | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 3,000 |
| 34 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 27 February 1983 | Australia | 0–2 | New Zealand | | Cole (66), Adam (73) | Olympic Park, Melbourne | 14,000 |
| 35 | 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification | 21 September 1985 | New Zealand | 0–0 | Australia | | | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 14,826 |
| 36 | 1986 FIFA World Cup qualification | 3 November 1985 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand | Kosmina (12), Mitchell (48) | | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 21,910 |
| 37 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 25 October 1986 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia | Deeley (60) | Arnold (52) | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 3,156 |
| 38 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 2 November 1986 | Australia | 2–1 | New Zealand | Arnold (29), Zinni (74) | Deeley (85) | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 1,986 |
| 39 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 2 September 1987 | Australia | 1–1 | New Zealand | Zinni (69) | Ironside (83) | Olympic Park, Melbourne | 5,000 |
| 40 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 9 September 1987 | New Zealand | 1–0 | Australia | De Jong (19) | | Hutt Recreation Ground, Wellington | 5,000 |
| 41 | 1988 Summer Olympics qualification | 13 March 1988 | Australia | 3–1 | New Zealand | Patikas (?), Farina (?), Crino (?) | McGarry (?) | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | — |
| 42 | 1988 Summer Olympics qualification | 23 March 1988 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia | Farina (?) | McGarry (?) | Athletic Park, Wellington | — |
| 43 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 12 October 1988 | New Zealand | 1–2 | Australia | Ironside (78) | Crino (65), Ollerenshaw (75) | Caledonian Ground, Dunedin | 3,000 |
| 44 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 16 October 1988 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand | Spink (42, 68) | | Queen Elizabeth Oval, Bendigo | 3,000 |
| 45 | 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification | 12 March 1989 | Australia | 4–1 | New Zealand | Crino (16), Arnold (42, 56), Yankos (78) | Dunford (70) | Sydney Football Stadium, Sydney | 13,621 |
| 46 | 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification | 2 April 1989 | New Zealand | 2–0 | Australia | Dunford (19), Wright (78) | | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 8,500 |
| 47 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 12 May 1991 | New Zealand | 0–1 | Australia | | Milosevic (44) | QEII Stadium, Christchurch | 7,500 |
| 48 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 15 May 1991 | Australia | 2–1 | New Zealand | Vidmar (46), Peterson (49) | Roberts (79) | Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide | 5,000 |
| 49 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification | 30 May 1993 | New Zealand | 0–1 | Australia | | Arnold (59) | Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland | 12,000 |
| 50 | 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification | 6 June 1993 | Australia | 3–0 | New Zealand | Veart (1), Vidmar (3), Zelic (49) | | Olympic Park, Melbourne | 9,445 |
| 51 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 10 November 1995 | New Zealand | 0–0 | Australia | | | QEII Stadium, Christchurch | 5,000 |
| 52 | Trans-Tasman Cup | 15 November 1995 | Australia | 3–0 | New Zealand | Mori (32), Wade (45), Spiteri (50) | | Breakers Stadium, Newcastle | 8,858 |
| 53 | 1997 Optus World Series | 18 January 1997 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand | Bingley (24) | | Lakeside Stadium, Melbourne | 10,494 |
| 54 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification | 28 June 1997 | New Zealand | 0–3 | Australia | | Aloisi (19), Vidmar (42), Foster (66) | North Harbour Stadium, Auckland | 20,000 |
| 55 | 1998 FIFA World Cup qualification | 6 July 1997 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand | Zelic (6), Arnold (54) | | Parramatta Stadium, Sydney | 14,054 |
| 56 | 1998 OFC Nations Cup | 4 October 1998 | Australia | 0–1 | New Zealand | | Burton (24) | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | 12,000 |
| 57 | 2000 OFC Nations Cup | 28 June 2000 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand | Murphy (40), Foster (66) | | Stade de Pater, Papeete | 4,250 |
| 58 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification | 20 June 2001 | New Zealand | 0–2 | Australia | | Emerton (5, 80) | Westpac Trust Stadium, Wellington | 19,500 |
| 59 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification | 24 June 2001 | Australia | 4–1 | New Zealand | Zdrilic (5, 82), Emerton (40), Aloisi (56) | Coveny (44) | Stadium Australia, Sydney | 41,976 |
| 60 | 2002 OFC Nations Cup | 14 July 2002 | New Zealand | 1–0 | Australia | Nelsen (78) | | Ericsson Stadium, Auckland | 6,000 |
| 61 | 2004 OFC Nations Cup | 29 May 2004 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand | Bresciano (40) | | Hindmarsh Stadium, Adelaide | 12,100 |
| 62 | Friendly | 9 June 2005 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand | Colosimo (86) | | Craven Cottage, London | 9,023 |
| 63 | Friendly | 24 May 2010 | Australia | 2–1 | New Zealand | Vidošić (57), Holman (90) | Killen (16) | Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne | 55,659 |
| 64 | Friendly | 5 June 2011 | Australia | 3–0 | New Zealand | Kennedy (9, 59), Troisi (90) | | Adelaide Oval, Adelaide | 21,281 |
| 65 | Friendly | 22 September 2022 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand | Mabil (32) | | Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane | 25,392 |
| 66 | Friendly | 25 September 2022 | New Zealand | 0–2 | Australia | | Duke (54), Cummings (80) | Eden Park, Auckland | 34,985 |
| 67 | Soccer Ashes | 18 October 2023 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand | Souttar (13), Irvine (76) | | Gtech Community Stadium, Brentford | 5,761 |

