Full-Time Teacher, Full-Time Footballer: Auckland City’s Christian Gray on His Iconic Goal vs. Boca, and His Urban Picks | OneFootball

In a tournament full of sharks, it was the minnow that provided the biggest surprise. After losing their first two FIFA Club World Cup matches by a combined 16-0 score, semi-pro side Auckland City FC drew Boca Juniors 1-1 behind a goal from Christian Gray, who moonlights as a physical education teacher and youth football coach outside his football career. In an exclusive interview, he shares insights from the tournament and the grind of being a semi-professional footballer. 

Lionel Messi. Harry Kane. Erling Haaland. Ousmane Dembele. Vinicius Junior. What do these players all have in common? They’re some of the greatest footballers on the planet, and they all scored at the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

But out of the 130 players who scored at last summer’s tournament, only one was an amateur footballer: Christian Gray. Having injured his groin in his final match in New Zealand before flying across the Pacific, Gray was absent for Auckland City’s warmup fixtures and their 10-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in Cincinnati, before coming on for the final quarter-hour of the club’s 6-0 demolition to Benfica in Orlando. With Auckland City already eliminated after two matches, manager Paul Posa decided to experiment and give Gray the start on the right side of their central defensive trio in their final group stage match against Boca Juniors.

“It’s those small margins, isn’t it? It could have easily not happened the way it did, but that just happens to be that the way it worked out,” said Gray in an exclusive Urban Pitch interview.

Boca Juniors knew that they could book their ticket to the Round of 16 with a lopsided victory, and when they opened the scoring within 26 minutes, all signs pointed to yet another beatdown in Nashville. Instead, Auckland held firm and escaped halftime with a 1-0 deficit, before taking the lead after the break as Gray headed home from a corner kick.

Going up against legendary striker Edinson Cavani and other key figures like Carlos Palacios and Miguel Merentiel, Gray held his own with a disciplined display, making 12 clearances and two recoveries, blocking a shot, completing 11 out of 15 passes, and leading Auckland to one of the greatest upsets in the history of the Club World Cup: a 1-1 draw vs. Boca.

While Boca’s players have gone back to the glory of playing for one of the most storied clubs in football, Auckland’s have returned to their day jobs. For Auckland captain Mario Ilich, that’s working as a Coca-Cola sales representative. Goalkeeper Conor Tracey has a supervisory role at a veterinary supply warehouse.

Gray is a physical education teacher and youth football coach, and is currently studying for a graduate diploma to become a fully registered teacher. He started at his school as the football coach three years ago, and started teaching PE this year. His students are between 13 and 18, and topics he teaches include nutrition and exercise, and the importance of getting a good night’s sleep.

Born in the Gisborne Region of New Zealand, Gray is the son of Sandra Edge, who won a gold medal in the 1987 World Netball Championships in Glasgow as well as a silver and a bronze medal with New Zealand in the following two editions. His father Rodger Gray captained New Zealand’s football team and scored four goals in 39 caps between 1989 and 1997. At the club level, the senior Gray represented Mt Wellington, Waitakere City F.C., and Waitemata FC.

After starting off as a striker, Gray followed in his dad’s footsteps and launched his career as a center back. He played for several semi-pro teams across New Zealand incluidng Waitakere United and Eastern Suburbs before eventually joining Auckland City in 2022.

Unlike New Zealand’s sole two professional teams, Wellington Phoenix and Auckland FC, who play in Australia’s league and are thus banned from competing in Asian and Oceanian competitions, Auckland City have been able to form a domestic and continental dynasty.

Auckland have won 10 New Zealand Football Championships, including last year’s edition, as well as 13 OFC Champions League titles, including the last four. As a result of their unrelenting dominance in Oceania’s premier football competition, Auckland have competed in more FIFA Club World Cups (12) than any other team in world football, winning the bronze medal in 2014, before losing their next six matches in the competition by a combined 17-3 margin, the last of which being a 6-2 demolition in the rebranded 2024 FIFA Intercontinental Cup at the hands of Al Ain.

