New Zealand made World Cup history when 21-year-old defender Tyler Bindon entered the pitch in the 87th minute of a 2-2 draw with Iran, joining his mother Jenny Bindon as the first mother-son duo to play at the World Cup. Jenny Bindon earned 77 caps for the New Zealand women's national team across two World Cups (2007, 2011) and two Olympic Games (2008, 2012).
Bindon, a Nottingham Forest player in the Premier League, was born in Auckland but moved to California at age 12 when his mother took a coaching role at UCLA. He developed through LA FC's academy before joining Reading in 2023, then Sheffield United on loan, and is now at Forest.
After his debut, Bindon posted on Instagram: "A special day for many reasons. Proud to represent New Zealand on the biggest stage and incredibly grateful to share the moment with my mum as the first mother-son duo to play at a World Cup." His father, Grant Bindon, was a captain of New Zealand's men's volleyball team.
While Bindon and his mother are the first parent-child duo at a men's World Cup, football history includes father-son pairings: Giovanni Reyna (USA) is the son of former American midfielder Claudio Reyna, and Erling Haaland's father Alf-Inge Haaland represented Norway at the 1994 World Cup.
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