Iran vs New Zealand, Worldcup 2026 GROUP STAGE
Overview
Match Preview
Iran vs New Zealand — Worldcup at SoFi Stadium.
- Iran 3 games · 3 pts (2026/26)
- New Zealand 3 games · 1 pts (2026/26)
Match Details
- Referee Cesar Ramos
- Assistant 1 Alberto Morin (Mexico)
- Assistant 2 Marco Bisguerra (Mexico)
4 games this season
🟨 3.0/game
⚽ 10.5 goals/game
🟥 3 total
Standings
| # | Team | P | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mexico | 3 | 9 |
| 2 | South Africa | 3 | 4 |
| 3 | South Korea | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Czechia | 3 | 1 |
| 5 | Switzerland | 3 | 7 |
| 6 | Canada | 3 | 4 |
| 7 | Bosnia-Herzegovina | 3 | 4 |
| 8 | Qatar | 3 | 1 |
| 9 | Brazil | 3 | 7 |
| 10 | Morocco | 3 | 7 |
| 11 | Scotland | 3 | 3 |
| 12 | Haiti | 3 | 0 |
| 13 | United States | 3 | 6 |
| 14 | Australia | 3 | 4 |
| 15 | Paraguay | 3 | 4 |
| 16 | Turkey | 3 | 3 |
| 17 | Germany | 3 | 6 |
| 18 | Ivory Coast | 3 | 6 |
| 19 | Ecuador | 3 | 4 |
| 20 | Curaçao | 3 | 1 |
| 21 | Netherlands | 3 | 7 |
| 22 | Japan | 3 | 5 |
| 23 | Sweden | 3 | 4 |
| 24 | Tunisia | 3 | 0 |
| 25 | Belgium | 3 | 5 |
| 26 | Egypt | 3 | 5 |
| 27 | Iran | 3 | 3 |
| 28 | New Zealand | 3 | 1 |
| 29 | Spain | 3 | 7 |
| 30 | Cape Verde Islands | 3 | 3 |
| 31 | Uruguay | 3 | 2 |
| 32 | Saudi Arabia | 3 | 2 |
| 33 | France | 3 | 9 |
| 34 | Norway | 3 | 6 |
| 35 | Senegal | 3 | 3 |
| 36 | Iraq | 3 | 0 |
| 37 | Argentina | 3 | 9 |
| 38 | Austria | 3 | 4 |
| 39 | Algeria | 3 | 4 |
| 40 | Jordan | 3 | 0 |
| 41 | Colombia | 3 | 7 |
| 42 | Portugal | 3 | 5 |
| 43 | Congo DR | 3 | 4 |
| 44 | Uzbekistan | 3 | 0 |
| 45 | England | 3 | 7 |
| 46 | Croatia | 3 | 6 |
| 47 | Ghana | 3 | 4 |
| 48 | Panama | 3 | 0 |
Head-to-Head
Last 5 meetings
Recent Form
Season Stats
| Iran | New Zealand | |
|---|---|---|
| #27 | Position | #28 |
| 3 | Points | 1 |
| 3 | Played | 3 |
| 0 / 3 / 0 | W / D / L | 0 / 1 / 2 |
| 3 | Scored | 4 |
| 3 | Conceded | 10 |
| +0 | GD | -6 |
| 1.00 | PPG | 0.33 |
| 0% | Win % | 0% |
Key Stats
100%
Both Teams to Score
H2H (1 games)
H2H (1 games)
100%
Over 2.5 Goals
H2H history
H2H history
33%
Clean Sheets
Iran this season
Iran this season
0%
Clean Sheets
New Zealand this season
New Zealand this season
Iran are 27th (3 pts). New Zealand are 28th (1 pts).
Goal Timing (This Season)
Iran
0-15
1/2
16-30
–/–
31-45
1/–
46-60
–/1
61-75
1/–
76+
–/–
■ Scored ■ Conceded
New Zealand
0-15
2/–
16-30
–/1
31-45
–/1
46-60
1/2
61-75
–/3
76+
1/3
■ Scored ■ Conceded
Top Scorers (This Season)
Iran
| Ramin Rezaeian | 2 G | 1 A |
New Zealand
| Elijah Just | 3 G |
Events
Match Events
- 0' The ball is rolling at SoFi Stadium. Iran are looking to make home advantage count against New Zealand.
- 5' It is a cagey affair so far. Iran in their 4-4-2 trying to find a way past New Zealand's compact 4-2-3-1.
- 7' Assisted by Chris Wood with the perfectly-timed delivery and Elijah Just makes no mistake. 0-1!
- 12' New Zealand fans have not had much to celebrate tonight. Their side is struggling to get forward.
- 17' Saeid Ezatolahi has been relatively quiet despite scoring 0 goals in his last 379 appearances.
- 22' Spectators do not have much to choose from both teams. The sides had several scoring chances but they still need a bit more than just a sight of a goal.
- 27' It looks surprising New Zealand does not make any changes. Ariya Yousefi has some obvious troubles when approaching to the goal.
- 32' GOAL! Ramin Rezaeian scores on 32. Assisted by Shahriar Moghanlou
- 37' Iran have won 9 goals from 10 games. They will be desperate to add to that tally today.
- 42' Saman Ghoddos, a Iran , has 0 bookings this season and will need to keep his discipline tonight.
- 46' Fresh legs for Iran! Medhi Ghayedi comes on to replace Ariya Yousefi.
