Norway Coach Breaks Silence After Controversial Erling Haaland Decision

Friday afternoon’s showdown between France and Norway could have given fans a glimpse at two of the best goal scorers in soccer history.

Instead, Norway decided to bench Erling Haaland, not allowing fans to see him compete against Kylian Mbappe as the two sit tied for second in the Golden Boot race with four goals apiece. With Haaland and several other starters on the bench, the Norwegian side fell 4-1 and locked up second place in the group.

Following the game, Norway head coach Stale Solbakken said his decision to sit 10 first-team players in the matchup was a “no brainer” as the team opted to recover for the Round of 32.

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“This is simple,” Solbakken said. “We did a summary after Senegal [on Monday], and five or six players were very affected after 80 minutes of play. The entire defense and some midfielders were very affected. We also know that from the Senegal game that Norway had the shortest window to play another match today.”

He suggested the team “could have played a decent match today” but ultimately the team wants to win and doubted his side’s readiness for play following a quick turnaround.

“So, it was a no-brainer on my part and also from the physio and health and medical and from some players themselves. They all said it would be difficult for many of them [to play],” he said.

Norway will now face off against Ivory Coast in the Round of 32 before a potential a potential showdown against Brazil or Japan in the Round of 16.

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This story was originally published June 27, 2026 at 12:37 PM.