2025 New Zealand National League

This article is about the men's season. For the women's season, see 2025 New Zealand Women's National League.

The 2025 New Zealand Men's National League is the fifth scheduled season of the National League since its restructuring in 2021; the 2021 National League was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in northern regions.^[1] 32 clubs compete in the competition, with four qualifying from the Northern League, three qualifying from the Central League and two qualifying from the Southern League for the National Championship phase.^[2][3] Auckland FC Reserves and Wellington Phoenix Reserves qualify automatically for the championship phase. Each team can field a maximum of four foreign players as well as one additional foreign player who has Oceania Football Confederation nationality.^[4] Over the course of the season, each team must also ensure players aged 20 or under account for 10% of available playing minutes.^[5]

New Zealand National League

Season	2025
← 2024 2026 →

Qualifying leagues

2025 Northern League

Northern League

Season	2025
← 2024 2026 →

Northern League teams

Twelve teams are competing in the league – the top ten teams from the previous season, one team promoted from the NRFL Championship and Auckland FC Reserves. The promoted team is Fencibles United.^[6] It is both Auckland FC Reserves's and Fencibles United's first season in the National League. They replaced Melville United and Hamilton Wanderers (both relegated after a four-year Northern League spell).^[7]

Team	Home ground	Location	2024 season
Auckland City	Kiwitea Street	Sandringham, Auckland	1st
Auckland FC Reserves	TBD	TBD, Auckland	New entry
Auckland United	Keith Hay Park	Mount Roskill, Auckland	5th
Bay Olympic	Olympic Park	New Lynn, Auckland	6th
Birkenhead United	Shepherds Park	Beach Haven, Auckland	4th
East Coast Bays	Bay City Park	Northcross, Auckland	9th
Eastern Suburbs	Madills Farm	Kohimarama, Auckland	3rd
Fencibles United	Riverhills Domain	Pakuranga, Auckland	1st in Championship (promoted)
Manurewa	War Memorial Park	Manurewa, Auckland	10th
Tauranga City	Links Avenue Reserve	Mount Maunganui	7th
West Coast Rangers	Fred Taylor Park	Whenuapai, Auckland	8th
Western Springs	Seddon Fields	Westmere, Auckland	2nd

Northern League personnel

Team	Manager	Captain
Auckland City	Paul Posa[8]	Mario Ilich
Auckland FC Reserves	Luke Casserly[9]
Auckland United	José Figueira[10]	Ross Haviland[11]
Bay Olympic	Peter Smith[12]	Callum McNeill[13]
Birkenhead United	Paul Hobson[10]	Luke Jorgensen[14]
East Coast Bays	Joe Hall[15]	Louie Caunter[16]
Eastern Suburbs	Michael Built[17]	Adam Thomas[18]
Fencibles United	Rhys Ruka[19]
Manurewa	Tashreeq Davids[20]
Tauranga City	Barry Gardiner[21]	Campbell Higgins[22]
West Coast Rangers	Chad Coombes[23]	Dev Pokhrel[24]
Western Springs	Scott Hales[25]	Oscar Ramsay[26]

Northern League managerial changes

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Position in the table	Incoming manager	Date of appointment
Eastern Suburbs	Brian Shelley (interim)[27]	End of interim spell	27 November 2024	Pre-season	Michael Built[17]	27 November 2024
Manurewa	Dylan Burns	End of contract	21 December 2024		Tashreeq Davids[20]	21 December 2024
Auckland City	Albert Riera[8]	Stepped down	21 January 2025		Paul Posa[8]	21 January 2025
Auckland FC Reserves	Inaugural				Luke Casserly[9]	12 February 2025

Northern League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Auckland City	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Winner of Northern League and qualification to National League Championship
2	Auckland FC Reserves[a]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Qualification to National League Championship
3	Auckland United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Bay Olympic	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	Birkenhead United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	East Coast Bays	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	Eastern Suburbs	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8	Fencibles United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	Manurewa	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
10	Tauranga City	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
11	West Coast Rangers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Relegation to NRFL Championship
12	Western Springs	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: NRF
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goals against; 5) Head to head; 6) Disciplinary record; 7) Coin toss^[29]
Notes:

1. Auckland FC Reserves gain automatic entry into the National League Championship phase due to the A-League Men requirements.^[28]