- 51' New Zealand looks like a favorite considering 0 games won in last 1 matches with its main striker Elijah Just scoring 2 goals.
- 53' Ali Alipour has so much to prove this time. He replaces Shahriar Moghanlou on 53 minute.
- 54' A stunning finish from Elijah Just — that came from absolutely nowhere!
- 55' Magnificent from Elijah Just! That is 3 goals in 293 appearances — and it could not have come at a better time.
- 60' A quiet spell here at SoFi Stadium. New Zealand seem content sitting deep and soaking up pressure.
- 64' A stunning finish from Mohammad Mohebi — that came from absolutely nowhere!
- 65' Iran ring the changes. Saman Ghoddos has done his job and it is now time for Ehsan Hajsafi to step up.
- 68' Another substitution for New Zealand to replace Callum McCowatt by Ryan Thomas on 68 minute.
- 73' Neither side is committing men forward. This has all the hallmarks of a tense, tactical contest.
- 77' Another change for New Zealand made on 77 minute. Tim Payne leaves to be changed by Callan Elliot.
- 80' Amir Hosseinzadeh gets the nod from Iran. He replaces Mehdi Taremi and will look to change the dynamic.
- 85' Supporters expect more eagerness from Ryan Thomas, as he is very good at scoring at SoFi Stadium with 0 goals in the last 0 games.
- 89' The referee calls foul for Ehsan Hajsafi. He receives a card.
- 90' New Zealand make a change. Sarpreet Singh trudges off to be replaced by Jesse Randall on 90 minutes.
- Game over. The scoreline of 2-2 tells the full story of an entertaining encounter.
Lineups
Iran Lineups
4-4-2Starting XI
- 1
- 4
- 5
- 19
- 23
- 6
-
17
Ariya Yousefi ↓ Medhi Ghayedi 46'
-
14
Saman Ghoddos ↓ Ehsan Hajsafi 65'
- 20
- 8
- 9
Bench
- 22
- 12
- 15
-
3
Ehsan Hajsafi ↑ 65'
- 2
- 25
- 13
-
10
Medhi Ghayedi ↑ 46'
- 21
- 26
- 16
-
11
Ali Alipour ↑ 53'
- 24
-
18
Amir Hosseinzadeh ↑ 80'
- 7
Coach
Amir Ghalenoei
New Zealand Lineups
4-2-3-1Starting XI
- 1
- 5
-
13
Liberato Cacace ↓ Ben Old 68'
-
2
Tim Payne ↓ Callan Elliot 77'
- 16
- 6
-
20
Callum McCowatt ↓ Ryan Thomas 68'
-
10
Sarpreet Singh ↓ Jesse Randall 90'
-
8
Marko Stamenic ↓ Tyler Bindon 90'
- 11
- 9
Bench
- 12
- 22
-
4
Tyler Bindon ↑ 90'
- 3
-
24
Callan Elliot ↑ 77'
- 15
- 26
-
19
Ben Old ↑ 68'
- 14
-
23
Ryan Thomas ↑ 68'
- 17
- 25
-
21
Jesse Randall ↑ 90'
- 18
Coach
Darren Bazeley
H2H
H2H Top Scorers
| Player | Goals |
|---|---|
| Elijah Just | 2 |
| Ramin Rezaeian | 1 |
| Mohammad Mohebi | 1 |
Head to Head
Iran Form
New Zealand Form
Predictions
Prediction accuracy
2 / 4
2.15
Iran xG
Expected Goals
Dixon-Coles · Bivariate Poisson · Neg. Binomial · Elo
1.36
New Zealand xG
I would bet for:
Over 2.5 goals 67% + Both teams to score 66%
Match Result
✗ WrongActual: Draw
Both Teams to Score
✓ Correct
Avg goals/match: 3.51
Actual: Yes — both scored
Over / Under Goals
✓ O/U 2.5| Line | Over | Under | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ± 0.5 | 96% |
|
4% |
| ± 1.5 | 86% |
|
14% |
| ± 2.5 | 67% |
|
33% |
| ± 3.5 | 46% |
|
54% |
| ± 4.5 | 28% |
|
72% |
Double Chance
Iran or Draw
74%
Draw or New Zealand
50%
Iran or New Zealand
76%
Half-Time Result
✗ WrongActual: Draw at HT
Correct Score
✓ In top 12
1 – 1
9.6%
2 – 1
9.1%
2 – 0
6.9%
3 – 1
6.4%
2 – 2
Actual
1 – 0
5.9%
1 – 2
5.8%
3 – 0
4.8%
3 – 2
4.4%
0 – 0
4.4%
4 – 1
3.5%
0 – 1
3.5%
Asian Handicap — Iran
| Handicap | Iran covers | Push | New Zealand covers |
|---|---|---|---|
| -2.5 | 17% | — | 83% |
| -2 | 17% | 16% | 67% |
| -1.5 | 33% | — | 67% |
| -1 | 33% | 21% | 46% |
| -0.5 | 54% | — | 46% |
| +0.5 | 77% | — | 23% |
| +1 | 77% | 13% | 10% |
| +1.5 | 90% | — | 10% |
| +2 | 90% | 7% | 4% |
| +2.5 | 96% | — | 4% |
Clean Sheet
Iran keeps clean sheet
26%
✓
New Zealand keeps clean sheet
13%
✓
Predictions are statistical estimates based on season form, H2H history, and a Poisson model. Not financial advice.