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It would be nice if football was just about football. Sadly, it can't always be that way. Welcome to Iran vs New Zealand at the World Cup 2026.
- Kick-off time: 2:00am BST / 9:00pm ET (Mon) / 11:00am AEST
- FREE Stream: BBC (UK) / SBS (AUS)
- TV & Streaming: FS1 (US)
- Watch from anywhere: Get Norton VPN (60-day money back guarantee)
In a strange sort of way, this tournament is Iran's World Cup. Having qualified on the pitch, they've had to endure the constant aggressions of an administration at war with their country – albeit with a recent peace deal declared early on Monday morning – and have now had to battle with their plans around visa policies to enter the US.
The first team caught up in the storm that is Group G will be New Zealand, who take on Iran in their first match at SoFi Stadium.
How all that plays out on the pitch is anyone's guess but this fixture is the first opportunity for the world to reflect on the suitability of its hosts over the next month-and-a-half.
Read on as FourFourTwo brings you all the information you need to watch Iran vs New Zealand in the FIFA World Cup 2026 online, on TV, and from anywhere.
Watch Iran vs New Zealand for FREE
Iran vs New Zealand will be free-to-stream across multiple regions, including BBC in the UK, RTÉ Player in Ireland, SBS On Demand in Australia, CazéTV on YouTube in Brazil, NOS in the Netherlands, RTBF/VRT in Belgium, SRF/RTS/RSI in Switzerland, and TRT in Turkey.
TVNZ also have this as one of the select games they are showing for free.
English commentary will be provided on BBC, RTE Player and SBS On Demand.
‼️ Outside one of these countries? Use Norton VPN to unlock your stream from anywhere in the world — more on that below.
Watch Iran vs New Zealand from anywhere
Away from home this summer and want to watch Iran vs New Zealand? All you need is a VPN, a handy piece of software that makes your devices appear to be in a different location.
This World Cup, our office friends at TechRadar are recommending Norton VPN:
How to watch Iran vs New Zealand in the UK
In the UK, you can stream Iran vs New Zealand on BBC One.
How to watch Iran vs New Zealand in the US
In the US, you can stream Iran vs New Zealand on FS1.
This channel is accessible via Fox's own streaming platform Fox One or via a cord-cutting platform such as YouTube TV, Hulu+Live TV, Sling (select markets), Fubo or DirecTV.
How to watch Iran vs New Zealand in Australia
In Australia, you can watch Iran vs New Zealand on the free SBS On Demand.
Iran vs New Zealand: World Cup 2026 Preview
On the field, this opening fixture could mean everything for one of these teams. With Belgium and Egypt to come, you can bet that Iran and New Zealand will be targeting first a win, then third place, then more.
New Zealand are one of two teams at World Cup 2026 with English managers. Darren Bazeley is a former Walsall and Wolverhampton Wanderers defender from Northampton and initially moved to New Zealand as a player.
He inherited the national team job full time in 2023 and won the OFC Nations Cup in 2024. The All Whites qualified as one of the main beneficiaries of the expanded 48-team format, topping Oceania qualifying at a canter after missing the past three World Cups.
Iran's qualification record remains impressive in an increasingly competitive Asian confederation. Since returning from disqualification after World Cup 1986, they have made the cut for all but four tournaments.
Like New Zealand, making just a third appearance, they're yet to progress beyond the group stage in any of them.
Iran vs New Zealand: Group G
FourFourTwo's prediction
Iran 1-1 New Zealand
Amir Ghalenoei's side are up against it to say the least but FourFourTwo is predicting an opening goal from them in California tonight.
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