Northern League results table

Home \ Away	AKC	AFC	AKU	BAY	BIR	ECB	EAS	FEN	MRW	TGA	WCR	WSP
Auckland City	—
Auckland FC Reserves		—
Auckland United			—
Bay Olympic				—
Birkenhead United					—
East Coast Bays						—
Eastern Suburbs							—
Fencibles United								—
Manurewa									—
Tauranga City										—
West Coast Rangers											—
Western Springs												—

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: Soccerway
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

2025 Central League

Central League

Season	2025
← 2024 2026 →

Central League teams

Ten teams are competing in the league – the top nine teams from the previous season and the one team promoted from the 2024 play-off between the winners of the Central Federation League and the Capital Premier. The winner of the play-off was Upper Hutt City.^[30] This is their first season in the Central League, since New Zealand football's restructuring in 2021. They replaced Stop Out (relegated to the Central Federation League after two seasons in the Central League).^[31]

Team	Home ground	Location	2024 season
Island Bay United	Wakefield Park	Island Bay, Wellington	8th
Miramar Rangers	David Farrington Park	Miramar, Wellington	4th
Napier City Rovers	Bluewater Stadium	Napier	3rd
North Wellington	Alex Moore Park	Johnsonville, Wellington	9th
Petone	Memorial Park	Petone, Lower Hutt	7th
Upper Hutt City	Maidstone Park	Maidstone, Upper Hutt	1st in Capital Premier (promoted via play-offs)
Waterside Karori	Karori Park	Karori, Wellington	6th
Wellington Olympic	Wakefield Park	Island Bay, Wellington	1st
Wellington Phoenix Reserves	Fraser Park	Taitā, Lower Hutt	5th
Western Suburbs	Endeavour Park	Porirua	2nd

Central League personnel

Team	Manager[32]	Captain
Island Bay United
Miramar Rangers	Kale Herbert[33]	Sam Mason-Smith
Napier City Rovers	Bill Robertson	Jim Hoyle[34]
North Wellington	Ryan Faithfull[35]	Gavin Hoy[36]
Petone	Ryan Edwards[37]	Hami Paranihi-Nuku
Upper Hutt City
Waterside Karori	Sam Morrissey[38]	Harry Fautley
Wellington Olympic	Rupert Kemeys	Ben Mata[39]
Wellington Phoenix Reserves	Chris Greenacre	Isaac Hughes
Western Suburbs	Alan Koch[40]	Malik Smith[40]

Central League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Island Bay United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Winner of Central League and qualification to National League Championship
2	Miramar Rangers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Qualification to National League Championship
3	Napier City Rovers	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	North Wellington	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	Petone	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	Upper Hutt City	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	Waterside Karori	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8	Wellington Olympic	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	Wellington Phoenix Reserves[a]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Qualification to National League Championship
10	Western Suburbs	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Relegation to Central League 2

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: Capital Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goals against; 5) Head to head; 6) Disciplinary record; 7) Coin toss^[29]
Notes:

1. Wellington Phoenix Reserves gain automatic entry into the National League Championship phase due to the A-League Men requirements.^[2]

Central League results table

Home \ Away	IBU	MRA	NCR	NWT	PET	UHC	WKA	WOP	WPX	WES
Island Bay United	—
Miramar Rangers		—
Napier City Rovers			—
North Wellington				—
Petone					—
Upper Hutt City						—
Waterside Karori							—
Wellington Olympic								—
Wellington Phoenix Reserves									—
Western Suburbs										—

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: Soccerway
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

2025 Southern League

Southern League

Season	2025
← 2024 2026 →

Southern League teams

Ten teams are competing in the league – the top nine teams from the previous season and the winner of the Southern League play-offs. The promoted team is Wanaka.^[41] This is their first season in the Southern League. They replaced FC Twenty 11 (relegated after their second season in the Southern League).^[42]

Team	Home ground	Location	2024 season
Cashmere Technical	Garrick Memorial Park	Woolston, Christchurch	1st
Christchurch United	Christchurch Football Centre	Spreydon, Christchurch	3rd
Coastal Spirit	Linfield Park	Linwood, Christchurch	2nd
Dunedin City Royals	Caledonian Ground	Dunedin North, Dunedin	7th
Ferrymead Bays	Ferrymead Park	Ferrymead, Christchurch	5th
Nelson Suburbs	Saxton Field	Stoke, Nelson	4th
Nomads United	Tulett Park	Casebrook, Christchurch	6th
Selwyn United	Foster Park	Rolleston	8th
University of Canterbury	English Park[A]	St Albans, Christchurch	9th
Wanaka	Queenstown Events Centre[B]	Frankton, Queenstown	2nd in Southern Premier League (promoted via play-offs)

