"It's like a fairytale that is coming true." That's Gøran Sørloth, watching his son Alexander lead Norway's attack at the 2026 World Cup — alongside Erling Haaland, whose father Alf-Inge lined up next to Sørloth Sr. at the exact same tournament, in the exact same country, 32 years ago.
Three players in Norway's current squad — Alexander Sørloth, Erling Haaland, and Kristian Thorstvedt — are sons of teammates from the 1994 World Cup side. Add Patrick Berg, whose father Ørjan earned 19 caps for Norway between 1988 and 2000, and you've got a generational overlap that has no precedent at a World Cup. This isn't coincidence. It's something stranger and more compelling than that.
Tears, anxiety, and sliding door moments
Erik Thorstvedt — Kristian's father and Norway's goalkeeper in '94 — admitted he had tears running down his cheeks before his son took the field against Iraq. He was also, by his own account, too anxious to fully enjoy it. "As a father and ex-goalkeeper, you are aware of the downsides if you make a penalty two minutes from the end or score an own goal." That's the parenthood tax. Pride and dread running in parallel.
Thorstvedt and Sørloth were roommates at the '94 tournament. Now they're sitting in the stands watching their kids do what they couldn't quite finish. Norway's 1994 campaign ended in agonising fashion — they beat Mexico, drew with Ireland, lost to Italy, and finished level on four points and goal difference with every other team in the group. They went out on goals scored. One goal scored. That's the kind of exit that stays with a player.
Kristian Thorstvedt almost didn't make it to professional football at all. No Norwegian clubs wanted him, and he was set to study at university in New Hampshire. His father made one last call to an old friend coaching at Viking Stavanger — "Let him come for a week." He got a contract. "The margins are so small," Erik Thorstvedt said. "These sliding doors moments define our lives."
What this Norway squad could actually do
The sentimental storyline is real, but so is Norway's threat in this tournament. Haaland has scored more than a goal per game for the national team — a ratio that, as Thorstvedt puts it, "is out of this world" for a side that wasn't consistently among Europe's elite before his arrival. Norway hadn't qualified for a World Cup since France '98 before this year. Haaland is the primary reason they're back.
That goal return makes Norway worth watching in the outright and top scorer markets. A striker averaging better than one per game at international level, on home-continent soil, with a supporting cast that includes players raised on exactly this kind of pressure — it's not nothing.
Alexander Sørloth played handball and was in Norway's national speed skating setup at 12. Kristian Thorstvedt nearly went to college in the US instead of turning professional. These aren't footballers who had their paths smoothed for them by famous surnames. That context matters when you're assessing how a team handles a World Cup knockout stage.
Gøran Sørloth, for his part, says watching Alexander is better than playing himself. "I've been proud, really proud of him and the team and everyone." His old roommate Thorstvedt is less serene about the whole thing — but then, he was a goalkeeper. They worry professionally.
"One match at a time," is all Sørloth Sr. will offer on Norway's chances. As advice goes, it's not wrong.
