Imagine needing to take leave from your regular job just to travel and compete against football giants like Harry Kane`s Bayern Munich at the FIFA Club World Cup. For Auckland City FC, an amateur side from New Zealand, this extraordinary situation is their reality. Their players uniquely balance their daily work commitments with the demands of being the only amateur team participating in this summer`s tournament.
Auckland City FC is a familiar face in this competition, having dominated the Oceania region with a record 13 OFC Men`s Champions League titles, making them the most successful team there. The expansion of the Club World Cup this year, hosted in the United States, presents them with a remarkable opportunity. This wouldn`t be possible without a dedicated squad that plays cohesively, described by Sporting Director Gordon Watson as a close-knit family.
Goalkeeper Conor Tracey shared his perspective: “The feeling of reaching this level to compete gets better every time we win the O League or any match. It`s a significant feeling, the result of all the hard work players and the team have put in, not just this year but over the past four or even ten years. I work a 40-hour week, train, and spend an hour and a half to two hours in traffic just getting to practice. Training lasts about two hours; sometimes I`m late and only get an hour. A lot of my personal time is sacrificed for this football.”
For American soccer fans, a relatable comparison might be if a USL team like the Des Moines Menace, known for notable Cup runs, won the Concacaf Champions League and qualified for the Club World Cup. Simply participating in this tournament is a monumental achievement for Auckland City FC, an accomplishment that might only fully sink in after they`ve played their games and returned home. Drawn into Group C alongside formidable opponents like Bayern Munich, Benfica, and Boca Juniors, even securing a single point would be a success. However, the primary goal at these tournaments is to test oneself against the world`s best, and that`s precisely what they will do.
Reaching this stage requires an impressive level of balance and demonstrates the immense commitment each player has to the club. Even arranging interviews can be tight; Tracey had to end a chat early to avoid exceeding his lunch break and ensure he was back at work on time.
Tracey elaborated on his limited free time: “There`s not much spare time, especially heading into a weekend where, for example, I have work on Sunday. Work cuts significantly into my own time and football time. Both have grown to consume my personal time. This weekend, I`ll try to see my girlfriend Friday night. I`ll probably get an hour with her before I need to go to bed. In the morning, I`ll have about two hours to grab coffee with her before I need to start getting ready for the game. All those tiny moments you try to organize during the week mean before Friday even arrives, your whole weekend is already fully scheduled.”
“Every single moment is highly treasured. We don`t get a lot of time,” Tracey continued. “But it wraps back into it being a choice… that`s what distinguishes our team. Everyone chooses whether to do what we do – working full-time, having this huge football schedule eating into personal time, not being able to spend as much time with friends or family as a normal person – or to live a typical life. It`s still tough for anyone, but they don`t have 16-18 hours of football a week on top of a 40-hour work week.”
As the sole amateur club, Auckland City FC brings a truly unique and highly relatable perspective to the tournament. Spectators can easily understand the choices involved in balancing professional and personal pursuits. Everyone strives for something, and reaching significant goals often requires sacrifices.
At Te Atatū Intermediate School, Auckland City`s right back Jordan Vale works his day job as a teacher. Football isn`t the dominant sport in New Zealand; rugby leads the way. This makes the sacrifices these players make to compete in this tournament even more commendable.
With the Club World Cup held in the United States, Auckland City FC players face the challenge of securing time off work. Vale even considered quitting his teaching job but managed to transition into a substitute role, providing greater flexibility for his football commitments. Even the coaching staff is affected; head coach Paul Rosa won`t travel with the team for the initial phase due to personal circumstances. The Navy Blues will instead be led by a group including Adria Casals, Ivan Vicelich, Daewook Kim, and Jonas Hoffmann.
Vale shared his struggle: “Coming into this season, at the end of last year, having done it for about six years, I was getting mentally a bit exhausted. My workload plus football – those sacrifices were kind of catching up to me. Our season, including preseason, runs from January to December, so we only get three or four weeks off before preseason starts again. I was getting quite overworked in my position and trying to figure out how to juggle everything this year.”
“So I decided to make a significant sacrifice and try being a reliever (substitute teacher). I resigned last year. However, my principal came to me a few days later and said they didn`t want to lose me and were fine with the time needed for the Club World Cup. I secured this flexible position, which has been a huge relief workload-wise. It`s allowed me to find a bit more of that precious free time, and mentally, it`s helped me refocus on football while still giving 100% to my work.”
This level of prioritization isn`t for everyone, but the strong bond within this tight-knit team encourages many players to accept the necessary unpaid leave. Building a competitive squad while needing players willing to rearrange their lives for tournaments like this naturally limits the available talent pool. However, Sporting Director Watson emphasizes that having strong characters like Vale and goalkeeper Tracey is crucial for a successful team. Players are even willing to change jobs to secure the time off required for a demanding football season, highlighting their deep commitment to the Navy Blues.
Watson reflected on the tough choices: “When I hear them making these decisions, there`s a parental part of me that thinks, `Oh my god, don`t do that.` I did it, and it`s not easy, it`s tough. But again, it`s a choice. When you look back on your own life as a middle-aged man… it brings back all the sacrifice, the heartache, the disappointment. There`s no guarantee you`ll get picked. You might be grumpy around your family or girlfriend because things aren`t going well. Plus, you`re doing your job. You only get one shot at this in life – one shot, one Club World Cup, one game with Bayern Munich, one with Benfica, one with Boca Juniors. Is it worth it? I think that`s a very personal choice, but I`m in awe of them.”
These upcoming matches will see Auckland City FC play before huge audiences. They also offer some players a potential pathway to establishing themselves in a fully professional league, such as the Australian A-League, building on a common transfer route. Strong performances in this tournament could truly be life-changing. Even if the results aren`t what Auckland hopes for, there are still plenty of chances for memorable, once-in-a-lifetime moments, like those currently inspiring young players at Vale`s school.
“At the start of this year, I really wanted to encourage kids to play football at our school,” Vale recounted. “I think we`ve been quite successful. Maybe 100 boys signed up for trials, and about 80 girls, so it was really successful. One way we did it was working with the PE teacher. He put up a big poster with football photos from tournaments last year, but I asked him to add some pictures from the Club World Cup – of [Karim] Benzema. There are a couple of me shaking his hand or seeing him after the game. A student came up to me and drew us together because he loved Benzema, and he kept asking me about the time there. He found out I was randomly drug tested at the end of the game and my name got drawn.”
While players typically avoid drug tests as they can take hours, this particular one had a significant impact on Vale.
“I walked into the room, and there was Benzema and Fabinho, who had also been randomly selected,” Vale said. “So we got to sit in this quite cramped room and just chat for an hour. For me and Cameron [Harper], since we`re both Liverpool fans, it was really awesome to see Fabinho, but also Benzema. It was amazing. That kid heard about the story and was just quizzing me, but now it`s about Harry Kane. `Will you be able to tackle him?`”
Vale and Auckland City will soon discover the answer to that question when they face Bayern Munich on June 15, kicking off their Club World Cup journey. Who knows, they might be inspiring the next generation of Navy Blues as football continues to grow in New Zealand. Sharing the pitch with global football legends is a special experience, where competing against their heroes can turn them into heroes back home.
