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Sport

Mark White

Norway World Cup 2026 squad: Stale Solbakken's final 26-man selection

Stale Solbakken Norway World Cup Erling Haaland World Cup 2026 the World Cup Manchester City Oscar Bobb Oslo FourFourTwo

Norway World Cup 2026 squad: Erling Haaland, draped in a Norway flag, celebrates Manchester City's victory over Real Madrid in the Champions League in May 2023.

Norway will be heading to the World Cup for the first time in 28 years.

Erling Haaland and co made qualifying for World Cup 2026 look easy, scoring 37 goals and conceding just five times, as they qualified ahead of Italy.

Now, they have one of the squads of the tournament, and, surprisingly, sit in the top 10 when it comes to favourites for winning the competition.

Leading the Norwegians to North America are rival pillars of the Premier League's top two: captain Martin Odegaard and all-time scorer Erling Haaland are dual talismans for manager Stale Solbakken and would get into most sides at the competition.

There is plenty more attacking talent beyond that, too: Oscar Bobb and Antonio Nusa represent the next generation, while Jorgan Strand Larsen and Alexander Sorloth are two more target men in the 26.

Behind that, Patrick Berg and Sander Berge will anchor the midfield, with the likes of Julian Ryerson and Leo Ostigard behind.

While there's plenty of talent in this group, however, not too much is expected of a Norway side that hasn't been on this stage for a long time – though Erling Haaland could be among the Golden Boot contenders.

Squad

Norway's World Cup 2026 squad: The final selection

GK: Orjan Nyland (Sevilla)
GK: Egil Selvik (Watford)
GK: Sander Tangvik (Hamburger SV)
DF: Kristoffer Ajer (Brentford)
DF: Julian Ryerson (Borussia Dortmund)
DF: Leo Ostigard (Genoa)
DF: Marcus Holmgren Pedersen (Torino)
DF: David Moller Wolfe (Wolverhampton Wanderers)
DF: Fredrik Andre Bjorkan (Bodo/Glimt)
DF: Torbjorn Heggem (Bologna)
DF: Sondre Langas (Derby County)
DF: Henrik Falchener (Viking)
MF: Martin Odegaard (Arsenal)
MF: Sander Berge (Fulham)
MF: Patrick Berg (Bodo/Glimt)
MF: Kristian Thorstvedt (Sassuolo)
MF: Morten Thorsby (Cremonese)
MF: Antonio Nusa (RB Leipzig)
MF: Fredrik Aursnes (Benfica)
MF: Oscar Bobb (Fulham)
MF: Jens Petter Hauge (Bodo/Glimt)
MF: Andreas Schjelderup (Benfica)
MF: Thelo Aasgaard (Rangers)
FW: Alexander Sorloth (Atletico Madrid)
FW: Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
FW: Jorgen Strand Larsen (Crystal Palace)

Fixtures

June 1, 2026: Norway vs Sweden , Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway
June 7, 2026: Norway vs Morocco , Sports Illustrated Stadium, Harrison, United States
June 16, 2026: Iraq vs Norway , Gillette Stadium , Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States
June 22, 2026: Norway vs Senegal , MetLife Stadium , East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States
June 26, 2026: Norway vs France , Gillette Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, United States
September 24, 2026: Norway vs Denmark , Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway
September 27, 2026: Norway vs Portugal , Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway
October 1, 2026: Wales vs Norway , Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff, Wales
October 4, 2026: Portugal vs Norway , Portugal
November 14, 2026: Norway vs Wales , Ullevaal Stadion, Oslo, Norway
November 17, 2026: Denmark vs Norway , Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark

Who is Norway's manager?

Stale Solbakken is lifted into the air by players of Norway as they celebrate victory (Image credit: Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)

Those with excellent knowledge of the 1997-98 Premier League season will be familiar with Stale Solbakken. He made six appearances for Wimbledon that season, including two Man of the Match performances.

He has become the first manager in almost 30 years to take Norway to the World Cup after failing to make the previous two tournaments for which he was in charge.

In 2001, Solbakken suffered a heart attack during training. Although club doctor Frank Odgaard administered cardiac massage, he was pronounced clinically dead when the ambulance arrived. He was revived on the way to the hospital nearly seven minutes later.

Star Player

Who is Norway's star player?

Norway striker Erling Haaland (Image credit: Getty Images)

Erling Haaland will finally represent his nation at a major tournament. The striker scored a staggering 16 goals in eight World Cup qualifiers to help his team on their way to Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Haaland is ranked at no.5 in FourFourTwo's list of the best strikers in the world right now and at no.3 in FourFourTwo's list of the greatest finishers in football history.

Norway will go into the tournament as something of a dark horse; should Haaland play to his full potential, they could cause a major upset in north America.