What was claimed
Norway is refusing to play Israel in their scheduled 2026 World Cup qualifiers later this year.
Our verdict
False. These matches are still scheduled to go ahead, according to the Norwegian Football Federation.
Norway is not boycotting 2026 World Cup qualifiers with Israel
A number of posts on Facebook have claimed that Norway is refusing to play its 2026 World Cup qualification matches with Israel.
But this isn’t correct. These matches will go ahead, the Norwegian Football Federation (NFF) told Full Fact.
Norway’s men’s football team is scheduled to play Israel twice this year, first in March, then again in October, as part of the round of World Cup European qualifiers.
Some of the Facebook posts claim: “Norway refuses to face Israel in 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Calls for expulsion”.
When we asked the NFF about the Facebook posts, it told us that there “has not been any change” in its position in reference to statements made by its president, Lise Klaveness, in December 2024.
She said: “Israel is currently part of UEFA’s competitions. We are following the situation closely, and follow the policies set by FIFA, UEFA and the Norwegian authorities. This means our national team will play against Israel—in March away on a neutral pitch, and in October at home at Ullevaal Stadium. Everyone now has a clear responsibility to protect and respect the football matches and the players on both teams.”
As others have written, it’s possible that these posts arose as a result of a misinterpretation of other comments made by Ms Klaveness, after the World Cup qualifying groups were drawn in December.
According to Norwegian news organisation ABC Nyheter, and translated by Google, Ms Klaveness said on 14 December: “Yesterday we drew Israel in the World Cup qualifiers. It is difficult for us, even beyond the purely sporting aspect. None of us can be indifferent to the disproportionate attacks that Israel has subjected the civilian population in Gaza to over time.
“Israel is still part of UEFA’s competitions. We have to deal with this. We are closely monitoring the situation with both FIFA, UEFA and the Norwegian authorities.”
False or misleading claims online have the potential to harm individuals, groups and democratic processes and institutions. Online claims can spread fast and far, and are difficult to contain and correct.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because these matches are still scheduled to go ahead, according to the Norwegian Football Federation.