 "Auckland City at FIFA Club World Cup: A group of amateur footballers on unpaid leaves")
Auckland City FC is garnering a lot of attention at the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 despite not being a household name. The team has found itself in the spotlight because it consists of amateur footballers from New Zealand, who are competing against some of the best clubs in the world, including Germany’s Bayern Munich.
The 2025 edition of the Club World Cup kicked off in the United States on 16 June. The tournament has been expanded from seven teams to 32 teams. Auckland City is one of the teams that has taken a giant leap from local grounds in New Zealand to stadiums in America, where they face some biggest stars of football.
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The underdog story of Auckland City FC
The side suffered a crushing 10-0 defeat against Bayern Munich in their opening game, which has since caught everyone’s attention. Auckland City goalkeeper Conor Tracey, who works in a veterinary supply warehouse in New Zealand, had to take unpaid leave to travel with the team for the tournament.
“I never quite have enough leave to cover it. I always need to use a mix of annual leave and leave without pay. I’ll be suffering a bit with rent and bills, but playing against teams like Bayern and Benfica — 100% worth it,” Tracey said.
Some of the players in the team have other jobs as well, such as teaching, selling products, or studying at universities. They do not earn a fixed salary for playing. In contrast, players from some of the other teams at the Club World Cup earn millions.
“I think he earns more in a week than I earn in a year working,” Auckland City striker Angus Kilkolly told AFP about Bayern Munich star Harry Kane. Kilkolly is a sales manager at a machine company in New Zealand. There are others like Kilkolly, who work during the day and play at night.
However, Auckland City is not a team that is competing at this level for the first time. They are 13-time Oceania Champions League winners and have participated in the Club World Cup since 2006. The Navy Blues City finished third in the 2014 edition of the tournament, their best result thus far.
Auckland City will next face Benfica, followed by a match against Boca Juniors. After the tournament, the players will return to reality, to their local league matches at smaller venues in New Zealand. But, for now, they can live the dream of playing against some of the best teams and players in the world.
FIFA Club World Cup: Updated points standings
Group A
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al Ahly SC | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2 | Inter Miami CF | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | FC Porto | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Palmeiras | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 |
Group B
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Paris Saint-Germain | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4-0 | +4 | 3 |
| 2 | Botafogo RJ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-1 | +1 | 3 |
| 3 | Seattle Sounders | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1-2 | -1 | 0 |
| 4 | Atlético Madrid | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-4 | -4 | 0 |
Group C
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bayern Munich | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 10-0 | +10 | 3 |
| 2 | Benfica | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2-2 | 0 | 1 |
| 3 | Boca Juniors | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2-2 | 0 | 1 |
| 4 | Auckland City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-10 | -10 | 0 |
Group D
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chelsea FC | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-0 | +2 | 3 |
| 2 | Flamengo | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2-0 | +2 | 3 |
| 3 | ES Tunis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-2 | -2 | 0 |
| 4 | LAFC | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-2 | -2 | 0 |
Group E
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Inter Milan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Monterrey | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | River Plate | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Urawa Red Diamonds | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
Group F
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Borussia Dortmund | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Fluminense FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Mamelodi Sundowns | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Ulsan HD FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
Group G
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester City | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Juventus | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Wydad AC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | Al Ain FC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
Group H
| # | Team | PL | W | D | L | GF-GA | GD | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Real Madrid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | Al Hilal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Pachuca | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | FC Salzburg | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 |
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