Viking Shoot Sparks Backlash Erling Haaland & Martin Ødegaard Under Fire Ahead of World Cup

AXE to grind Erling Haaland and Norway aces pose as Vikings in ‘hyper-masculine’ World Cup shoot slammed as ‘chauvinistic’ by critics. ERLING HAALAND, Martin Odegaard and their Norway team-mates have come under criticism for a Viking-inspired photoshoot ahead of the World Cup.

The Scandinavian stars posed with shields and swords in front of a backdrop of traditional Viking longships. Despite the stunt appearing to be a bit of fun for the players, while also producing extraordinary photos, it has been criticised for being “chauvinistic” and “neo-Nazi”.

This is due to the savage nature of the Viking era, which began in the eighth century and ended soon after the Battle of Hastings in 1066.

The Vikings, under numerous different kings, had a reputation for large-scale raiding, colonising and pillaging throughout their era of European dominance.

Norwegian journalist Markus Slettholm, who writes in the newspaper Morgenbladet, described the shoot as “chauvinistic and exclusionary” due to the connotations attached to the Viking age. He went even further in a recent interview saying: “It is a bit reminiscent of what neo-Nazis were concerned about ten years ago.”

Ahead of the World Cup, Slettholm has written an article titled: “Why is it so difficult to love this Norwegian national team?”

On top of this, similar critics have taken pops at Norway‘s World Cup home kit, Jane Haug Skjoldli, a researcher and Norwegian academic, said the shirts are “hyper-masculine and right-wing extremist” to Norwegian paper Klassekampen.

Skjoldli also described the rune-like words depicted on the back of the shirts as “unfortunate and typical of neo-Nazi and fascist symbolic language”. The kits and recent shoot have given critics predictable ammunition ahead of the highly-anticipated tournament.

And the debate has reached the global spotlight, as Norway gaffer Stale Solbakken was asked for his opinion at a press conference.

He responded: “There are many bigger and more difficult topics than that. I can’t afford to waste time on that.”

The photographer, David Yarrow, who was recommended by Haaland, said: “I like to take people outside of how they’re normally photographed.

“I knew it might get some criticism, but I wanted to play on that sense of journey that goes back to the Vikings, as if they’re setting sail for America.

“Then it was just a question of doing it right. If you do it in a half hearted way or in a studio it can fall flat but we really went for it.

“We got the boats in, got everyone dressed in proper Viking gear and not pantomime stuff.”

Despite inevitable criticism, the stunt received a generally positive reaction from fans in the comments, as they gear up for a group stage alongside Iraq, Senegal and 2022 runners-up France.