Benjamin Craig Old (born 13 August 2002) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a attacking midfielder for

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

club

Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the t ...

and the

New Zealand national team New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Early life

Old began his sports career as a golfer; he was given his first golf club when he was two. Old was considered a former child golf prodigy, playing in his first international golf tournament at the age of seven. He had travelled to the United States to play against other child prodigies from around the world in Las Vegas, Pinehurst and San Diego.

Club career

Wellington Phoenix

Old originally lived in Auckland before he moved to Wellington and joined the Wellington Phoenix Football Academy in 2018. While not an official member of Wellington Phoenix's senior squad, Old had trained with the team before they went to Australia. Old joined the team again for training when they returned, making his debut as a substitute in the Phoenix's 3–0 win over Western United and nutmegging his defender with his first touch. Old scored his first goal for the Wellington Phoenix during a 3–0 victory over the Brisbane Roar on 30 March 2022.

Saint-Étienne

On 9 July 2024, Old signed for

club

on a four-year contract with an option for a fifth year.

International career

New Zealand U-17s

Old was part of the New Zealand U-17 team that won the

2018 OFC U-16 Championship The 2018 OFC U-16 Championship was the 18th edition of the OFC U-16/U-17 Championship, the biennial international youth football championship organised by the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) for the men's under-16/under-17 national teams of ...

and qualified for

2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the 18th edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-17 national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It was ...

in Brazil. Old played in two games at the World Cup, first coming on as a sub in New Zealand's opening 1–2 loss to Angola before getting a start in the team's 1–0 win over Canada.

Olympic Games

On 25 June 2021, he was named in New Zealand reserve squad for the 2020 Olympics. Though he was actually travelled to Japan, he didn’t play any game.

New Zealand

Old was named in the 30-man New Zealand squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup Oceania qualifiers. He subsequently made his international debut on 19 March 2022, coming on as a substitute in the 67th minute during New Zealand's 1–0 victory against Papua New Guinea in the group stage.

Career statistics

International goals

Honours

; New Zealand * OFC Nations Cup:

2024 Predicted and scheduled events * January 1 ** In the United States, books, films, and other works published in 1928 will enter the public domain, assuming there are no changes made to copyright law. ***''Steamboat Willie'', Walt Disney's fi ...

; Individual * A-Leagues All Star:

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Old, Ben 2002 births Living people New Zealand men's association footballers Wellington Phoenix FC players AS Saint-Étienne players New Zealand Football Championship players Men's association football midfielders A-League Men players Ligue 1 players Footballers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic association footballers for New Zealand 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup players OFC Nations Cup-winning players Footballers at the 2024 Summer Olympics Expatriate men's footballers in France New Zealand expatriate sportspeople in France