An elementary school teacher walked into a bar in a northern Oslo suburb last winter with a list of chants in his pocket. One of them — the "Viking Row" — now has 38 million Instagram views and has been performed in Times Square, at a PGA Tour event, and in three World Cup stadiums. Ole Frøystad knew it was something. He just didn't know it would become this.
The mechanics are simple: a Norse horn blows, fans drop to the floor in a longboat formation, a drum starts slow and builds, and then thousands of arms row in unison while chanting "ROW." Simple to watch. Apparently simple to catch on to — because at the 2026 World Cup, it is genuinely everywhere.
From a Bar in Oslo to Times Square
Frøystad's inspiration came from two places: a Rosenborg match years ago, where three stands took turns booming the club's name at each other like a call-and-response cannon, and Iceland's famous "Viking Clap" from Euro 2016. He took the rising tempo from Iceland, the communal thunder from Rosenborg, and added a physical rowing motion rooted in actual Viking history. "They rowed into battle," he said. "It was just like a light bulb."
The first trial, against Switzerland in March, was underwhelming. Some fans said it looked silly. Frøystad diagnosed the problem immediately — nobody was using their back. You have to lean into it. He made instructional social media videos, got them onto Norwegian news channels, and drilled the proper form before Norway's final home game against Sweden. That was the one that clicked.
He posted the video from that game on his personal Instagram account — the regular kind, not an influencer account — and it hit 38 million views before the World Cup even started.
Norway's Players Are All In — Their Manager, Less So
Erling Haaland, who in March spent the equivalent of $136,000 on a 16th-century Viking history book just to put it on public display in his hometown of Bryne, has been all over the chant on social media. Captain Martin Ødegaard went further — he personally banged the drum to lead the row in front of supporters after Norway's 3-2 win over Senegal that secured their knockout stage place. For a squad playing their first World Cup in nearly 30 years, the moment landed.
Manager Ståle Solbakken has been notably cooler about it. "It's fun for the fans," he said after the Senegal win. "We will not be rowing after the World Cup, but this can be a gimmick during the tournament." There's a manager keeping his feet on the ground while everyone else grabs oars.
The cultural resonance goes deeper than a football chant, though. Retired professor Terje Leiren — knighted by Norwegian King Harald V for his research into Scandinavian history — draws a direct line between the Viking act of leaving home to seek glory and what Norway's squad is doing in America. "It's sort of a metaphor," he says. "That's sort of what they're doing." Not everyone in Norway buys it — some commentators have pushed back on lionising a group historically defined by raiding and pillaging — but as sporting metaphors go, it fits a team that has waited 28 years to be back on this stage.
Norway's round of 32 opponent is Ivory Coast. If they advance, expect the row to get louder. Frøystad has 14 other chants on that notepad — and he's not planning to use them yet. This one still has plenty of runway.