Southern League personnel

Team	Manager	Captain
Cashmere Technical	Dan Schwarz[43]	Tom Schwarz[43]
Christchurch United	Ryan Edwards[44][45]	Joel Stevens[46]
Coastal Spirit	Robbie Stanton[47][48]	Joe Hoole[49][50]
Dunedin City Royals	Blair Scoullar[51]	Jared Grove
Ferrymead Bays	Alan Walker[52]	James Deehan
Nelson Suburbs	Ryan Stewart	Sam Ayers[53]
Nomads United	Matthew Jansen[54]	Caleb Cottom
Selwyn United	Chris Brown[55]	Jayden Booth
University of Canterbury
Wanaka	Ben Sippola (joint)[56] Thomas van Hees (joint)[56]

Southern League managerial changes

Note: Some cases use first/last match coached

Team	Outgoing manager	Manner of departure	Date of vacancy	Position in the table	Incoming manager	Date of appointment
University of Canterbury	Ben Ellis	Mutual Consent	1 September 2024	Pre-season
Dunedin City Royals	Richard Murray[57]	Stepped Down	29 October 2024		Blair Scoullar[51]	31 October 2024

Southern League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Cashmere Technical	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Winner of Southern League and qualification to National League Championship
2	Christchurch United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Qualification to National League Championship
3	Coastal Spirit	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
4	Dunedin City Royals	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	Ferrymead Bays	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	Nelson Suburbs	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	Nomads United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8	Selwyn United	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	University of Canterbury	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
10	Wanaka	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Relegated to the Nelson Premiership/Canterbury Premiership/Southern Premiership

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: Mainland Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goals against; 5) Head to head; 6) Disciplinary record; 7) Coin toss^[29]

Southern League results table

Home \ Away	CAS	CHU	CSP	DCR	FMB	NEL	NOM	SEL	UCF	WAN
Cashmere Technical	—
Christchurch United		—
Coastal Spirit			—
Dunedin City Royals				—
Ferrymead Bays					—
Nelson Suburbs						—
Nomads United							—
Selwyn United								—
University of Canterbury									—
Wanaka										—

First match(es) will be played: March 2025. Source: Soccerway
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Qualified clubs

There are 11 men's National League Championship qualifying spots (4 plus Auckland FC Reserves for the Northern League, 3 plus Wellington Phoenix Reserves for the Central League and 2 for the Southern League).^[2]

Auckland

Wellington

Location of clubs in New Zealand for the 2023 National League season

Wellington Phoenix Reserves

Location of clubs in Wellington Region for the 2024 National League season

Association	Team	Position in Regional League	App (last)	Previous best (last)
Northern League (4 berths)		1st
		2nd
		3rd
		4th
Central League (3 berths)		1st
		3rd
		4th
Southern League (2 berths)		1st
		2nd
Auckland FC (automatic berth)	Auckland FC Reserves	Automatic qualification	1st	Debut
Wellington Phoenix (automatic berth)	Wellington Phoenix Reserves	Automatic qualification	4th (2024)	5th (2024)

Championship phase

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Auckland FC Reserves[a]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
2	Wellington Phoenix Reserves[a]	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	Northern League 1st place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Qualification to Grand Final and Champions League group stage
4	Northern League 2nd place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	Northern League 3rd place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
6	Northern League 4th place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	Central League 1st place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
8	Central League 2nd place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
9	Central League 3rd place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
10	Southern League 1st place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
11	Southern League 2nd place	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

First match(es) will be played: September 2025. Source: New Zealand Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals for; 4) Goals against; 5) Head to head; 6) Disciplinary record^[29]
Notes:

1. Auckland FC Reserves and Wellington Phoenix Reserves can not qualify for the Grand Final.^[29]

Notes

1. Ilam Fields doesn't met NZF Pitch Regulations
2. Wānaka Recreation Centre doesn't met NZF Pitch Regulations

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