Mario Ilich
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Mario Jozef Ilich[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 23 June 1995 | ||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Auckland City | ||
| Number | 2 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| Central United | |||
| –2012 | Auckland City | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2012–2014 | Auckland City | ||
| 2014–2015 | Wanderers SC | ||
| 2015–2016 | WaiBOP United | ||
| 2016 | Eastern Suburbs | ||
| 2017 | Auckland City | ||
| 2017 | Central United | ||
| 2017–2019 | Team Wellington | ||
| 2019 | Bentleigh Greens | ||
| 2019– | Auckland City | ||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Mario Jozef Ilich (born 23 June 1995)[2] is a semi-professional association football player from New Zealand who plays as a midfielder and captains Auckland City.[3][4]
Club career
[edit]Early career
[edit]Growing up in Auckland, Ilich played his youth football for Central United and Auckland City.[5][6]
Ilich spent time at a number of New Zealand Football Championship clubs, before spending a short spell at Bentleigh Greens in the NPL Victoria.[7]
Auckland City
[edit]After leaving Bentleigh Greens, Ilich joined Auckland City, for the third time on 23 September 2019.[8] He has since played in three international FIFA tournaments, the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup, 2023 FIFA Club Wold Cup, 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.[9][10]
Personal life
[edit]Ilich works as a supermarket sales representative for Coca-Cola.[3][11] Ilich has Croatian roots.[12]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "FIFA Club World Cup 2025: Squad List" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2025. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
- ^ "Mario Jozef Ilich". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ a b Borrowdale, James (14 June 2025). "Auckland City aiming to do amateur football proud in Bayern Munich mismatch". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "Mario Ilich". Oceania Football Centre. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "The Skipper at the Heart our Club World Cup Journey". Auckland City FC. 30 May 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "GOOD LUCK SUPER MARIO!!! 💛💛". Central United F.C. 1 June 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ Saltori, Rafael (27 November 2019). "Mario Ilich: the new Auckland City man shares his experiences". Oceania Football Centre. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "Mario Ilich makes Navy Blues return". Auckland City FC. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "Auckland City confirm Club World Cup squad". Oceania Football Confederation. 27 November 2017. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
- ^ "Mario Ilich - Auckland City Midfielder". ESPN. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ Fleming, Rory (13 June 2025). "Meet the amateur New Zealand team aiming to topple soccer's biggest names at the FIFA Club World Cup". CNN. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "The amateur New Zealand club with Croatian roots to take on giants at FIFA Club World Cup". croatiaweek.com. 14 June 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.