HISTORY: Haaland Ends Brazil’s World Cup Jo…

Norway beat Brazil to advance into the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images

Norway advanced to the FIFA World Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history after defeating five-time champions Brazil 2-1 on Sunday night.

Fixture: Brazil v Norway
Score: 1-2
Goalscorers: Neymar (90+8′)/ Haaland (79′, 90′)

Selecao booked their spot in the round of 16 with a late 2-1 win over Japan thanks to a last-gasp winner from Gabriel Martinelli, who was rewarded with a start by coach Carlo Ancelotti, while Norway overcame Ivory Coast in the last round.

Erling Haaland came into the clash with five goals to his name, two behind Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe but he came against Brazilian defender Gabriel Magalhães, with whom he has had some lively battles in the Premier League over the past couple seasons.

The game got off to a lovely start as Norway’s Patrick Berg had a goal disallowed for offside, before Brazil were awarded a penalty inside the opening 15 minutes for Kristoffer Ajer’s foul on Matheus Cunha. Bruno Guimaraes stepped up but saw his spot-kick saved by goalkeeper Orjan Nyland.

The game was played at a lively tempo as the first half continued, although Norway did see a bit more of the ball going forward as captain Martin Odegaard had a couple sights at goal, including a one-on-one with Alission Becker, who was able to make the save.

The Norwegians carried that momentum and dominance into the second period, especially after introducing Oscar Bobb and Andreas Schjelderup, while the Brazilians lacked any sort of bite in the play going forward, as Vinicius and Martinelli were both kept quiet.

The clash, however, began to open up after the hour mark as Endrick’s introduction gave Brazil some much-needed energy in their attack but the Real Madrid striker should have opened the scoring soon after his arrival when he fired wide of the upright with only Nyland to beat.

Brazil would go on to rue that miss as Norway took the lead in the 79th minute as Haaland got ahead of Gabriel in the box and sent a powerful header into the bottom corner, taking his tally to his six goals in the competition.

The Manchester City star was not done there as he sealed the win ten minutes later by collecting a pass from Andreas Schjelderup, before taking his time to pick his spot from 20 yards out as Norway advance to the quarter-finals for the first time in their history while Brazil bow out of the competition, despite Neymar converting a late consolation from the penalty spot.

Key Performers:

Haaland was the difference on the day in New Jersey. He troubled Gabriel for most of the 90 minutes, which included the opening goal with a powerful header. Meanwhile, Nyland also played his part between the sticks with a few vital saves.

Related tags