Norway pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the 2026 World Cup, beating Brazil 2-1 in the Round of 16 on Sunday at New York/New Jersey Stadium to eliminate the five-time champions from the tournament. A brace from Erling Haaland sealed Norway's first-ever quarterfinal berth, sending the Scandinavians through to face the winner of the Mexico–England clash.

The first half was tense and short on clear chances, with a Norway goal ruled out for offside and a missed penalty from Bruno Guimarães, saved by goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland in a standout stop. Brazil, fielding Vinícius Júnior, Gabriel Martinelli, Endrick, and Neymar, struggled to create real danger despite controlling much of the possession, while Norway stayed compact defensively and waited for its opening.

The second half flipped the script entirely. Haaland, quiet for most of the match, struck twice when it mattered most — first heading Norway in front, then sealing it late with a low, powerful strike from outside the box to make it 2-0. Brazil pulled one back deep into stoppage time when Neymar converted a second penalty, awarded after a foul by Leo Østigård on Casemiro, but there was no time left for a comeback.

The brace lifted Haaland to seven goals in the tournament, tying him with Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé atop the World Cup's scoring charts. For Brazil, the loss marks its earliest World Cup exit since Italy 1990, when it fell to Argentina at the same stage, and brings an abrupt end to Carlo Ancelotti's campaign on U.S. soil.

The result also carries historical weight. Norway had already been the only national team in the world to face Brazil more than once without ever losing, with two friendly draws on record and a memorable 2-1 win in the group stage of the 1998 World Cup in France. That match was settled by a stoppage-time penalty from Kjetil Rekdal, capping a comeback that denied Brazil an unbeaten run through that tournament. Nearly three decades later, history repeated itself — this time in a knockout-stage setting.

With a quarterfinal spot secured, Norway heads into uncharted territory for its national team and will look to keep the run going against the winner of Sunday's Mexico–England match. On the other side, Brazil now faces the fallout from an elimination that deals a heavy blow to one of the tournament's title favorites and reopens questions about Ancelotti's side after a run that had, until this match, gone smoothly.