Arthur Leong

Who is Arthur Leong?

Arthur Leong is a former association football player who represented New Zealand at international level. Born in Guangzhou, China, he emigrated to New Zealand as a two-year old and became the first ethnic Chinese player to represent New Zealand in football.

Leong played two official A-international matches for the All Whites in 1962 against visitors New Caledonia, the first a 4-1 on 2 June 1962, his second a 4-2 win on 4 June. They were to be his only official matches as New Zealand played no other official matches until 1967.

In December 2013 Arthur and his wife Maureen, a retired midwife, were both awarded Community Awards by the Hamilton City Council at a special ceremony attended by their extended family, for service to the community.