The annual Intercontinental Cup was introduced in order to make way for a revamped, quadrennial FIFA Club World Cup, the inaugural edition being in 2025 in the United States. Instead of just one game, Auckland were going to get the chance to prove themselves in at least three different games in an expanded tournament.

Despite missing quite a few of of their players who were unable to secure annual leave from their jobs, and despite losing to Bayern and Benfica by a combined 16-0 score, they managed to hold their own against one of the biggest teams in world football in Boca and headed home with their heads held high.

Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images

“We had an opportunity after the Boca game to mingle with some of their fans, and obviously they’re disappointed at the result, but they could appreciate us,” Gray said. “Although they were disappointed, they recognized that we represent the majority of people. We’re not normal players, we work 9-5s, and so I think that makes us relatable in that sense, and the Boca fans were cool with us.”

Since that historic stalemate, Auckland have had middling results, currently sitting in sixth place in the New Zealand National League. They’ve also competed in the 2025 Intercontinental Cup, losing their play-in round match to Pyramids 3-0 in Egypt. With all the different competitions, it’s been a busy run of fixtures for Auckland, and for Gray, it’s been made even more complicated with his challenging work schedule.

“That’s probably the hardest part: outside of training, where do you find the time to go to the gym?” Gray said. “There’s times where you don’t get the right amount of sleep, because you’ve got to get out for work in the morning and can’t get to the gym as often as you’d like. Any spare time we have, the boys will try to get to the gym, or look after themselves a bit, but I guess that’s the reality for us, having to work outside of football.”

Gray wakes up at 5 a.m. before coaching his junior side from 6:30 to 8, followed by teaching physical education and health at Auckland Grammar School and Mt. Roskill Intermediate School. He’ll then go to training (three to four times a week) from 5:45 to 8:30 p.m. before returning home. And on the weekends, he’ll find the time to squeeze in online lectures as he studies for a graduate diploma. Gray is set to graduate from his one-year program and become a registered teacher in December.

Photo by Alex Grimm/Getty Images

“I think I’ve always had many different kinds of commitments, I haven’t solely focused on playing professionally, or playing football full-time…I’ve always enjoyed doing different things,” Gray said. “I’ve got many different passions, and I guess that’s maybe a reason for me not solely pursuing football as a career. I’ve studied a couple different degrees now, and I’ve been involved coaching junior and youth football for 10 years now.”

As he approaches 29 years of age, Gray has already traveled across the world, gone up against legendary footballers like Cavani, Karim Benzema, and Angel Di Maria, and earned cult hero status thanks to his iconic goal against Boca. But while he’s followed in his father’s footsteps by becoming a top-quality center back in New Zealand, he hasn’t managed to replicate his feat of playing for the New Zealand national team.

He recognizes that, in order to get a chance with the All Whites, Gray would likely have to depart Auckland and make the move to a professional club. Despite being comfortable with his current role at Auckland, where he has emerged as a vital cog in central defense and a regular source of goals, Gray hasn’t ruled out challenging himself at the professional level.

“I think I’ve got a lot left in me, or I’d like to think so, anyway,” Gray said. “I’d like to be able to play as long as possible. I’d like to think I’ve still got a lot of room to improve, so I’m interested to know how far I could go if I throw everything at it. I’ve been playing in Auckland and domestically for over the last 10 years, so it’d be cool to experience another competition or football in another part of the world.”

Christian’s Urban Picks

Craziest DM you’ve received since scoring vs. Boca?

Not sure the craziest. Most are in Spanish or Portuguese so I don’t understand. But a common one is “EDUQUE PROFE EDUQUE,” meaning educate teacher educate.

Best dish from New Zealand cuisine?

Fish and chips, and pies.

Go-to pregame music?

At the moment, Gunna’s The Last Wun album.

Go-to PE activity?

Touch rugby.

Favorite stadium you’ve played at?

⁠I liked all of the stadiums we played in at the Club World Cup especially Geodis Park in Nashville.