World Cup 2026: Haaland Bags a Brace as Norway Rout Iraq 4-1

Haaland's Debut Double Sinks Iraq at Foxborough

Norway opened the scoring early, weathered a brief Iraq reply, and pulled away late to win 4-1 at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough — a tidy World Cup 2026 result in Group I that the numbers backed up from start to finish.

Erling Haaland announced himself on the biggest stage with two first-half goals on his World Cup debut, and the supporting cast did the rest. The stats tell the story of control: Norway held 61% possession to Iraq's 39%, generated 2.52 expected goals (xG, a measure of chance quality) against Iraq's 0.8, and carved out five big chances to Iraq's one. Norway also put five shots on target to Iraq's one, and completed 477 passes to Iraq's 271.

Iraq had their moment — Ali Hussein's first-half strike briefly made it a game — but Norway's edge in quality was clear all afternoon. Hussein's day ended on a sour note with an own goal deep into stoppage time that capped the scoring. Pierre Ghislain Atcho of Gabon refereed on a clear day with the temperature around 24°C.

How Norway and Iraq Lined Up in Foxborough

From Haaland's 29th to a Stoppage-Time Own Goal

Norway struck first in the 29th minute, Haaland finishing off a Donovan Wolfe assist to get the scoring going. Iraq hit back ten minutes later through Ali Hussein, set up by Amir Al Ammari, to make it 1-1 and inject some real tension into the contest.

That balance lasted just four minutes. Haaland grabbed his second on the stroke of half-time in the 43rd to restore Norway's lead, and Norway took a 2-1 cushion into the break. Iraq made a double change just before the hour, and both sides rotated heavily around the 73rd minute — Norway sending on Andreas Schjelderup, Kristian Thorstvedt, Leo Ostigard and Alexander Sorloth among others.

One of those substitutes made an immediate impact: Ostigard headed home a Martin Odegaard assist in the 76th to make it 3-1. Zaid Tahseen picked up Iraq's lone yellow card in the 86th, and the afternoon was wrapped up in the sixth minute of stoppage time when Hussein turned the ball into his own net for the 4-1 final.

Right Winner, Bigger Blowout Than Anyone Saw

The futbol.so community was firmly behind Norway, with a clear consensus leaning toward a Norwegian win — and that read landed. Where things diverged was the margin: the most-popular scoreline among the community was a cautious Iraq 0 - Norway 1, while the official model favoured Norway by a wide margin and even nailed the exact 4-1 result.

The country splits told a familiar story. Colombia's fans leaned Norway and gravitated toward a 2-0 scoreline, while Argentina's were genuinely divided, drifting toward the same tight 0-1. In other words, almost everyone picked the right side — but nobody on the community side had Norway running up four goals or Haaland doubling up on debut.

Video highlights

Erling Haaland's First Ever FIFA World Cup Goal | Iraq 1-4 Norway

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Highlights | Iraq 1-4 Norway | FIFA World Cup 2026™

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POKER NORVEGIA, è URAGANO HAALAND: Iraq-Norvegia 1-4 | FIFA World Cup | DAZN Highlights

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Why Jan Aage Fjortoft is concerned after Norway’s 4-1 win vs. Iraq | ESPN FC

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FIFA WC 2026 | Iraq - Norway 1:4 | Group I | 1. kolo

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HIGHLIGHTS | Iraq v Norway | Erling Haaland's World Cup Debut! | FIFA World Cup 2026

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Post-Match Player Interviews: Iraq 1-4 Norway | FIFA World Cup 2026™

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Iraq 🆚 Norway #FIFAWorldCup #FIFAWorldCupOnYT

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Irak vs Noruega (1-4) | Resumen y goles | Highlights Copa Mundial de la FIFA 2026™

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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World Cup: Iraq vs Norway

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The result settles things at both ends of Group I. Norway sit second on six points after three matches and have reached the Round of 32, while Iraq finish bottom on zero points with a minus-11 goal difference and are out of the group stage.

Norway move on with momentum and a fit, firing Haaland; Iraq head home knowing the gap in chance quality was simply too wide to bridge on the day. Plenty of highlight reels and post-match reaction are already circulating from Foxborough for anyone wanting to relive Haaland's first World Cup goals.