By Live Vedeler Nilsen – June 12, 2026

Editor’s note: This article was originally published on the site of the Norwegian National Library as “Så vikingene egentlig slik ut?”

There are many opinions about the Norwegian national team’s Viking aesthetic in the lead-up to this year’s World Cup. But is it really Viking aesthetics that we see in the controversial photograph?

In foreign media such as The Telegraph and Fox News, the Norwegian men’s national football team is praised for its original World Cup image. The BBC describes the image as “epic.”

At home, the response has been a bit more lukewarm. The image has been called hypermasculine and low brow by some, while others think it’s great that the national team takes ownership of the Viking aesthetic.

But at the risk of being a party pooper and a killjoy:

The Vikings Did not Dress this Way

I think it’s a bit funny that everyone seems to agree this is the Viking aesthetic, when authentic Viking clothes were something else entirely. Even a quick Google search will show that, says Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir, a researcher at the National Library who specializes in the Middle Ages and medievalism.

Archaeological finds show that the Vikings liked to dress in bright colors – red, green, yellow and blue, and in wool and linen fabrics. The very richest could have bits of silk sewn into their collars or sleeves. “I don’t think we’d have looked on the national team as being so strong and manly if they were dressed in what the Vikings actually wore,” notes Friðriksdóttir.

The aesthetic that everyone now associates with the Vikings, Friðriksdóttir believes, comes from modern popular culture – especially the series “Vikings,” but also fantasy films and series such as the Greyjoy family in “Game of Thrones” and “God of War: Ragnarok.”

“There is also some punk aesthetics mixed in with this, in the hairstyles, for example, and the use of leather. This is perhaps to symbolize toughness, that one is strong, individualistic and a bit of a rule breaker,” says Friðriksdóttir and adds: “The Viking aesthetic as we perceive it today is a mashup of everything possible, but is least of all based on “real” Viking finds.”

The idea that Viking helmets had horns comes from the 19th century, more specifically from the premiere of Richard Wagner’s opera “The Ring of the Nibelung” in 1876. The opera is based on saga literature and Norse mythology, among other things.

Haaland and Ødegaard, today’s Nansen?

The fact that we in Norway are interested in our warrior ancestors is not a new phenomenon. Towards the end of the 19th century, there was tremendous interest in this part of history.

1899 saw the publication of the most famous illustrated translation of Heimskringla, Snorri Sturlason’s work from the late 13th century. Gustav Storm, the historian who did the translation from Old Norse to modern Norwegian, was very concerned that the illustrations should be historically accurate. Illustrators Halfdan Egedius, Christian Krohg, Gerhard Munthe, Eilif Peterssen, Erik Werenskiold and Wilhelm Wetlesen, some of the biggest names in the artworld of their time, had to bite their tongue to avoid getting a scolding from Storm. There are letters in which Gustav Storm reprimands the illustrators for a lack of historical accuracy, notes Friðriksdóttir.

Even though the illustrations at that time were more historically accurate than David Yarrow’s football-Viking photo, those depictions of Vikings were also characterized by notions of masculinity and male ideals. For example, Fridtjof Nansen was used as a model for some of the illustrations, which is very clear to see in the representations of Olav Tryggvason.

Nansen was the foremost masculine ideal of his time, and also a kind of modern Viking, with his polar expeditions and voyages of discovery. Then as now, the male ideal was about being physically superior, an explorer, someone who was not afraid to throw themselves into the unknown, explains Friðriksdóttir. Even though the illustrations were more historically correct at that time, I think they wanted to convey the same values: Norwegian men are like Nansen, or like Haaland, they function as bodily manifestations of these Norwegian masculine ideals.

Why the Viking Age?

Friðriksdóttir believes there are good reasons why it suits the national team to be associated with rugged Vikings. “I think the use of Norse aesthetics and symbols is an easy way to communicate values ​​and characteristics.” She adds, “For athletes, physical strength, speed and dominance are important – perhaps you want your opponents to be a little scared.”

The same could be said of the Norwegian fjord setting used as a background in the photo – a rugged and harsh landscape – and the Viking ships, which have traditionally symbolized speed and mobility.

The fantasy-football Vikings are probably too tough to be intimidated by historically correct medievalists. But if there are any similarities between this year’s World Cup and the Battle of Stiklestad, it will probably be in the form of immediate sainthood rather than aesthetics.

Translation:  Katherine Larson, PhD, Affiliate Assistant Professor, Department of Scandinavian Studies, University of Washington, Seattle

June 2026