Norway, guided by Erling Haaland, begin their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign against Iraq in their opening match as part of Group I. Destined to be this tournament’s dark horse, the Landslaget aims to earn its first three points.
Norway arrive to the World Cup as a huge dark horse contender for one reason: their dominant qualifying campaign. They topped their qualifying group that includes the likes of Italy by going unbeaten with a 100% win ratio. They won their eight games, scoring 37 goals and only conceding five.
Iraq’s journey to the World Cup wasn’t as flawless. They had to go to the international playoffs and beat Bolivia to earn their spot in the tournament. Hence, they come in as massive underdogs. The city, stadium and weather for Noway vs Iraq are also confirmed.
Iraq vs Norway predicted lineups
It is likely that Iraq‘s manager, Graham Arnold, will use a classic 4-2-3-1 formation: Jalal Hassan; Hussein Ali, Zaid Tahseen, Rebin Sulaka, Merchas Doski; Ali Jasim, Amir Al-Ammari; Ibrahim Bayesh, Zidane Iqbal, Ali Al Hamadi; Aymen Hussein.
The Norway team
As for Norway, Ståle Solbakken will use his patented 4-4-2 to exploit his great attacking force. The predicted lineup looks like this: Orjan Nyland; Julian Ryerson, Kristoffer Ajer, Torbjorn Heggem, David Moller Wolfe; Sander Berge, Fredrik Aursnes, Martin Odegaard, Antonio Nusa; Alexander Sorloth, Erling Haaland.
Who is the referee for Iraq vs Norway?
Gabonese referee Pierre Ghislain Atcho is the main official that will command order for the 2026 FIFA World Cup Group I match between Iraq and Norway at Boston Stadium.
The full list of match officials includes:
- Referee: Pierre Ghislain Atcho (Gabon)
- Assistant Referee 1: Boris Ditsoga (Gabon)
- Assistant Referee 2: Amos Abeigne Ndong (Gabon)
- Fourth Official: Amin Mohamed (Egypt)
- VAR Official: Jarred Gillett (Australia)
Which uniforms will France and Senegal wear?
Iraq will use a full-white kit with some little details in red and black while their goalkeeper will wear yellow. As for Norway, it’s a fully red uniform with a cross referring to their flag in blue with white borders. Norway’s keeper will use a light blue kit.
Iraq vs Norway kits
