Haiti put their World Cup rivals on notice with a thumping 4-0 friendly victory over New Zealand in Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday.

Sebastien Migne's team, who open their Group C campaign against Scotland on June 13 before taking on Brazil and Morocco, were on the front foot from the off.

They opened the scoring through a wonderful solo effort from Ruben Providence, who jinked past Finn Surman on the left side of the area before clipping his finish over Alex Paulsen and into the far corner in the 12th minute.  

Johny Placide held an overhead kick from Chris Wood and repelled Marko Stamenic's header either side of Jesse Randall curling narrowly over, but New Zealand were blown away in the second half.

Lenny Joseph slotted a neat, left-footed finish into the near corner six minutes after the restart, then Frantzdy Pierrot nodded in from close range to make it 3-0 just after the hour.

There was still time for Haiti to inflict further punishment on the All Whites, too, as Duke Lacroix picked out the far corner with a wonderful effort on the swivel three minutes from time.

Haiti promise to make Group C interesting

When the World Cup group-stage draw was made, few expected Haiti to be truly competitive in a group containing five-time champions Brazil, 2022 semi-finalists Morocco, and a Scotland team that impressively qualified ahead of Denmark.

They are ranked 82nd in the world by FIFA, three places higher than New Zealand, but the gulf appeared far greater in Florida.

They produced a clinic in front of goal – highlighted by Lacroix's pinpoint, swerving strike from the edge of the area – to leave New Zealand shellshocked.

The 2026 World Cup will only be Haiti's second appearance at the tournament, after they lost all three group-stage games and conceded 14 goals in 1974. On this evidence, they should be more competitive this time around. 

The All Whites, meanwhile, must pick themselves up ahead of Saturday's friendly against England, before opening their Group G campaign against Iran on June 15.