Sarpreet Singh on the brink of FIFA World Cup history

As a football-loving kid growing up in New Zealand, one of Sarpreet Singh’s foundational memories of the sport is from when he was a 10-year-old. He’s watching from the stands of Wellington’s Westpac Stadium as New Zealand beat Bahrain 1-0 to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. “My mother took me and my brother to Wellington for the game. I’d brought posters of the players and managed to get them signed as they came past us,” he recalls. “It was a great tournament. I remember we only played the three group games but we were unbeaten in all of them. So I do remember those memories fondly,” he says.

Sixteen years later, Sarpreet (above, in white), now 26, is part of a New Zealand team that has qualified for the 2026 World Cup. On March 24, the midfielder was part of the squad that beat New Caledonia 3-0 in the final of the Oceania section of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers played at Auckland’s Eden Park.

The momentousness of the occasion isn’t lost on Sarpreet. New Zealand will be competing at a World Cup for the first time since 2010 and only the third time overall. But it’s also significant for another reason.

With 18 caps to his name, Sarpreet is well placed to represent his nation at the quadrennial competition. Should he get to North America — the tournament is being held simultaneously in Canada, the USA and Mexico — Sarpreet will become the first player of Indian origin to compete at a World Cup since Vikash Rao Dhorasoo, who was part of the French team that finished runners-up at the 2006 World Cup.

“As a kid I looked up to a lot of those guys who were part of the team that qualified. You’d look at these people and you think it’s so amazing and you just want to be there. As a kid you always dream of playing in a World Cup. But you’d never really think it could happen to you. Now I’m fortunate enough to be in that same position where I think maybe other kids, like I once was, will look up to me and want to be in the same position,” he says.

Typical Punjabi family

Football might not seem like the first option for a lot of Indian-origin kids in New Zealand — the community sees far more representation in cricket and hockey. But growing up in Auckland, where his parents, originally from Jalandhar, ran a grocery store, Sarpreet says he always loved football.

“I’m from a very typical Punjabi family with a lot of uncles and aunties and cousins. We always used to play backyard cricket, a bit of basketball. Softball was pretty big at school, and I played rugby as well — but not the tackling kind because I was always a bit small. But out of all the sports I played, football was the one I enjoyed the most. My elder brother and my uncle played socially as well, so perhaps some of that rubbed off on me,” he says.

It wasn’t the easiest being a football fan, Sarpreet admits. “I used to watch a lot of Premier League games as a kid and with New Zealand being on the other side of the world, the timing was completely opposite for us. So me and my brother would be up at 2 or 3 in the morning, just watching Chelsea and Manchester United games,” he says.

But Sarpreet was more than just a fan. At seven, his mother Sarabjit put him into his first club. He’s grateful for that opportunity. “I think sometimes with Punjabi parents, maybe they’re a bit too strict on their kids or they want to turn their focus to education. I was put in an academy when I was younger, and my mother would drive me to practice. That was a support that not every Punjabi kid got. My two elder siblings didn’t get that. But that opportunity to train at a club really helped to shape me,” he says.

Starting out at the Wynrs Wynton Rufer Soccer academy at the age of seven, he joined Wellington Phoenix Academy in 2015 (below), Sarpreet says he figured out early on that he had some potential. “I think from a young age, like around 11 or 12, I kind of knew that I was above others. I often used to play above my age group. I wasn’t the physically biggest player then, or even now, but in terms of my football capabilities, I was good enough to be able to cope with higher age groups. And then when I was around 15 or 16, I started to enter the national age-group teams. I guess that’s when I started to realise that something’s possible from this,” he says.

Sarpreet was part of the New Zealand team at the U17 Oceania Cup and U20 World Cups, and his performance in the latter — he scored one goal as New Zealand reached the last 16 — was good enough for clubs in Europe to take note. In 2019, Sarpreet was picked by German giants Bayern Munich, becoming the first New Zealand player since Wynton Rufer (Werder Bremen) to be signed by a Bundesliga team.

“It was a really incredible moment, to be fair, because not many people go from New Zealand directly into Bayern. Even though I was playing for the second team initially, it was still a huge step up. I felt very motivated to want to do more. I realised just how these elite players lived their day-to-day lives, because very quickly I was promoted to train with the first team. I didn’t play as many games [he would only play twice for the main team], but just the experience you gain from training is invaluable,” he says.

Challenge for an outsider

Being one of the few New Zealand players at the highest level of European football came with its own share of challenges. “Obviously, you’re so far away from home. I think as Punjabi people, sometimes we’re also not the most outspoken — or me anyway, you know — so sometimes you can feel lonely as a footballer. And there is the pressure of having to perform. If you don’t perform, then there’s a huge amount of pressure,” he says. Furthermore, as an outsider, he accepts he had to work harder than a native-born player.

“More than seeing me as an Indian-origin player or even a New Zealand player, the challenge comes from simply being a foreigner. In Germany, for example, if two players are at the same level and one is German and the other is a New Zealander or Indian or whatever, then obviously they take the German player. That’s why it does become a lot more difficult. And because I don’t have a European passport, it’s a lot harder to unlock a lot of countries in Europe. And I know for sure it would be the same if you come from India. There are so many hurdles you have to overcome — the way people make their decisions, based on where you’re from or if they have to go through other issues with visas and stuff. These things do play a factor for sure,” he says.

What would be his hardest challenge came in 2020, though. Just as he was poised to break out with a transfer to newly promoted Bundesliga side Werder Bremen, Sarpreet got diagnosed with a significant osteitis pubis injury. He calls the subsequent phase the toughest of his career.

