Elijah Just

Elijah Henry Just (born 1 May 2000) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for club Swansea City and the New Zealand national team.

A full international for New Zealand since 2019, Just became the country's all-time leading scorer at the FIFA World Cup after scoring three goals in the 2026 tournament. He was also a member of the squad that won the 2024 OFC Nations Cup.

Club career Western Suburbs Just joined the Olé Football Academy, then run by Declan Edge moving from Palmerston North to live at the academy. He played for Western Suburbs in the Central League that features teams from the lower half of the North Island of New Zealand. Just was part of the team to win the Central League in 2017, as well as runner-up in the 2018 Chatham Cup.

Eastern Suburbs Just was part of Eastern Suburbs winning New Zealand Football Championship team, that won the final series of the league, qualifying for the OFC Champions League. Just finished the season playing in 20 games, scoring 7 goals.

FC Helsingør In May 2019, FC Helsingør announced that Just would start at the club 1 July.

AC Horsens On 1 July 2022, FC Helsingør announced that Just had been sold to AC Horsens.

On 21 August 2024, Just signed for Austrian 2. Liga club SKN St. Pölten on a season-long loan with an option to buy.

Motherwell On 9 July 2025, Just signed for Scottish Premiership club Motherwell on a two-year contract for an undisclosed fee. In his debut season, he was shortlisted for PFA Scotland's Premiership player of the year.

Swansea City On 22 July 2026, Just signed a three-year contract with EFL Championship club Swansea City.

International career Youth Just was born in New Zealand to a NZ European father (with distant links to Prussia) and an NZ Chinese mother. He was part of the New Zealand U-17 team that won the 2017 OFC U-17 Championship, qualifying for the U-17 World Cup in India. Just played all three games the U-17 team played at the World Cup and was team captain in the second game against Paraguay.

Just was originally called up to be part of the New Zealand U-20 side to play at the OFC U-19 Championship in Tahiti but withdrew for club commitments with Western Suburbs. Even though Just didn't play in the OFC U-19 Championship, the team qualified for the U-20 World Cup in Poland and Just was part of the team that travelled to the tournament. He played in 3 games, scoring one goal in their Round of 16 defeat by penalties to Colombia U-20.

Senior On 15 November 2019, Just made his national team debut for New Zealand in a friendly against Ireland, starting in their 1–3 loss.

On 25 June 2021, Just was called up to the New Zealand squad for the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics. Just scored his first international goal against Fiji in their 4–0 win during the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers in Qatar.

On 14 May 2026, Just was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On 15 June, Just became the first player from New Zealand to score a brace in the FIFA World Cup, when he scored both of New Zealand's goals in their group stage opener against Iran which ended in a 2–2 draw. He later scored a consolation goal in a 5–1 defeat to Belgium in New Zealand's final group match. With his third goal at a senior FIFA World Cup, Just moved level with Hannah Wilkinson as New Zealand's all-time leading scorer across the men's and women's FIFA World Cups, with three goals each.

His opening goal against Iran was nominated for the FIFA World Cup Goal of the Tournament award, making him the first New Zealand player to receive the nomination.

Career statistics Club

International

Scores and results list New Zealand's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Just goal.

Freshwater Stadium, Port Vila, Vanuatu

2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup

Freshwater Stadium, Port Vila, Vanuatu

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

North Harbour Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand

Friendly

Waikato Stadium, Hamilton, New Zealand

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification

BMO Field, Toronto, Canada

Friendly

Eden Park, Auckland, New Zealand

Friendly

BC Place, Vancouver, Canada

2026 FIFA World Cup Honours Western Suburbs Central League: 2017 Chatham Cup runner-up: 2018

Eastern Suburbs New Zealand Football Championship: 2018–19

New Zealand U17 OFC U-17 Championship: 2017

New Zealand OFC Nations Cup: 2024