Norway

National Team Information
General Info
UEFA
Drillos, Løvene (The Lions)
- Jørgen Juve – 33 goals
- Einar Gundersen – 26 goals
- Harald Hennum – 25 goals
- John Carew – 24 goals
- Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Tore André Flo – 23 goals (tie)
- Erling Haaland – Barring a catastrophic injury, Erling Haaland should soon become Norway’s top all-time goalscorer. At just 22 years old, Haaland has broken countless goalscoring records for RB Salzburg, Borussia Dortmund and Manchester City. A fast, powerful and clinical striker, Haaland is one of the best players in the world.
- Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – One of the most prominent Norwegian soccer players is Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The “Baby-faced Assassin” was a super sub for Manchester United and scored the winning goal in the 1999 Champions League final. He won six Premier League titles under Sir Alex Ferguson.
- Jorgen Juve – Norway’s current top all-time leading scorer is Jorgen Juve. Juve scored 33 goals in 45 games for Norway and captained them to the bronze medal at the 1936 Olympics. Juve played as a striker and later became a lawyer and author.
- John Arne Riise – Possessing a deadly left foot, John Arne Riise is Norway’s all-time appearances leader. He played 110 times for Norway from 2000 to 2013 and scored 16 goals. Riise also won the Champions League with Liverpool in 2005.
- Hallvar Thoresen – The all-time leading foreign goalscorer in the Eredivisie is Hallvar Thoresen. The attacking midfielder scored 152 goals in the Dutch top flight and played 50 times for Norway. One of his nine goals for Norway secured a famous victory over England in 1981.
Norway’s 1998 World Cup appearance marked the first time they qualified for consecutive World Cups. They went an unbeaten 6-2-0 in qualifying and were drawn into Group A with Brazil, Morocco and Scotland. Norway drew their first match 2-2 vs. Morocco. Another draw with Scotland followed which meant they likely needed a win vs. Brazil to go through. With two wins from their first two matches, Brazil already sealed the knockout stage qualification. However, they still fielded a strong lineup for the match, with players like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos.
In a hard-fought match, Norway fell behind in the 78th minute. Incredibly, they completed a late comeback with goals from Tore Andre Flo and Kjetil Rekdal to clinch a knockout stage berth. It was the first and only time Norway managed to advance out of the group stage. It’s also the only time they’ve gone unbeaten in the group stage of a major tournament. Norway’s round-of-16 opponents were Italy and an 18th-minute Christian Vieri goal was all it took to knock the Lions out. Still, Norway had a lot to be proud of and their win over Brazil is iconic.
It’s almost unfair to include the 1938 World Cup as Norway’s worst tournament performance, given they only played one match. However, it is the only time they’ve failed to win a match at a major tournament. During this era, the World Cup was played as a single-elimination tournament. Norway’s opponents were defending champions Italy and the match finished 1-1 after regulation. Silvio Piola scored a 94th-minute goal that sealed a 2-1 Italy victory and sent Norway packing early.
Norway National Football Team History
Early Days
Although football has been played in Norway since the 1880s, the first national team wasn’t formed until 1908. Norway’s first international match was against Sweden and they lost 11-3 on the day.
Norway participated in the 1912 Olympics but they failed to win their first 27 matches in all competitions. They finally broke the unfortunate streak in 1918 by defeating Denmark 3-1.
In the coming years, Norway managed some good results including wins over France and England. They participated in the 1936 Olympics and managed to knock out Turkey in the first round.
Norway faced hosts Germany in the second round and were reportedly so sure of defeat they had already booked return tickets. If true, they would have had to cancel them, as the Lions got a famous 2-0 win from two Magnar Isaksen goals. Norway fell to Italy in the semifinal but won the third-place match 3-2 over Poland as Arne Brustad scored a hat trick.
In their first World Cup appearance, in 1938, Norway faced Italy once again. In what was then a straight knockout tournament, Italy defeated Norway 2-1 in extra time from a Silvio Piola goal. Norway initially took a 2-1 lead in regulation but had the goal called back for a questionable offside.
The Lions wouldn’t return to another World Cup for 56 years.
Post WWII, Norway struggled and some players were even placed in concentration camps during the war. There were few highlights for Norway through the 50s, save for a 1-0 win over Hungary in 1958 World Cup Qualifiers. This had a lot to do with the fact that the Norwegian Football Federation banned professional players from the national team during this time. Finally, in 1969 they changed their rule to allow professionals to play on the national team.
Professional Era
Still, this didn’t change Norway’s fortunes as they still failed to qualify for another major tournament. In the 1980s, Norway managed wins over Italy and Argentina but they were only in friendly matches. Once Egil “Drillo” Olsen became national team coach in 1990, Norway’s fortunes reversed. In the span of just three years, Norway went from middling European side to the second-ranked team in the World. They also qualified for the 1994 World Cup over England and Poland.
In the 1994 World Cup, Norway defeated Mexico but lost to Italy. Needing a win vs. Republic of Ireland to seal knockout stage qualification, the Lions only managed a draw. This meant they went out of the tournament on a tiebreaker. The “Drillos” also qualified for the 1998 World Cup and held a 14-match unbeaten streak heading into the tournament. They drew their first two matches but got an iconic win over Brazil to advance to the round of 16.
