‘It puts a light on us’: All White Tim Payne meets El Scarso, the Argentine influencer who made him Instagram famous

Thursday, 4 June 2026

The morning after the All Whites's loss to Haiti, just before they left Boca Raton for Tampa, Tim Payne met El Scarso, the Argentine content creator who has helped him gain more than 4 million new Instagram followers in the past week

Tim Payne has met El Scarso, the Argentine content creator and influencer who encouraged people to get behind him as the “least-known” player at this year’s FIFA World Cup.

Payne went from having just under 5000 Instagram followers to having almost 5 million as a result.

The pair met at the All Whites’ hotel in Boca Raton the morning after the team lost 4-0 to Haiti.

Tim Payne has met El Scarso, the Argentine content creator and influencer who encouraged people to get behind him as the “least-known” player at this year’s FIFA World Cup – to the tune of 4.8 million new Instagram followers.

Tim Payne and El Scarso, Valen Scarsini.

El Scarso, real name, Valen Scarsini, flew north to watch Tuesday night’s friendly international between the All Whites and Haiti in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, which ended with New Zealand suffering a 4-0 loss – their heaviest in nine years.

Payne played the first half of a match that turned on the wholesale replacement of the All Whites’ starting XI by coach Darren Bazeley, starting with six changes at the break. From 1-0 at halftime, with his side looking good to get back in the contest, they conceded three second-half goals.

All Whites coach Darren Bazeley has known Tim Payne for two decades and believes he's handling his newfound social media fame better than some of his team-mates would have.

Scarsini shared footage of himself watching Payne from the stands at Inter Miami Stadium – then got to meet him in person at the team hotel in Boca Raton the following morning, before the team moved on to Tampa, on Florida’s gulf coast, where they have a daunting friendly against world No 4 England on Saturday (kickoff 8am Sunday NZ time)

In footage shared by NZ Football, Payne greets Scarsini by saying “cómo estás” – how are you in Spanish – then reveals his knowledge of the language ends there.

Asked by Scarsini how it felt when his Instagram followers started to climb from just under 5000 a week ago – taking him past the All Blacks, Kane Williamson and many others besides – Payne said: “I didn’t know what to feel, because it's so foreign to me.

“I’m still processing, but it’s amazing. I appreciate you doing it for me.”

“I don’t imagine anything like this,” Payne added. “It didn’t stop. [My follower count] just keeps going like this [up].”

Payne and the All Whites have high hopes of securing New Zealand’s first men’s World Cup win when they face Iran, Egypt and Belgium in group G starting on June 15 (June 16 NZ time), though expectations have been tempered somewhat by the nature of their loss to Haiti.

Asked how it felt to have his profile boosted on the eve of the tournament, Payne said: “It’s obviously good for myself and New Zealand football. It puts a light on us, which is a positive thing, but at the same time, for me, I don’t change. I’m still the person I am. I just keep trying to do what I do, trying to perform for my country.”

Scarsini suggested Payne might one day visit Argentina and that he would visit New Zealand, then was given an All Whites shirt.