### Other categories
#### U23/Olympic matches

| No. | Competition | Date | Home Team | Result | Away Team |
| 1 | 1991 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 22 May 1991 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand |
| 2 | 1991 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 13 November 1991 | New Zealand | 1–2 | Australia |
| 3 | 1996 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 21 January 1996 | New Zealand | 0–5 | Australia |
| 4 | 1996 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 13 November 1991 | Australia | 0–1 | New Zealand |
| 5 | Friendly | 13 June 1998 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand |
| 6 | Friendly | 17 June 1998 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand |
| 7 | Friendly | 20 June 1998 | Australia | 4–0 | New Zealand |
| 8 | Friendly | 30 June 1998 | New Zealand | 0–2 | Australia |
| 9 | Friendly | 3 July 1998 | New Zealand | 0–3 | Australia |
| 10 | 2004 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 26 January 2004 | Australia | 2–0 | New Zealand |
| 11 | 2004 OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 30 January 2004 | New Zealand | 1–1 | Australia |
| 12 | Friendly | 12 July 2008 | Australia | 2–3 | New Zealand |
| 13 | Friendly | 6 September 2019 | Australia | 1–1 | New Zealand |
| 14 | Friendly | 9 September 2019 | Australia | 1–1 | New Zealand |
| 15 | Friendly | 12 July 2021 | Australia | 0–2 | New Zealand |
| 16 | Friendly | 15 July 2021 | Australia | 1–0 | New Zealand |

## Women's matches

    As of 5 June 2011
Australia and New Zealand have played 53 official matches. Australia have the better record overall in the fixture, with 35 wins to New Zealand's 10. There have been 8 draws, only two of them goalless. Australia have scored 95 goals to 43 by New Zealand. The record margin of victory in the fixture was Australia's 6–0 win in 2007, while New Zealand's biggest victory is 3–0, done twice in 1984 and 1991.
* Australia wins
* New Zealand wins
* Draws
| Competition | Date | Home Team | Result | Away Team | Goals (home) | Goals (away) | Venue | Attendance |

## Overall summary

    As of 17 September 2023
| Australia | Australia | Drawns | New Zealand | New Zealand |
| Wins | 43 | 11 | 13 | Wins |
| Goals | 160 | — | 70 | Goals |
| WPCT | 64.18% | 16,42% | 19.40% | WPCT |
| Under-20 |||||
| Wins | 16 | 0 | 5 | Wins |
| Goals | 51 | — | 26 | Goals |
| Under-17 |||||
| Wins | 9 | 1 | 2 | Wins |
| Goals | 27 | — | 7 | Goals |
| Under-23 / Olympic |||||
| Wins | 11 | 3 | 2 | Wins |
| Goals | 30 | — | 9 | Goals |

### Major official titles comparison

| Senior titles | | |
| FIFA World Cup | 0 | 0 |
| FIFA Confederations Cup | 0 | 0 |
| OFC Men's Nations Cup | 4 | 6 |
| AFC Asian Cup | 1 | — |
| AFC–OFC Challenge Cup | 0 | 0 |
| Soccer Ashes | 5 | 2 |
| Trans-Tasman Cup | 4 | 2 |
| Total senior titles | 14 | 10 |
| Youth titles | | |
| Summer Olympics | 0 | 0 |
| Pacific Games | 0 | 1 |
| OFC Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournament | 4 | 5 |
| FIFA U-20 World Cup | 0 | 0 |
| FIFA U-17 World Cup | 0 | 0 |
| OFC U-19 Men's Championship | 12 | 9 |
| OFC U-16 Men's Championship | 10 | 10 |
| OFC U-16 Pacific Cup | 1 | 0 |
| Total youth titles | 29 | 25 |
| Grand total | 43 | 35 |
    As of 17 September 2023
| Men's Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| Australia | 67 | 43 | 11 | 13 | 160 | 70 | +90 |
| New Zealand | 67 | 13 | 11 | 43 | 70 | 160 | –90 |
    As of 12 April 2022
| Women's Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| Australia | 53 | 35 | 8 | 10 | 95 | 43 | +52 |
| New Zealand | 53 | 10 | 8 | 35 | 43 | 95 | –52 |

## Top scorers

    As of 5 June 2011
Players in bold are still available for selection.
| Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
| 1 | George Smith | Australia | 16 |
| 2 | Frank Parsons | Australia | 12 |
| 3 | George Campbell | New Zealand | 7 |
| 4 | Alec Cameron | Australia | 6 |
| 4 | Billy Price | Australia | 6 |
| 4 | Ron Hughes | Australia | 6 |
| 4 | Graham Arnold | Australia | 6 |
| 8 | Attila Abonyi | Australia | 5 |
| 9 | Ted Cook | New Zealand | 4 |
| 9 | Jim Kershaw | New Zealand | 4 |
| 9 | Charlie Steele, Jr. | New Zealand | 4 |
| 9 | Peter Ollerton | Australia | 4 |