“There’s nothing I can change about it. I do wish I could have continued at a much higher level. It wasn’t a question of ability or talent. I had a couple of good loan spells [with Bundesliga 2 sides FC Nurnberg (2020) and SSV Jahn Regensburg (2021)]. I was also in line to sign a Bundesliga contract when I had my injury. It was a tough time for me. It still is a tough time sometimes when I think about what I could have been doing,” he admits. “There is a physical challenge to confront, but what people don’t realise is the mental side of it as well. The strain that you have because of all the things that go wrong. Day to day you’re by yourself — you go to training for four or five hours and then the rest of the day you’re stuck by yourself with no one to speak to,” says Sarpreet, who would move to Bundesliga 2 side Hansa Rostock and now plays for Uniao de Leiria in Portugal’s second division.

What eventually helped Sarpreet get through that phase was simply going through the grind of training and accepting that, even if he did his best, there would always be things outside his control. “In Europe I gave my best every day. That’s what I try to pride myself on, so that at the end of the day you can’t really be left with any regrets. You could have hoped that it goes like this. Or I could have gone to Werder Bremen. Could have played at Bayern more. I could have hoped for these things. But it’s nothing I can regret because I did my best,” he says.

A young Sarpreet playing for Wellington Phoenix.
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International success

While Sarpreet’s career in Europe has had its share of ups and downs, he’s had far more success in his national career, having been a part of the New Zealand team since 2018. His international journey has even brought him to India — he scored his first international goal against Kenya at the 2018 Intercontinental Cup and followed that up with two assists in New Zealand’s 2-1 win over India in the same tournament.

“That was a crazy experience. It’s a little bit strange being a Singh and playing for New Zealand in India against India. But the reception I received from the fans was really pleasing. I felt very proud to play that game. It was a little bit different but also a little bit special,” he says.

As a New Zealander of Punjabi origin, Sarpreet — or Sari, as most of his teammates call him — says he’s influenced by both sides of his cultural upbringing. “The most Punjabi thing about me is that I love roti. Sometimes I wish I could have it every single day, but as a sportsperson I obviously can’t. I think the most Kiwi thing about me is that I have that small-town mentality. Sometimes you see people in Europe and they’re too relaxed.

“There are people who don’t put in the effort they should in training. I think coming from New Zealand, I was taught that I have to fight for everything. I have to work hard. Nothing’s given to me. But these are values, I guess, that stem from both Punjabi and Kiwi cultures,” he says.

That isn’t to say he doesn’t have any opinions on Indian football. As a 14-year-old, Sarpreet recalls going back to his parents’ village in Punjab and getting to play with the local kids. “These were boys from the pind, so they of course wanted to show me how good they were — but I think I handled myself well,” he recalls. While Sarpreet doesn’t see himself playing in the ISL anytime soon, he’s optimistic about the prospect of overseas players representing the Indian team.

“I think it’s a good idea. In multiple countries, they have dual citizenship, and they can choose who they want to play for. I don’t see why it should be any different for players of Indian heritage. Because if you do get these players that can come in and help lift the national team, then why not?” he says.

Sarpreet himself is more than grateful to be part of the New Zealand set-up. While there were never many players of Indian origin in New Zealand’s football scene, he’s never felt anything but included. “I never felt like an underdog in the team. If anything, I think I have enough experience and I’ve played a lot of good games for New Zealand, and people understand what I bring to the national team,” he says.

New hope: While New Zealand has qualified for the World Cup twice before, they’ve never gone past the group stage — something Sarpreet believes can change now.
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Big ambitions

While New Zealand has qualified for the World Cup twice before, they’ve never gone past the group stage — something Sarpreet believes can change now.

“Our goal is to get out of the group stage, and I don’t think we have to change too much. There’s a difference between the side we have now and the one we had in 2010. So many of our players are playing in Europe, while in the past I think some players weren’t even completely professional. The standards have all been raised a lot. Obviously, you need a bit of luck in the draw and it won’t be easy, but I do think we are capable,” he says.

Sarpreet says qualification is significant not just for himself but for the country’s football programme. “We’ve qualified for the World Cup both as a team and me individually, but I don’t want to be at the World Cup just to participate. We want to do well. I want to do well because it’s a great opportunity to show what I’m capable of. But I also want more people to see and talk about our team because that will help other players as well,” he says.

Should he eventually compete next year, Sarpreet knows there will be many eyes on him. He says his social media inbox has already been flooded with Indians offering support. “I always knew that I was going to get a little bit more attention because of my roots. I’ve always had a bit of a following because of my journey to Bayern. And then I think in the last couple of years, where I haven’t done as well, it maybe veered off a little bit — but then as soon as we qualified for the World Cup, it has all come back again. Sometimes when I see the messages, I feel quite privileged and motivated as well because that’s what drives me to want to do more. I know there haven’t been too many players of Indian origin who’ve played at World Cups. It’s really a proud feeling for me. I’m aware of what I carry with me in achieving these things. That’s what really drives me to try and go even further and make everyone proud,” he says.

There’s still a while to go until the tournament, and Sarpreet has his goals set out until then. “I’ve learnt that with football you can’t look too far ahead because things change very quickly. So for me, the most important thing is just to play games consistently again. The last two or three years, it’s been very on and off with injuries, and a couple of times I just didn’t play so much. So the biggest focus for me is trying to get game time. And then I do believe when I play games, people can see my qualities and the way I like to play football,” he says.

If there is some planning being done, it’s by his mother, who drove him all those years back to his first World Cup qualification game. “My mum has always been one of my biggest supporters. The last time I was at a World Cup qualification game, I’d got posters signed by team players that my mum kept carefully at home. This time she got me to sign her T-shirt like a fan. She’s already looking forward to the World Cup. She wants to know where we’re playing so she can book her tickets. I almost feel the fact that I’ve been able to be part of this World Cup qualifying team is my gift to her,” he says.