The greatest soccer players from New Zealand of all times

Nowadays, this sport is enjoyed in all shapes: youngsters start football teams, older people attend matches on stadiums, and millions of Kiwis choose the best online betting sites in New Zealand to wager on their favourite teams and players.

Even though NZ doesn’t occupy the leading positions in top football leagues and its players haven’t won the Golden Ball yet, the country has lots of soccer players to be proud of. And we will eagerly tell you about them.

Wynton Rufer

Rufer is probably the greatest and the most known footballer from New Zealand. He is the author of the record 224 goals in over 500 matches both in NZ and worldwide. In 1982, his goal helped the country to qualify for the World Cup defeating China. Wynton has played at Werder Bremen and has proved to be one of the most effective strikers. He won the German League, two German Cups, and scored the winning goal in the UEFA Cup Winners final (1992).

In 1999, Rufer was awarded the title Oceania Footballer of the Century. At the same time, he returned to New Zealand to lead the Football Kingz club and manage the Australian National Soccer League.

Shane Edward Smeltz

Born in September 1981, Shane Smeltz became one of the most prominent footballers from New Zealand. He was a striker at Gold Coast United in the Queensland National Premier League.

At the beginning of the career, Smeltz played in Australia but then moved to England for three seasons. From 2007, he has played in the A-league with only two small distractions on seasons in Malaysia and Turkey. Smeltz appeared in 58 international matches for New Zealand and has scored 24 goals. He also played in the FIFA World Cup in 2010.

Thomas Jefferson Smith

Smith is a professional football player born in March 1990. He is a defender at Colchester United (League Two) and a member of the New Zealand national team. Thomas graduated from the Ipswich Town Academy and can play both: left back and centre back. Before Colchester United, Smith has spent 11 years playing for Ipswich and 2 years – for Colorado Rapids.

Ryan William Nelsen

Nelsen is an experienced footballer and the former coach at Toronto FC. At the beginning of his career in 1995, Ryan Nelsen has played as a defender for Christchurch United. He also captained the NZ national team.

In 2001 he joined DC United and played 81 games in total (7 goals). In 2005 he moved to the UK and played for Blackburn Rovers. Afterwards, he has played for Tottenham Hotspur and Queens Park Rangers. In 2013-2014 Ryan was a head coach at Toronto FC.

Christopher Grant Wood

Wood can be easily considered one of the greatest NZ soccer players even though he is rather young. At the moment, he is not only a striker at Burnley (English Premier League) but also a vice-captain of the NZ national football team.

Christopher was born in Auckland and has started his senior career with Hamilton Wanderers and Cambridge FC before moving to the UK and playing for West Bromwich Albion. He was on loan at six clubs before joining Leicester City (2015). In 2016-2017 Wood became a top scorer at Leeds United.

He has played for the NZ national team 57 times and scored 24 goals. He participated in the FIFA World CUP in 2010 and was one of the players to win the 2016 OFC Nations Cup.

Michael Ryan McGlinchey

McGlinchey, born in January 1987, is an international footballer from NZ who is currently playing for Queen’s Park in League Two (Scotland). He has made his professional debut at Scottish Celtic and then joined the Central Coast Mariners (with 100 appearances in total). Michael had appearances in Vegalta Sendai, Wellington Phoenix, and Motherwell. He was also one of the players at the 2012 Summer Olympics.