The All Whites have refused to appear for the second half of a friendly against Qatar, after New Zealand said a Qatari player called defender Michael Boxall a racial epithet.
It was one of two such incidents in Austria on Monday, with Ireland's football association saying its under-21 team had abandoned a match against Kuwait's Olympic side after a Kuwaiti player used racist language toward an Irish substitute.
"A Qatari player used a racial slur towards All Whites defender Michael Boxall after a confrontation between the two players. The racial slur was heard by several New Zealand players, including Boxall," New Zealand Football (NZF), the country's governing body, said in a statement.
New Zealand-born Boxall has Samoan heritage. The All Whites were leading 1-0 after a Marko Stamenic goal in the 16th minute.
The incident occurred just before half-time. Referee Manuel Schuttengruber had a long discussion with New Zealand captain Joe Bell and soon after blew for half-time.
"No official action was taken so the team have agreed not to come out for the second half of the match," NZF said on social media.
New Zealand Football chief executive Andrew Pragnell said the New Zealand players agreed collectively to abandon the game and the governing body fully supported them.
"There is no room for racism in football," he said.
Yusuf Abdurisag went to ground after giving a pass, claiming a foul by Joe Bell. There wasn’t much in it, maybe a slight body check, but the referee gave a free kick, The New Zealand Herald's football reporter Michael Burgess wrote.
Boxall walked over to remonstrate with the referee, then said something to Abdurisag, still sitting on the ground.
The Qatari got up and walked towards Boxall, saying something which caused almost half of the New Zealand team to react, as they were in earshot.
Boxall marched angrily towards his opponent, while several New Zealand players appeared to be asking the referee, ‘Did you hear what he said?’ The incensed New Zealand side then surrounded one of the Qatari players before a free kick.
The two teams left the field, with the All Whites deciding, after a team meeting, not to return.
Qatar coach Carlos Queiroz said his team stood by their player.
"Apparently two players exchanged words, and we don't know who was first, who was second, it's only between them," the Portuguese coach told Al-kass Sports Channels.
"The New Zealand players decided to support their team mate and we also decided to support our player. Let the football authorities make the decision about what happened here."
The Qatar FA said on its Twitter feed that New Zealand had withdrawn from the friendly, without giving any further details.
Reuters has contacted the governing body for comment.
Match report
It was an unfortunate end to what had been an entertaining contest between the All Whites and Qatar, with the repercussions likely to reach the halls of FIFA, as it is reviewed by their various committees.
All Whites coach Darren Bazeley had made four changes to the starting XI from the game in Stockholm.
Max Mata and Marco Rojas came in for Ben Waine and Elijah Just in the attacking trio, while Nando was used at centre back, with Bill Tuiloma shifted to right fullback and Tim Payne moving to the bench. And Max Crocombe was used in goal - his first international match since June 2018 - after a strong season at Grimsby Town.
The match was played in the Austrian countryside after the Qatari organisers shifted the game to a 5000-seat facility in Ritzing, about 100km outside Vienna.
After Qatar had the best of the early exchanges, the All Whites took the lead in the 17th minute thanks to a sweet strike from Marko Stamenic from just outside the area.
Matt Garbett had led the breakout, finding Rojas, who drew a couple of defenders, before laying back to Stamenic. The Red Star Belgrade midfielder did the rest, finding the bottom corner with a mix of power and precision for his first senior international goal.
Qatar should have equalised eight minutes later, after Nando Pijnaker was robbed near halfway, dwelling for a moment too long, but Al-Moez Ali found the base of the post from 12 yards with only the goalkeeper to beat.
There was another escape soon afterwards, with Crocombe saving well from Yousuf Abdurisag, after an errant Rojas pass invited another quick Qatari counter.
The Colo Colo midfielder then had two great opportunities to extend the New Zealand lead before halftime. The first came after the All Whites beat the offside trap, but Rojas lacked conviction in his effort, as the goalkeeper closed down the space.
The second was just as frustrating. Rojas confidently advanced into the area but scooped his shot over the bar, when a decent strike would have had the keeper scrambling.
Then came the incident that will go down in New Zealand football notoriety. It was first thought innocuous - the usual mid-game disagreement - but turned out to be so much more.
New Zealand 1 (Marko Stamenic 17′)
Qatar 0
Halftime 1-0
Ireland v Kuwaiti match abandoned
Ireland's football association (FAI) said the under-21 international was abandoned on Monday after a "racist remark" by a Kuwaiti player.
"The FAI does not tolerate any racism towards any of our players or staff and will be reporting this serious matter to FIFA and UEFA," the FAI said on social media.
Kuwait's FA disputed the FAI's claim. "Kuwait Football Association ... categorically rejects such accusations," it said in a statement on social media.
"The match did not reach completion due to excessive roughness and tension between the players. The match was stopped by the referee in the 70th minute to protect the players from potential injuries."
Ireland were leading 3-0 when the match was stopped.
Racism has dominated football headlines in recent months.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced an anti-racism committee led by Real Madrid forward Vinicius Jr, who has been the victim of racist abuse in Spain's LaLiga.
“There is no football if there is racism – so let’s stop the games. The referees have this opportunity in FIFA competitions as we have this process for stopping the game, and actions have to be taken at every level, at national level as well," he said.
“It’s a football-related problem and we mustn’t look for excuses like: ‘It’s society’s problem, therefore, it’s fine in football.’ In the world of football, we must act in a very forceful way."
- By Reuters and Michael Burgess of The New Zealand Herald
