The side is drawn exclusively from players for provincial unions that compete in the Heartland Championship, a nominally amateur domestic competition below the fully professional National Provincial Championship (NPC).

As well as playing local and international teams that may visit (such as Ireland and Italy in 2002) the New Zealand Divisional XV also toured Australia, Canada and various Pacific Islands.

The first team known as the New Zealand Heartland XV side toured the Pacific Islands in 2005 and they played six games (which they won), including matches against Tonga and Fiji.

The team then toured Argentina in 2006 and the United States in 2008, beating the Pacific Coast Grizzlies and a USA Select XV.

Before the advent of professional Super Rugby in 1996 and the later change from three divisions of National Provincial Rugby to the current competition structure it was common for past, future or even current All Blacks to play for the New Zealand Divisional team.