Italy remains the only team to defeat Norway in a World Cup as the Italians advanced to the quarterfinal with a 1-0 win. Drillo Olsen stepped down after the tournament but Norway qualified for their first European Championship in 2000. Norway defeated Spain, lost to Yugoslavia and drew with Slovenia. It wasn’t enough to advance to the knockout stage and Norway haven’t qualified for a major tournament since.
They are however, the only team to hold an undefeated record vs. Brazil, with two wins and two draws all-time.
Norway soccer betting has been popular in recent seasons as players like Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard have risen to prominence. The Norwegians narrowly missed out on qualifying for the 2022 FIFA World Cup with a final match loss to the Netherlands.

Norway Soccer Leagues & Clubs:
Eliteserien:
The top Norwegian soccer league is called the Eliteserien. Sixteen clubs compete in the league each season and play a double round-robin schedule. At the end of the season, the top team is crowned league champion and the bottom two teams are relegated. The 14th-place team can also be relegated if they lose a playoff. The league is one of the few top-flight European leagues that runs through the Summer. The season starts in March and ends in early November.
Eliteserien Clubs 2023
Team |
---|
Aalesund |
Bodø/Glimt |
Brann |
HamKam |
Haugesund |
Lillestrøm |
Molde |
Odd |
Rosenborg |
Sandefjord |
Sarpsborg 08 |
Stabæk |
Strømsgodset |
Tromsø |
Viking |
Vålerenga |
Norwegian First Division:
The second-tier Norwegian soccer league is the Norwegian First Division. Sixteen clubs also compete in the First Division and each team plays one another twice throughout a season. The top two teams in the league are automatically promoted to the Eliteserien at the end of the season. Meanwhile, the teams who finish in third to sixth place contest promotion playoffs for the right to play the 14th place team in the Eliteserien. The winner of the final playoff plays in next season’s Eliteserien. Two teams are automatically relegated to the third tier. The 14th-place First Division team contests a playoff to determine whether they stay put or go down.
Norwegian First Division Clubs 2023
Team |
---|
Bryne |
Fredrikstad |
Hødd |
Jerv |
KFUM |
Kongsvinger |
Kristiansund |
Mjøndalen |
Moss |
Ranheim |
Raufoss |
Sandnes Ulf |
Skeid |
Sogndal |
Start |
Åsane |
Norway Cups & Tournaments
Norway’s soccer teams compete in the annual Norwegian Football Cup tournament. Amateur and professional sides alike contest Norway’s oldest tournament. The winner of the single-elimination tournament qualifies for the second qualifying round of the UEFA Europa Conference League. The final is played at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo and the winner also earns a place in the Mesterfinalen. Unlike most countries, the team that wins the domestic cup in Norway is called the national champion.
The Mesterfinalen is Norway’s equivalent of a Supercup. It features the team who wins the Eliteserien vs. the team who wins the Norwegian Football Cup. It is typically a popular match for Norway soccer betting but hasn’t been held since 2019.
Norway Soccer Betting Information
Betting on the Eliteserien
The Eliteserien is an exciting league for Norway soccer betting. It’s typically quite a high-scoring league and over three goals per game have been scored in each of the last three seasons. Three of the best teams in recent seasons have been Molde FK, FK Bodo/Glimt and Rosenborg BK. Bodo/Glimt won their first-ever titles in 2020 and 2021. Meanwhile, Molde and Rosenborg have been consistently good over the last decade.
Molde won the league in 2022 by 18 points and kept the most clean sheets in the league. Clean sheets were quite rare in the 2022 season, with no team keeping them in more than 40 percent of their matches. Clean sheets occurred in just 40 percent of matches and both teams scored 63 percent of the time. Home teams enjoyed a clear advantage, winning 45 percent of the time. Meanwhile, away teams won 31 percent of the time and draws occurred in 24 percent of matches.
Overs frequently came through in 2022 as well. Over 2½ goals occurred 66 percent of the time and 42 percent of matches had four or more goals scored. There’s quite a big gap between the top teams and the lower-tier teams. Only six teams finished the season with a positive goal difference in 2022.
Norway National Team Betting Tips & Odds
Erling Haaland has broken all kinds of records at club level already and is on pace to do the same with Norway
The Norwegian national team has a bright future ahead of them. There’s always a chance to qualify for major tournaments with one of the world’s top players. Erling Haaland has broken all kinds of records at club level already and is on pace to do the same with Norway. As of the end of 2022, Haaland had 21 goals in just 23 matches. With players like Martin Odegaard, Sander Berge, Mohammed Elyounoussi, Kristoffer Ajer and Alexander Sorloth, Norway are quite a competitive team now.
Betting tips recommend giving them a look in upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers. They’re in a group with Spain, Scotland, Georgia and Cyprus. A top-two finish will mean they qualify for their second-ever European Championship. They could certainly beat Scotland and others to the second seed if Haaland can stay healthy. In 2022 alone, Norway managed to grab wins over Sweden, Ireland, Serbia and Slovakia.
Heading into 2023, they’ve lost just five of their last 23 matches. Haaland was also the joint-leading scorer in the 2022 UEFA Nations League, with six goals. Norway will enter the 2024 Nations League in the “B” League but will certainly be candidates for promotion.
Conclusion
Norway soccer betting should grow in popularity as this new generation of players matures and gains experience. The Norwegian Eliteserien has a handful of teams who are capable of making runs in European competitions as well. Fans of attacking football may also enjoy watching and betting on the Eliteserien.