Norway Rows to the World Cup-FIFA

Norway hasn’t been to the World Cup for twenty-eight years. It’s been a year for miracles, it seems.

They qualified for the finals in 1938, 1994, 1998, and 2026. Ironically, Italy was their nemesis prior to 2026. Their World Cup record prior to this year was:
1938: 1 match – Loss to Italy (2-1 a.e.t.)

1994: 3 matches – Win vs Mexico (1-0), Loss to Italy (1-0), Draw vs Ireland (0-0)

1998: 4 matches – Draw vs Scotland, Draw vs Morocco, Win vs Brazil (2-1), Loss to Italy (1-0)

It was Norway that kept Italy out of the finals this time. Revenge is a dish best served cold, it seems… and with fresh Norwegian food.

The Norwegian food they shipped in included:
300 kilograms of Norwegian salmon and trout (“red fish”) — 661.39 lbs
100 kilograms of halibut — 220.46 lbs
80 kilograms of brunost (Norwegian brown cheese) — 176.37 lbs
100 kilograms of Jarlsberg cheese — 220.46 lbs

They’re also fond of fresh orange juice, so they’re buying locally sourced oranges and squeezing their own. Good for them. Erling Haaland, one of the team’s stars, was spotted out shopping for fresh honey, raw milk, and farm-raised steak at home in the UK. Good for him. There’s no comparison. I wish I could find raw milk here. (Insert small political rant here. I’m a honey badger. I don’t care.)

The Viking photo shoot was done by Scottish fine-art photographer, David Yarrow who is also known for his philanthropy work. The title of the photo is The Vikings are Coming. The theme was partially inspired by the teams own Viking row chant which dates back to 2016, but it was The shoot was partly inspired by the team’s own where supporters mimic rowing a longship in unison. The tradition went viral by superfan Ole Frøystad in 2025.

But back to the shoot. Yarrow tried to keep things as authentic as he could. The longships in the background are real, not computer generated. A whole post could be done about Yarrow, who is not only talented, but fascinating as a man.

Okay, back to what first caught my attention about the Norwegians: their team photo shoot. The pitchfork and tomato crowd went after them. It wasn’t dignified. Go suck on your lemons and be bitter elsewhere, you hags. It was fun. They were having fun. Maybe not the guy who thought he looked like a housewife, but most of them were, and the photo went viral. The Vikings were on the map and everyone was rooting for them.

In May, Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and his son Prince Sverre Magnus rowed the reconstructed Myklebust Viking ship. I think people were in the mood for Vikings. And wow, did the Norwegians bring it.

So, Norway made it to the World Cup, but could they stay? And apparently they rowed their way to America.

The Norwegian Parliament rowed before the match with Iraq.

The fans rowed in the stadium.

They rowed on the escalators.

They rowed in the bars.

They rowed in an aquarium in Norway.

They rowed in Times Square and at home in hospitals and nurseries and nursing homes. Good for them. I think it’s great the whole country has something to get behind.

People didn’t care. They rowed with them.

As of today, their record is:
Norway 4-1 Iraq (Win) — June 16
Norway 3-2 Senegal (Win) — June 22
Norway 1-4 France (Loss) — June 26
Norway 2-1 Côte d’Ivoire (Win) — June 30 Next up: Norway vs Brazil on July 5. Brazil is favored, but I’ll light an extra candle and say an extra prayer. I’m allowed. They’ve earned my admiration.

Reporters have hammered Haaland with questions about their chances all the way through. He shrugs, says they probably won’t win, and then swivels to how much fun they’re having. They aren’t letting it get to them.

In case you ladies are interested (and many are): Haaland is in a long-term relationship with the beautiful Isabel Haugseng Johansen. They’ve known each other since they were children and she’s a former soccer (football) player. They have a gorgeous little boy together.
Martin Ødegaard married the stunning Helene Spilling in 2024 and they have one child.

Sorry ladies.

Those seem to be the two most people are talking about, but the team has a solid roster. (Please note I chose this site because it didn’t demand you allow them to flood you with marketing and it had a complete list.)

Here are the top ten according to Top Soccer Blog. They had a really good write up about the players and some wonderful photos. Good job, Top Soccer Blog. Everyone gravitates to Erling Haaland and with good cause, he is a force. If I have time (Maybe even if I don’t because he amuses me, I’ll do a blog post about him.) Who can’t adore Antonio Nusa being so open about his faith, as well as being so talented. I have to love how excited Jorgen Strand Larsen gets. Who wouldn’t? I know nothing about how Kristoffer Ajer plays. I’m sure he’s outstanding, but as I’ve said before….

OK, Ajer has a face that intrigues me. He’ll appear as a character in a book somewhere. I’m not sure as a fantasy character or a western historical, but he’s on my list. Don’t have interesting faces or quirky personalities if you don’t want to appear in books.

Norway has some very talented players. If I had more time, I would delve into all of them, but alas, life is short and so is my time with the FIFA coverage.

Now, on to what interests me — not that attractive men aren’t interesting, but there are other things that coax me into wasting hours away from my writing.

The fans! My stars, I love the fans. They are having so much fun, and now that they’ve hit Texas they are really having fun (and discovering what Texas summers are really like and why we have air conditioning).

They went shopping for western wear! Even the soccer team went shopping. Please, for all that is holy, don’t make shorts and boots a fashion trend though.

They had barbecue.

They had steaks.

They got to see Longhorns.

They got to see a baseball game. They spent as much time loving the ball game as they did wandering around the stadium and taking in all the food options. Our visiting fans have been overwhelmed by the stadiums including the college stadiums.

And a hockey game.

Even Mexico got in on the fun and put on Haaland masks and rowed after their win over Ecuador and clinching a spot in round sixteen.

I’m in love with the fans. They are having so much fun…and getting so much exercise rowing.

My grandparents are Danish, so I gravitate toward the Scandinavian side. I wish you the greatest of luck and blessings, guys and gals on the Norwegian team. You’ve accomplished so much and I’m sure you have more to do.

1 Peter 5:7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.