Norwegian striker Erling Haaland says the team feels no pressure ahead of the World Cup quarterfinals.
Norway faces off against England in the quarterfinals on July 11. Norway has the sixth-best odds to win the World Cup, but they are a distant sixth behind England. Haaland said at a press gaggle on July 9 that he thinks England should be confident in its chances, but that all national teams should remain humble.
“Really low, still,” Haaland said when asked by a reporter about Norway’s chances. “I think there’s some clear favorites out there. England’s one of them. So I think all of you should put every single pressure on the English lads.”
He added that the pressure on England to perform is something Norway could take advantage of.
According to FanDuel sportsbook, England’s odds to win the World Cup are +480. Norway is an underdog by nearly fourfold: their odds of winning the championship are 16-to-1. France is the clear favorite at +135. Belgium and Switzerland have the worst odds at 35-to-1.
The odds are roughly similar in the prediction markets. Polymarket gives England a 16 percent chance of winning the cup, while Norway has a 6 percent chance. France has the highest chance at 39 percent, while Belgium and Switzerland are again at the bottom with 2 percent apiece.
Another reporter noted that the English faithful were confident that they would win on Saturday. Haaland said they should be.
“I think everyone should stay humble, but yeah, they should be confident of progressing,” he said. “Definitely. It’s England.”
Norway has been the Cinderella story of the 2026 World Cup.
They performed admirably in the Group Stage, with a 4–1 win over Iraq and a 3–2 win over Senegal, before being trounced 4–1 by France. They emerged as Group I runners-up. They triumphed 2–1 over Ivory Coast in the Round of 32, then stunned the world with a 2–1 victory over Brazil.
“I didn’t expect this at all,” Haaland said of Norway’s success. “I said it plenty of times, even before the Brazil game. I didn’t expect [it], and right now I didn’t expect it, to be honest. To be [in the] quarterfinals with Norway in the World Cup is quite surprisingly for even for me.”
The team’s success has surprised Haaland, but he appreciated the level of support from fans.
“I mean, playing against Brazil was kind of crazy for us Norwegians, and to win against Brazil and then go and play England in a quarterfinal in the World Cup, in the USA, is quite special. And I think if you watch the scenes back in Norway, this is not normal for Norway to be. So it’s super special,” he said.
Haaland said that playing on the World stage is a high honor and a huge personal goal for him. He said he appreciated the opportunity to play alongside his fellow countrymen against the best teams in soccer.
“If I have to take one thing it’s—when I played against Iraq the first game—was just to look around you in the stadium and just kind of—it’s difficult to take everything in because you need to kind of just play the game like it’s a training session. That’s what I try to do. So it’s difficult to take everything in, but you also kind of need to when it’s the World Cup,” he said.
It is also a highly personal match for Haaland. He was born in England; his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, played for Leeds United at the time. Haaland has played for Manchester City since 2022.
Saturday’s matchup will see him face off against friends and rivals from the English Premier League.
“It’s a special game,” he said. “I think for me it’s super special because I play in England and I’m born in England and yeah, you also play against teammates and everything. So it’s a bit—it’s not weird, but it’s—I don’t know the name in English. It’s a funny game, and it’s going to be nice.”
