Sarpreet Singh will become the first player of Indian heritage to appear at a FIFA World Cup since Vikash Dhorasoo represented France in 2006. Nearly two decades later, the New Zealand midfielder carries that mantle into Group G — and he didn't take the easy road to get there.
Born in Auckland to a family with roots in Jalandhar, Punjab, Singh grew up in a country that treats rugby like a religion and cricket as a close second. Football was always the outsider sport. His mother enrolled him at the Wynton Rufer Soccer Academy at age seven anyway, and that decision quietly changed New Zealand football history.
From the Bundesliga to the World Cup
The path between those two facts isn't straightforward. Singh emerged through Wellington Phoenix's academy, made his senior international debut in 2018, and then earned a move to FC Bayern Munich in 2019 — the first player of Indian descent to join the club, and the first New Zealander in the Bundesliga since Wynton Rufer himself. First-team minutes at Bayern were scarce, as they tend to be for almost everyone not named Müller, but the experience sharpened him.
He returned to Wellington Phoenix in 2026 to rebuild fitness ahead of the tournament. There's something poetic about that — back where it started, preparing for the biggest stage of his career.
One goal already carries extra meaning. Singh scored his first international goal against Kenya at the 2018 Intercontinental Cup in Mumbai, and New Zealand beat India 2-1 in that same tournament. Playing well in the country his family left behind, against the country they came from. That's the kind of detail that doesn't need embellishment.
A Tough Group Won't Get Easier
New Zealand open against Iran in California on June 16, then face Egypt and Belgium in Group G. They are the lowest-ranked side in the group by some distance. Getting out of the group stage would be a genuine shock — Belgium alone represent a severe test, and Iran are no pushovers.
- Group G opponents: Iran, Egypt, Belgium
- Opening match: New Zealand vs Iran, June 16, California
- Singh's previous World Cups: U-20 appearances in 2017 and 2019
For anyone looking at Group G odds, New Zealand advancing beyond the group stage is a long shot by every reasonable measure. But Singh reaching this stage at all — via Auckland, Wellington, Munich, and back again — is the kind of story that makes the group stage worth watching even when the scorelines aren't close.
He's played youth World Cups, earned a Bayern contract, and represented his country with roots in two continents. The 2026 tournament is what all of that was building toward.
