Wales Beat New Zealand 35-28 in Cardiff for First Win Over the All Blacks in 73 Years

Wales beat New Zealand 35-28 at the Principality Stadium on Nov. 14, 2026, scoring five tries and holding the All Blacks up over the line three times to end a 34-match losing run against them that dated to 1953.

Nov 14, 2026 - 14:25

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Wales beat New Zealand 35-28 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, recording their first victory over the All Blacks in 73 years and ending a run of 34 straight defeats in the fixture that stretched back to 1953, according to match reports from BBC Sport and The Associated Press.

The Nations Championship match produced nine tries. Wales scored five of them, the most they have ever managed against New Zealand, BBC Sport reported, and then defended their line through a sustained final-quarter onslaught to protect a seven-point lead. The AP described the visitors' pressure as lasting through "the last, tense 27 minutes."

A fast start in both halves

Wales took control almost immediately. Scrum-half Tomos Williams scored in the second minute after wing Louis Rees-Zammit chipped ahead, and captain Dewi Lake crashed over from a flat Williams pass to make it 14-0 inside the first six minutes, according to BBC Sport. It was the first time Wales had ever led New Zealand by 14 points, the BBC noted.

New Zealand replied in the 10th minute through scrum-half Cortez Ratima from an attacking line-out. Prop Archie Griffin then scored Wales' third try in the 24th minute after centre Max Llewellyn was held short under the posts, putting the hosts 21-7 ahead. The All Blacks recovered before the interval with tries from number eight Wallace Sititi and wing Fehi Fineanganofo, and Mo'unga's conversion levelled the score at 21-21 at half-time, according to the official scoring summary published by BBC Sport.

The second half began the same way as the first. A long pass from Williams sent centre Eddie James over in the 44th minute, and Rees-Zammit scored in the 49th after Wales chose to go for the try from a turnover penalty won by Morgan. Fly-half Costelow converted all five Wales tries. Flanker Peter Lakai scored New Zealand's fourth try in the 53rd minute to cut the margin to 35-28, but the All Blacks did not score again.

Three goal-line stands

The closing stages were defined by Welsh defending. BBC Sport reported that Wales held New Zealand up over the try line three times: replacement prop Gareth Thomas held up Sititi, flanker James Botham did the same to hooker Asafo Aumua, and replacements Dan Edwards and Reuben Morgan-Williams combined for a third hold-up late in the match.

Three Wales players, lock Dafydd Jenkins and flankers Jac Morgan and James Botham, each made more than 30 tackles, according to The Independent. Botham was named player of the match. French referee Pierre Brousset took charge, and the official attendance was 55,152, which BBC Sport said was the lowest crowd for any of the 14 meetings between the two nations at the stadium.

What the players and coaches said

Lake said the result reflected work done away from public view. "To put on the field what we did today, to make history, is tough to put into words, but it is nothing this group doesn't deserve for the work they have put in," he said, as quoted by The Independent. He added that he stopped watching with about a minute and 20 seconds left "and just waited for the whistle."

Wales head coach Steve Tandy told reporters, as quoted by Swansea Bay News: "The boys have created history; they've got to celebrate and enjoy that moment." He also said his side had been "probably over-brave before half-time" when New Zealand drew level.

New Zealand full-back Beauden Barrett, who captained the All Blacks in a Test for the first time in his 149th international, said: "It felt like a brick wall at times, so you have to give Wales credit. We were a little bit indecisive, we had three hold-ups over the line, and we have got be better at converting those opportunities."

Head coach Dave Rennie said his team "started both halves poorly and conceded 14 points quickly," according to The Independent. Speaking to RugbyPass, Rennie said New Zealand "got a bit one-dimensional" in attack and turned the ball over nine times in the first half, four of them from offloads. RugbyPass reported that the loss was New Zealand's fourth defeat of 2026 under Rennie.

Selection and context

New Zealand made eight changes to the starting team that beat Scotland 43-21, BBC Sport reported. Wales made four changes from the side that beat Japan 28-21 a week earlier, a performance in which six Welsh line-out throws went astray, according to the BBC. Taine Basham made his first Test start in four years at number eight in place of the injured Aaron Wainwright, while Gabriel Hamer-Webb, Adam Beard and Botham also came into the starting XV.

Before Saturday, Wales had beaten New Zealand only three times, in 1905, 1935 and 1953. The AP reported that Wales had "conceded 50 points to the All Blacks on their last three visits to Cardiff." BBC Sport noted that some bookmakers had offered odds of 20-1 on a Wales win.

Reaction in Wales came quickly. BBC News reported that First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth wrote on Facebook, "This has been decades in the making. Huge congratulations to you all," and that Secretary of State for Wales Stephen Kinnock said, "After 73 years we've finally beaten the All Blacks!"

BBC Sport reported that, despite the defeat, New Zealand moved above South Africa to the top of the competition's southern section after France beat the Springboks 21-19 in Paris on Friday, with one weekend of regular matches remaining. Wales host Australia at the Principality Stadium next Saturday, according to Swansea Bay News.