Norway crushes Israel amid Free Palestine chants
Norway defeated Israel amidst a persistent Free Palestine chants in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers Group I match Saturday
Oslo: Norway defeated Israel amidst a persistent Free Palestine chants in the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers Group I match Saturday.
The crowd at Ullevaal Stadion in Oslo was unwavering in their support for Palestine even before the two teams arrived on the ground.
Carrying the Palestinian and Norwegian flags, and a good number sporting the same color T-shirts and jerseys, celebrated every goal the Norway players scored with a loud chants of Free Palestine.
The match ended 5-0 in Norway’s favour. With this defeat, Israel dropped down to the 3rd place in the Group I of the FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualifier.
The other highlight of the Norway vs Israel match Saturday besides pro-Palestine sloganeering was the hat trick by Erling Haaland.
Erling sent the ball past the goalkeeper in 27th, 63rd and 72nd minutes of the match. The other two goals were scored by Anan Khalili (18 minute) and Idan Nachmias (28 minute).
Anti-Israel protest outside stadium
Earlier, hundreds of thousands football fans protested against Israel before its World Cup qualifier against Norway. The protesters then marched to the stadium shouting pro-Palestine and anti-Israel slogans.
Just before kick-off, protesters briefly unfurled a giant Palestinian flag and a large banner reading "Let Children Live" inside the Ullevaal Stadium. The Israeli players were then booed, and a man wearing a "Free Palestine" jersey ran onto the pitch during the match before being taken off.
The protesters were demanding a ban on the Israeli team from the 2026 World Cup because of its Genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
The protest demanding the ban on Israel was also been supported by head of the Norwegian Football Association (NFA) Lise Klaveness.
“The match should not have been played. If Russia is expelled from World Cup, then Israel should be expelled as well,” claimed Norway fan Johan, who was dressed in a Palestine jersey.
The protests in Oslo Saturday were held despite the agreement between Hamas and Israel reached for the implementation of the first phase of Gaza ceasefire deal.
The demand to ban Israel from 2026 FIFA World Cup, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) Championships and other international sporting events intensified after a high level enquiry by UN experts said there are conclusive evidence of Israeli Genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.
U.S. on Israel's side
Alarmed by the popular demands, United States stepped in, saying it will try to prevent “attempt to ban Israel from competing at the 2026 Football World Cup.”
"We will absolutely work to fully stop any effort to attempt to ban Israel's national soccer team from the World Cup”, a US State Department spokesperson told BBC Sport.
There have been reports that European football's governing body UEFA is moving toward a vote to suspend Israel over its Genocide of Palestinians in Gaza in early November.
According to Associated Press, a majority of the UEFA 20-member Executive Committee is expected to support any vote in favor of suspending Israeli teams from international play.
If passed, the vote will prevent Israeli national and clubs teams from playing in international competitions including next year's World Cup.
The 2026 edition of the World Cup will be the first to feature 48 teams and three host countries. The United States will have 11 of the 16 hosts cities at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will also feature matches in Mexico and Canada. The 2026 FIFA World Cup final will be played on July 19, 2026.
Follow ummid.com WhatsApp Channel for all the latest updates.
Select Language to Translate in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic
