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Haaland vs Kane: Will Norway or England secure a spot in the semifinals?

The 2026 US-Canada-Mexico World Cup quarterfinals have fully kicked off. At 5:00 a.m. Beijing time on July 12, the Norway national team will face England. A clash between a super dark horse that reached the round of 8 for the first time and a traditional powerhouse turned into a sensational “class reunion.” Even the prime ministers of the two countries started a “prime minister-level” verbal sparring before the match—how many stories are hidden in this game? Let’s find out now.

Haaland vs Kane

Competing for the “World No.1 striker”

In this World Cup, Norway’s forward Haaland and England’s forward Kane have both put on extremely精彩 performances.

Haaland scored 7 goals across 4 matches in this World Cup. In three matches, he netted two goals each time, breaking Norway’s personal record for goals in a single World Cup. He also led the team into the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time in the team’s history.

Kane, meanwhile, scored 6 goals with 1 assist. Although he had one fewer goal than Haaland, he repeatedly withstood pressure and delivered crucial goals when the team was in a passive position, helping the team advance all the way. In the round of 16 against the Democratic Republic of the Congo, England conceded in the 7th minute, and Kane scored two goals on his own to help the team complete a turnaround and progress.

Which of these two super strikers will become the strongest striker at this World Cup after this match? You’ll know after this one.

All familiar faces

Match level “Premier League class reunion”

Many netizens have joked that this match is like a “Premier League class reunion.” The main reason is that most of the two teams’ core players have either worked together in the Premier League or have long histories of direct competition. Their technical traits and habits are highly familiar to each other.

Old friends from Dortmund: Twin stars reunite across teams

Among the most talked-about pairs of old friends are Haaland and Bellingham. They once played together for Borussia Dortmund and helped the club win the German Cup. The two have a close personal friendship—teasing each other in training, responding to each other on the pitch—leaving countless warm moments, and fans affectionately call them the “Dortmund twin stars.” Little did they expect that years later they would wear different team jerseys and reunite in the World Cup knockout stage—also a classic highlight of a “familiar faces” matchup.

The match hasn’t even started

“Prime minister-level” verbal sparring first

On July 7 local time, UK Prime Minister Starmer met Norwegian Prime Minister Støre in Turkey. Both wore their respective team jerseys and, ahead of the upcoming match, carried out a “prime minister-level” verbal sparring.

Norwegian Prime Minister Støre was the first to “fire” and bring up a high point from Norway’s football history: “Forty-five years ago, Norway defeated England in a World Cup qualifier.”

UK Prime Minister Starmer then replied: “Yes, but you’re ignoring one thing—England has won a World Cup in 1966. So the timing belongs to us now.”

Støre smiled and said: “Then we’ll wait and see. This will be a great match.”



England’s squad has players missing
Norway have multiple players with illness

Although expectations for the “Viking pirates” vs the “Three Lions” are already at full throttle, with the match approaching, both teams have seen some small issues in their squads:

On July 9 local time, FIFA’s Disciplinary Committee announced a penalty for England defender Jarrel Quonsah. In England’s World Cup match against Mexico on July 5, Quonsah was sent off with a red card. His conduct was determined to violate Article 14 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code, so he was punished with a two-match suspension.

According to the FIFA disciplinary announcement, Quonsah’s two-game ban will be served in England’s upcoming World Cup matches. This means he will miss England’s World Cup quarterfinal, and if the team advances, he will also be absent from the semifinals.

On the other side, Norway has recently been reported to have an illness outbreak in the squad. Multiple players have been troubled by symptoms such as fever and cough, and the team is working to adjust and hope to regain their best form before the match.