BREAKINGNEWS: Ben Waine of Plymouth Argyle is heading to the Olympics with New Zealand.

Waine is part of the 18-man team for the men’s football competition, which gets underway in France at the end of this month.

Ben Waine was called up by New Zealand for the men’s football competition at the Olympics in France, therefore he will miss a significant portion of Plymouth Argyle’s preseason.

Waine, 23, was a member of the New Zealand team that won the OFC (Oceania Football Confederation) Nations Cup earlier this month. With four goals in the competition, he ended as the second-highest scorer. New Zealand defeated Vanuatu 3-0 in the final.

Teams may only have 18 players on their rosters during the Olympics; three players above the age of 23 are allowed, but at least 15 of the players must be under 23.

Michael Boxall, the defender, Joe Bell, and Sarpreet Singh, the midfield tandem, are the three players from New Zealand who are overage. One of the five forwards chosen by head coach Darren Bazeley is Waine. The others are Oskar van Hattum (Wellington Phoenix), Jesse Randall (Auckland FC), Jay Herdman (Vancouver Whitecaps, Canada), and Ricky Bidois (Loudoun United, USA).

On July 24, New Zealand will play their opening Group A match against Guinea in Nice. Three days later, they will play the United States, and on July 30, they will play the host country, France, also in Marseille.

“It is great to name the side that will be heading over to Paris 2024 as part of the wider New Zealand team,” Bazeley said, referring to the Olympics as a special tournament.