Côte d'Ivoire vs Norway | FIFA World Cup 2026 — Round of 32 | Preview and Prediction

The round of 32 line-up of fixtures at the 2026 FIFA World Cup has featured some really tough encounters, and this is another one of them. Former AFCON champions Côte d’Ivoire will take on a tricky Norway outfit on June 30 at Dallas Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

For the game, here we present our preview and prediction.

FIFA WC26 | Round of 32: CIV vs NOR | 22:30 IST, June 30, 2026

Ivory Coast returned to the men’s World Cup finals stage after a 12-year absence, while their opponents Norway qualified after a gap of 28 years, hence qualifying for the knockouts has been a decent achievement for both teams — especially for Norway, as they were part of a potential “group of death”.

Les Éléphants opened the campaign with a dramatic late win against Ecuador before faltering against Germany despite taking the lead. However, they defeated newcomers Curaçao to book a place in the round of 32, with young RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomandé impressing up front and captain Franck Kessié and Amad Diallo also making telling contributions.

As for their opponents, the Vikings had been thoroughly impressive until they came across France in the last group stage game. Norway first defeated Iraq 4–1 and then narrowly beat Senegal to ensure knockout qualification, but they were humbled by France in what was a dead rubber for both sides in their last group stage outing.

Erling Haaland has been exceptional in this World Cup campaign, having registered back-to-back braces, while midfielder and captain Martin Ødegaard and winger Antonio Nusa have been their main creative force.

For this game, Ivory Coast will miss Wilfried Singo due to a hamstring injury, while Norway could be without Julian Ryerson, who is doubtful due to a thigh problem.

The Ivorians do possess the attacking talent up front to trouble the Norwegians, but they need to watch out for their opponents’ attack. While the Norway defence is vulnerable, they are more than capable of making up for it with a lethal Haaland leading their attack at the other end.

The knockout games so far have been tight encounters, with two of them going to penalties and few goals being conceded in regular time. This is going to be another cagey encounter, but we believe Norway would edge Côte d’Ivoire to book their place in the last 16.

Score Prediction: Côte d’Ivoire 1–2 Norway
Venue: Dallas Stadium, Arlington, Texas, USA