{"id":336988,"date":"2026-07-11T15:28:08","date_gmt":"2026-07-11T15:28:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/336988\/"},"modified":"2026-07-11T15:28:08","modified_gmt":"2026-07-11T15:28:08","slug":"the-viking-ro-takes-miami-as-norway-chases-world-cup-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/336988\/","title":{"rendered":"The Viking ‘Ro!’ takes Miami as Norway chases World Cup history"},"content":{"rendered":"

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Red, white, and blue took on a different meaning in Miami on Friday as Norwegian fans flooded the city ahead of their World Cup quarterfinal against England.<\/p>\n

Norway faces England at 5 p.m. in Miami<\/a>, with supporters hoping the team’s improbable tournament run continues. The atmosphere won’t be the only thing heating up \u2014 here’s what fans can expect from the weather before kickoff<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Standing in Norway’s way is an England team loaded with talent. The Three Lions reached the quarterfinals with comeback wins over DR Congo and Mexico and are making their third straight World Cup quarterfinal<\/a> appearance.<\/p>\n

For many Norway fans, reaching this stage has already surpassed expectations.<\/p>\n

“It’s been a mind-blowing experience,” Norwegian supporter Nils Thorjussen told CBS Miami<\/a>. “The fact that we’re even in the World Cup was like a victory to begin with, and then to make it out of the group round and ultimately to beat Brazil is just insane because Norway is a small country. It’s 5 million people. It’s the size of Miami. Imagine Miami fielding a World Cup team and beating Brazil. It defies logic and imagination.”<\/p>\n

See also: Belgium celebrates World Cup win over Team USA with apparent Trump dance<\/a><\/p>\n

The Norwegians’ run has been fueled by breakout superstar Erling Haaland<\/a>, whose seven goals have helped send Norway to its first World Cup quarterfinal in decades.<\/p>\n

The celebration centered on Norway’s signature fan tradition: the Viking Row. Supporters locked arms, leaned forward in unison as if rowing a Viking ship, and erupted into cheers as drums echoed through the streets.<\/p>\n

“The Viking Row comes from our history,” fan Goran Lorkeiwicz told CBS Miami. “Norwegians were Vikings back in the day, so it plays on the history a little bit. We lean forward and row like a normal row.”<\/p>\n

Thorjussen said what began with a handful of supporters has grown into one of the tournament’s most recognizable fan traditions.<\/p>\n

“We started in Boston on a really small scale, then we went to Times Square and had 100, 200 people,” he told CBS Miami. “The next day we had 4,000 people invading Times Square and taking it over. It was insane because it’s echoing through the buildings. It’s been completely out of control.”<\/p>\n

For Norwegian Americans and fans who traveled across the pond, the gathering carried meaning beyond soccer.<\/p>\n

“This is everything,” Tom Selven, who lives in Chicago, told CBS Miami. “I’ve never seen so many Norwegians in one place, even in Norway. The whole country together, it’s special.”<\/p>\n

Nicklas Sommerold told CBS Miami England fans “are going to be pretty upset tomorrow night,” echoing the confidence shared throughout the Norwegian crowd.<\/p>\n

Thorjussen, who also attended the 1994 World Cup<\/a> in the United States, said the atmosphere has been unforgettable regardless of Saturday’s result.<\/p>\n

“You just get this incredible vibe where everybody’s super friendly and buying each other drinks,” he told CBS Miami. “From the Norwegian perspective, you actually have a team that has a chance of making it through and going far. It’s overwhelming. This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for a Norwegian. It’s probably not going to happen again, and it’s never happened before. We’re just here to savor it and have a good time.”<\/p>\n

Now, after turning Miami Beach into a slice of Scandinavia, Norway’s fans will head to the stadium hoping their spirit can carry the underdogs one step closer to the World Cup semifinals.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) \u2014 Red, white, and blue took on a different meaning in Miami on Friday…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":336989,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[123,125,124],"class_list":["post-336988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-miami","tag-miami","tag-miami-headlines","tag-miami-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=336988"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/336988\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/336989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=336988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=336988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=336988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}