New Zealand Football
| OFC | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1891 |
| FIFA affiliation | 1948 |
| OFC affiliation | 1966 |
| President | Deryck Shaw |
| Website | nzfootball.co.nz |
New Zealand Football is the governing body for the sport of association football in New Zealand. It oversees the seven New Zealand Football federations, as well as the New Zealand national football team (nicknamed the "All Whites"), the national junior and women's teams (nicknamed the "Football Ferns"), the men's and women's National League (the men's league is known as the Stirling Sports Premiership, with a number of tournaments, including the Chatham Cup. The Stirling Sports Premiership is played in the New Zealand summer between eight teams. A New Zealand team, Wellington Phoenix FC, play in the Australian A-League.
It was founded in 1891, as New Zealand Soccer Association and became officially affiliated with FIFA in 1948. In May 2007, the organisation was renamed New Zealand Football (NZF), replacing the word "soccer" with "football" in line with the common usage in most of the world outside North America.
In September 2007, the New Zealand female football teams were re-branded. The women's national team changed its name from "SWANZ" to "Football Ferns", the female under-20 team to the "Junior Football Ferns" and the under-17 team became the "Young Football Ferns"
In the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, New Zealand achieved their best result in their team's history when they had a 1–1 draw with reigning World champions Italy. Shane Smeltz scored in the 7th minute marking the first time New Zealand had ever led a match at the World Cup. They went on to become the only unbeaten team in the tournament.
In January 2013, members of the FIFA Executive Committee met in a private meeting convened by Joseph Blatter to discuss the possibilities of moving the New Zealand Football Federation for the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) in order to enhance the sport in the country. After the meeting, Blatter said the idea was "ratified" but needed some adjustments. This fact provided the New Zealand success in the idea of movement, requiring only a formal request by the association.
...
Wikipedia