2026 World Cup friendly report, result, goals as Harry Kane tackles ‘good practice’ in international friendly.
Harry Kane’s 67th goal in club and international matches since the start of last season gave England victory over New Zealand in an international friendly in Tampa at the Raymond James Stadium.
Captain Kane reached 79 goals for England and moved 26 clear of Wayne Rooney as his country’s all-time top scorer with a curling header from Djed Spence’s left-footed header in first-half extra time.
IT HAS TO BE HIM 🔥
“And finally England’s American adventure begins, and it begins with Harry Kane’s goal”
England will go into the break against the All Whites 1️⃣-0️⃣ pic.twitter.com/b7jPSmPdXa
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 6, 2026
Dan Burn hit the post just after half-time, one of 11 England substitutes.
Liverpool’s striker Rio Ngumoha also entered at the age of 17, becoming the youngest Three Lions player since Jude Bellingham, who made his debut aged 155 in November 2020.
England vs New Zealand analysis: Tuchel ‘sees the big picture’
Concerns about the quality of the field that awaited England proved unfounded on the NFL field, where New Zealand endured more than their form as the 75th-ranked team in the world might suggest.
Millwall goalkeeper Max Crocombe turned Kane’s drive away early on, while Nottingham Forest striker Chris Wood had a quiet performance.
Former England left-back Stephen Warnock has suggested manager Thomas Tuchel “isn’t getting points in terms of the scoreline” against rivals Haiti who were beaten 4-0 in a friendly on Wednesday.
Harry Kane gets his first shot on target for England against the All Whites but Max Crocombe saves it 🥅
How many more will he get?
Watch the match LIVE on ITV1 📺 pic.twitter.com/uczZVo6V5S
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 6, 2026
“It’s not a game many would have wanted,” Warnock told BBC Radio 5 Live. “What he wants to see is that this England team is developing and understanding what he is asking them to do.
“He won’t care about how it goes, like everyone else – he’ll just think ‘as long as I prepare my team and we win that first game and get out of the group’.
“That’s all he worries about. He sees the big picture.”
Harry Kane: England vs New Zealand goal ‘looked easy’
The former captain of the Republic of Ireland, Roy Keane, praised Kane. “He’s in the form of his life, he’s in good form and he makes it look really easy,” Keane told ITV Football about the goal.
“There is a lot of speed on the ball and he is a great striker who gets into the right place, who just needs to point it in the corner. How many times do we say it about Kane? He is a man.
“It’s been a great workout for England – they’ve had a few tests, they’ve had to do a little bit of running and there’s a lot of intensity coming up. It’s been a great workout for them.”
Rio Ngumoha is out here harassing defenders 😬 pic.twitter.com/IbGmbStru8
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) June 6, 2026
World Cup 2026: England, New Zealand schedules
England next face Costa Rica in a friendly in Orlando on Wednesday (21:00 BST). Here’s how Tuchel’s team and New Zealand look at the first games of the final.
| The team | The day | They don’t oppose | Start of BST | ET | PT |
| New Zealand | June 15 | Iran | 02:00 (June 16) | 21:00 | 18:00 |
| In England | June 17 | Croatia | 21:00 | 16:00 | 13:00 |
England vs New Zealand team
England made seven changes from their 1-0 defeat at home to Japan in a friendly on March 31, with Jordan Pickford, Marc Guehi, Kobbie Mainoo and Morgan Rogers retaining their places.
John Stones, Jarell Quansah, Djed Spence, Jordan Henderson, Marcus Rashford, Ollie Watkins and Harry Kane entered.
Centre-back Stones missed most of his last season at Manchester City with problems, including a calf injury that kept the 32-year-old sidelined until mid-April.
Midfielder Declan Rice and strikers Bukayo Saka, Eberechi Eze and Noni Madueke have been rested after playing a part in Arsenal’s Champions League final defeat by Paris Saint-Germain last Saturday.
Right-back Ben White was called up by England in March and made his debut against Japan but will miss the final with a serious knee injury.
Training team members Alex Scott, Ngumoha, Josh King, Jason Steele and Ethan Nwaneri are not eligible to play in the World Cup but were hoping to play in England.
In England starting XI: Jordan Pickford, John Stones, Marc Guehi, Jarell Quansah, Djed Spence, Jordan Henderson, Kobbie Mainoo, Morgan Rogers, Marcus Rashford, Ollie Watkins, Harry Kane
In England instead of: Dean Henderson, James Trafford, Ezri Konsa, Nico O’Reilly, Dan Burn, Tino Livramento, Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham, Anthony Gordon, Ivan Toney, Reece James, Alex Scott, Josh King, Ethan Nwaneri, Rio Ngumoha
2026 World Cup preparations: New Zealand to face England
Alex Paulsen, Tyler Bindon, Alex Rufer and Jesse Randall moved to the New Zealand bench, which brought in Crocombe, Joe Bell, Michael Boxall and Matthew Garbett.
Wood’s 45-goal record started again, coming back from a serious knee injury at Nottingham Forest in April and played 60 minutes against Haiti.
Right-back Tim Payne missed two months of the season with a broken collarbone and has had two minor problems since.
Sarpreet Singh suffered a serious knee injury in February but was deemed fit enough to join the squad, playing the first half against Haiti and starting here.
New Zealand starting XI: Max Crocombe, Tim Payne, Finn Surman, Michael Boxall, Liberato Cacace, Elijah Just, Joe Bell, Sarpreet Singh, Marko Stamenic, Matthew Garbett, Chris Wood
New Zealand instead of: Alex Paulsen, Francis de Vries, Tyler Bindon, Alex Rufer, Nando Pijnaker, Kosta Barbarouses, Ben Waine, Ben Old, Callum McCowatt, Jesse Randall, Michael Woud, Callan Elliot, Lachlan Bayliss, Tommy Smith
England vs New Zealand stats
- England have been without a win in their first three matches of a calendar year for the first time since 2004 (D2 L1)
- They have won each of their last 38 games against nations ranked 85th or lower in the rankings since losing 1-0 to Northern Ireland in September 2005.
- This was England’s first game in the US since a friendly against Ecuador and Honduras in June 2014 before the World Cup in Brazil, playing both games in a draw in Miami at Sun Life Stadium.
- The Three Lions’ only previous meetings with New Zealand came in the same week in June 1991, winning 1-0 in Auckland and 2-0 in Wellington.
- Kane has 11 goals in his last 11 games for England and 10 in 10 games against non-European countries.
- The loss was New Zealand’s ninth in their last 11 matches in all competitions (W1 D1)
- The All Whites had 14 of 13 shots against Haiti, although they posted an expected goals of 1.0 to their opponents’ 2.4
- Chris Wood scored nine goals for New Zealand in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, five more than any other player in the OFC confederation.
- Forest’s leading scorer of 2024/25 scored more goals with his header (6) than any other player managed during the Confederations campaign.
- New Zealand are winless in each of their last 17 matches against European opposition (D4 L13), dating back to a 1-0 win over Serbia in Klagenfurt in May 2010.
