Club World Cup: 11,000 times their salary - the value of Auckland City players’ draw

Auckland City's 1-1 draw against Boca Juniors in the Club World Cup was remarkable for the New Zealand team not only because of the historic result, but also due to the prize money received by the players.

FIFA promised to pay out $1m (about £800,000) for each draw in the group stage of the competition, and with that, the semi-amateur team from New Zealand will receive 11,000 times more than each player earns as a salary at the club.

?⚪️ Auckland City FC vs. Boca Juniors ??

⚽️ 52' Christian Gray

This is the first goal by @AucklandCity_FC in the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 ... and against a South American Giant.#AucklandCityFC #BocaJuniors #ClubWorldCup #FIFACWC #ChristianGraypic.twitter.com/k72kRuViyC

— Orcland FC (@OrclandFC) June 24, 2025

According to Spain's Marca, each player on the New Zealand team earns around €70 (£59.60) per week, and for this reason, they need to have other part-time jobs in their daily lives. Christian Gray, who scored Auckland's only goal in the Club World Cup, for example, works as a teacher. Goalkeeper Sebastian Ciganda, on the other hand, cleans swimming pools and jacuzzis.

“I clean pools and jacuzzis. I asked for vacation from work, otherwise I would have had to quit. I didn't get paid for the days I was in the United States,” the player revealed.

The Amount Received by Auckland Is One of the Largest in Its History

A modest team from the city of Auckland, New Zealand, a place with almost two million inhabitants, the semi-amateur team received one of the largest sums in its history after the draw with Boca Juniors. The squad, which was coming off two crushing defeats - to Bayern Munich by 10-0 and Benfica by 6-0 - achieved a heroic result last Tuesday (26th), and celebrated a lot.

“Everyone thought we were going to be thrashed again. They were confident Boca would score six goals [the number the Argentinians needed to match Benfica's goal difference before the round started]. The prize for the draw, which is one million dollars, will be split between the coaching staff and the players,” said goalkeeper Sebastian Ciganda.

This is the stadium of Auckland City FC in New Zealand ???️ pic.twitter.com/3tzsagzjUg

— Ronnie santos Mwine Fred -official (@SantosMwine) June 15, 2025

Auckland City qualified for the Club World Cup after winning the Oceania Champions League in 2024. In addition to the £800,000 pocketed for the draw, the club also returns to New Zealand with even more money, since just for participating, they had already secured US$3.58m (about £2.9m). Thus, the total prize money for the team is around £3.7m.

“We've regained a bit of respect. They already know we depend on volunteers. We don't have much money, so I'm happy the team is pleased. I believe the club deserves it, and I'm happy for the boys,” said teacher Christian Gray, who scored the goal against Boca Juniors.

“I'm glad we at least scored a goal. It was a tough trip, we had some difficult results, but I'm happy for the team and the boys. I think we deserved it. There was a special atmosphere. Boca is a huge club, like all those we've faced in this tournament,” he concluded.

This article was originally published on Trivela.