There will be no Winston Reid or Marco Rojas but New Zealand football fans will still have a chance to see some international action during the European off-season.
With senior members of the national team to be given a rest on the road to Brazil, a New Zealand A side coached by Neil Emblen will play Jordan at North Harbour Stadium on June 4.
The Middle Eastern nation are set to play Australia in a World Cup qualifier on June 11 in Melbourne and they will use the match in Albany as preparation for the crucial clash.
New Zealand Football has turned out an 'A' team sparingly in recent years, with a shadow Olympic side assuming that label losing 6-0 against Saudi Arabia last year.
But Jordan, who were searching for suitable opposition to warm up for the Socceroos, have a relationship with NZF after the All Whites travelled to the Arab kingdom in preparation for their inter-continental playoff against Bahrain before the 2010 World Cup.
The All Whites won 3-1 on that occasion but Jordan will not find too many familiar faces in the New Zealand A lineup. The team is likely to consist largely of players from the A-League and ASB Premiership, along with members of the New Zealand under-20 side preparing for the U20 World Cup in Turkey.
The likes of West Ham player of the year Reid and Germany-bound Rojas will have the summer off and a chance to rest after enjoying stellar seasons at club level.
That pair and their All Whites teammates will remain inactive on the international scene until the next Fifa windows, with games sought for August and September as they build up to November's playoff against an unknown North/Central American side for a spot at the World Cup in Brazil.
If New Zealand are successful in that playoff, the country's top professionals will be without a significant break until the 2015 offseason, with World Cup duty and club commitments keeping them busy in the interim.
But even with Europe-based All Whites absent, the New Zealand A team will not be entirely bereft of players who could make Ricki Herbert's World Cup squad.
The Wellington Phoenix contingent should be more than happy to get a game during the prolonged A-League offseason, while other European professionals, such as Kosta Barbarouses, could be in the country on holiday and willing to have a hit-out.
