The Norway national football team (, or informally Landslaget) represents Norway in men's international football, and is controlled by the Norwegian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Norway. Norway's home ground is Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo, and their head coach is Ståle Solbakken. Norway has participated in the FIFA World Cup four times (1938, 1994, 1998 and 2026) and once in the UEFA European Championship (2000). After Euro 2000, Norway failed to qualify for the next twelve major tournaments from 2001 to 2025. The team underwent their deepest run at a World Cup, advancing to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history at the 2026 World Cup.
History
The Norwegian team achieved third place in the 1936 Summer Olympics, after beating hosts Germany earlier in the tournament. Norway also qualified for the 1938 FIFA World Cup, where they lost 2–1 after extra time against eventual champions Italy, with this being their last appearance until 1994.
In the post-war years, Norway did not qualify for a World Cup or European Championship. Despite this, Norway achieved victories such as a 3–0 win against Yugoslavia in 1965, a 1–0 away win against France in 1968, and a 2–1 victory against England in 1981 that prompted radio commentator Bjørge Lillelien's famous "Your boys took a hell of a beating" rant.
Norway had their first football's Golden Age from 1990 to 1998 under coach Egil "Drillo" Olsen, with the team once being ranked No. 2. Olsen started his training career with Norway with a 6–1 home victory against Cameroon on 31 October 1990. In qualifying for the 1994 World Cup, Norway topped their group, finishing above the Netherlands and England, beating both teams in the process. During the finals in the United States, Norway was knocked out in the group stage after a win against Mexico, a defeat against Italy and a draw against the Republic of Ireland. Norway failed to qualify for the round of 16 as all four teams in the group finished with four points and identical goal difference.
At the 1998 World Cup in France, Norway was once again eliminated by Italy in the first round of the knockout stage after finishing second in their group, having drawn against Morocco and Scotland and winning 2–1 against Brazil.
Former under-21 coach Nils Johan Semb replaced Olsen after the latter's retirement. Under Semb's guidance, Norway qualified for Euro 2000, their last European Championship appearance to date. Semb resigned at the end of an unsuccessful qualifying campaign in 2003 and was replaced by Åge Hareide. Under Hareide, Norway came close to reaching both the 2006 World Cup and Euro 2008, but ultimately fell short on both occasions. Norway then failed to win a single game in the entirety of 2008, with Hareide resigning at the end of the year. His replacement, initially on a temporary basis, was Olsen, who began his second spell in charge with an away win against Germany, and subsequently signed a three-year contract. Olsen resigned in September 2013 after Norway lost at home to Switzerland and had limited chances to qualify for the 2014 World Cup with one game to spare. He was replaced with Per-Mathias Høgmo. Olsen later claimed he was sacked.
2020–present: Rise to Prominence During the qualification campaign for UEFA Euro 2020, Norway finished third in their group behind Spain and Sweden, missing direct qualification for the tournament. The team subsequently contested a playoff semifinal against Serbia in October 2020, but was defeated 1–2 and eliminated from contention. Norway then participated in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League alongside Austria, Romania, and Northern Ireland, securing second place in the group and thereby retaining its position in League B for the following edition.
On 3 December 2020, former national team player Ståle Solbakken was appointed head coach following the departure of Lars Lagerbäck. In March 2021, Solbakken named Martin Ødegaard as team captain. Norway failed to qualify for both the 2022 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2024. In the World Cup qualifiers, they finished third in a group with the Netherlands and Turkey. Later, in the Euro 2024 qualifiers, they ended behind Spain and Scotland, missing out again. At the 2024–25 UEFA Nations League, Norway clinched direct promotion to League A after topping their group.
On 16 November 2025, Norway secured qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, ending a 28-year absence from the tournament. The team won all eight of its qualifying matches and finished first in its group. The campaign concluded with a 4–1 victory over Italy in Milan, marking Italy's first-ever home defeat in a World Cup qualifying group-stage match. Erling Haaland emerged as the leading scorer across all qualifiers with 16 goals. For the tournament, Norway was drawn into Group I alongside Iraq, Senegal, and France.
On 17 June 2026, Norway opened its World Cup campaign with a 4–1 victory over Iraq, highlighted by two goals from Haaland, who became the first Norwegian player to score multiple goals in a World Cup match. It was also the first time Norway had scored more than two goals in a World Cup fixture. The team followed up with a 3–2 win against Senegal, securing advancement to the Round of 32 prior to its final group-stage match against France. They were defeated 4-1 in a dead rubber, marking the first ever time they lost to a World Cup match to an opponent other than Italy (who failed to qualify for the tournament after losing on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the qualification playoffs). In the Round of 32, Norway won 2-1 against Ivory Coast and advanced to the Round of 16 match against Brazil. This was the first time Norway won a match outside the group stages. Norway is one of only three national teams with a winning record against Brazil, and the only team to have never lost against them, with three wins and two draws in five matches, including their 2026 round of 16 match. The run ended in the quarter finals, where Norway lost 1–2 to England after extra time.
Team image Crest
Norway has used the national flag on a white circle as their badge since the 1920s. In May 2008, the NFF unveiled a new crest, a Viking-style Dragon wrapped around the NFF logo. After massive public pressure the crest was dropped. In the 1980s and the 1990s, Norway used the NFF logo in the opposite breast of the shirt together with the national flag on a white circle. On 12 December 2014, a new crest was presented. The crest primarily features the national flag; in addition, there are two lions taken from the Norwegian coat of arms on the top. The lions face each other while holding a blue miniature of the NFF logo, and between the lions and above the NFF logo is the word "NORGE" (Norway) in blue letters. Retrieved 12 December 2014 They also wore a special gold version of their logo against Italy on 16 November 2025, to commemorate their qualification for World Cup 2026 after a 28-year wait.
Kit suppliers
Adidas supplied Norway's kit from 1992 to 1996, with Umbro taking over until 2014. On 10 September 2014, the NFF and Nike announced a new partnership, that made the sportswear provider the official Norwegian team kit supplier from 1 January 2015. Kit providerPeriod Le Coq Sportif1976–1980 Hummel1981–1991 Adidas1992–1996 Umbro1996–2014 Nike2015–present
Chant As of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the supporters of the team have been performing the Viking Row chant created by Ole Frøystad.
Results and fixtures
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
2025
2026
Coaching staff
PositionNameHead coach Ståle SolbakkenAssistant coach Kent BergersenFitness coach Bjørn Vidar StenersenMatch analysts Andy Findlay Pål FjeldeSports coordinator Brede HangelandPhysiotherapist Mario PafundiSports scientist Johannes MarthinussenChief instructor Bryant LazaroTeam manager Bård Wiggen
Coaching history
The following is a list of all managers of the national team. Prior to 1953, the team was selected by a selection committee, which also continued to select the team until 1969. Manager Tenure Finals – 31 December 1955 26 7 7 12 28 42 – 31 December 1957 17 5 4 8 25 38 – 15 September 1958 5 3 1 1 10 8 – 31 December 1958 1 0 0 1 1 4 – 31 December 1959 10 3 0 7 15 29 – 15 August 1962 20 6 2 12 32 45 – 31 December 1966 33 11 7 15 47 74 – 31 December 1969 25 9 3 13 39 61 – 31 December 1971 17 4 2 11 18 43 – August 1974 17 3 2 12 17 30 Nils Arne Eggen – 31 December 1977 27 6 4 17 26 52 – 30 June 1987 94 28 28 38 96 119 – 30 June 1988 7 0 4 3 3 7 – 10 October 1990 24 5 8 11 32 37 – 30 June 1998 88 46 26 16 168 63 1994 World Cup – Group stage1998 World Cup – Round of 16 – 31 December 2003 68 29 21 18 89 61 Euro 2000 – Group stage – 8 December 2008 58 24 18 16 88 65 – 27 September 2013 49 25 8 16 61 50 – 16 November 2016 35 10 7 18 33 49 – 6 December 2020 34 18 9 8 60 34 1 0 1 0 1 1 – 66 37 12 17 144 72 2026 World Cup – Quarterfinals
Players Current squad
The following 25 players were called up to the 2026–27 UEFA Nations League A, matches between 24 September and 4 October 2026, respectively.Caps and goals correct as of 4 October 2026, after the match against Portugal.
Recent call-ups The following players have also been called up for the Norway squad within the last twelve months.
INJ Withdrew due to injury PRE Preliminary squad / standby RET Retired from the national team SUS Serving suspension QUA Placed in mandatory quarantine WD Withdrew due to non-injury issue. EX Player expelled from the squad due to non-injury issue.
Player records
Players in bold are still active with Norway.
Most appearances
RankPlayerCapsGoalsCareer1John Arne Riise110 162000–20132Thorbjørn Svenssen104 01947–19623Henning Berg100 91992–20044Erik Thorstvedt9701982–19965John Carew91241998–2011Brede Hangeland9142002–20147Øyvind Leonhardsen86191990–20038Morten Gamst Pedersen83172004–2014Kjetil Rekdal83171987–200010Steffen Iversen79211998–2011Ørjan Nyland02013–present
Top goalscorers
RankPlayerGoalsCapsAverageCareer1Erling Haaland (list)65592019–present2Jørgen Juve33451928–19373Einar Gundersen26331917–1928Alexander Sørloth26772016–present5Harald Hennum25431949–19606John Carew24911998–20117Ole Gunnar Solskjær23671995–2007Tore André Flo23761995–20049Gunnar Thoresen22641946–195910Steffen Iversen21791998–2011
Competitive record FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup recordQualification recordYearResultSquad 1930Did not enterDid not enter 1934 1938Round of 1612th100112Squad1st211065 1950Did not enterDid not enter 1954Did not qualify3rd402249 19583rd4103315 19623rd4004311 19662nd6312105 19703rd4103413 19743rd6204916 19782nd420234 19825th8224815 19865th8134410 19904th8224109 1994Group stage17th311111Squad1st10721255 1998Round of 1615th412155Squad1st8620212 2002Did not qualify4th102441214 20062nd (P/O)12534129 20102nd824297 20144th103341013 20184th104151716 20223rd10532158 2026Quarter-finals 5th64021311Squad1st8800375 2030To be determinedTo be determined 2034TotalQuarter-finals4/23146352019——144573354222191
UEFA European Championship
UEFA European Championship recordQualification recordYearResultSquad 1960Did not qualifyR16200226 1964PR201113 19684th6114914 19724th6015518 19764th6105515 19805th8017520 19844th612378 19885th8125512 19923rd833295 19963rd10622177 2000Group stage9th311111Squad1st10811219 2004Did not qualify2nd (P/O)104241010 20083rd127232711 20123rd8512107 20163rd (P/O)126151413 20203rd (P/O)114522013 20243rd83231412 2028To be determinedTo be determined 2032TotalGroup stage1/17311111——133502756181183
UEFA Nations League UEFA Nations League recordSeasonDivisionGroup2018–19C364117226th2020–21B1631212722nd2022–23B463127724th2024–25B3641115712th2026–27A4410368TBDTBDTotal281549473112th
Olympic Games