WC 2026 · HEAD-TO-HEAD · GROUP I MEETING
🇳🇴
Norway
GROUP IFIFA #317 PL
vs
🇸🇳
Senegal
GROUP IFIFA #148 PL
WHAT THIS MATCHUP MEANS

The story before a ball is kicked

Norway arrive in Group I as the underdog seed with 7 Premier League players in their squad. Senegal share that group as the top-fifteen FIFA seed with 8 PL regulars.

The two meet directly in the group stage. The result is critical — Group I's order through R32 is decided across just three matchdays, and head-to-head between equally-ranked teams is the second tiebreaker after points.

Neither side has a meaningful structural edge — this is a coin-toss on paper. Below: a six-dimension head-to-head, the Premier League club distribution per squad, and the Onside verdict.

INTERACTIVE · COMBINED DREAM XI

Build the best XI from BOTH squads

Tap any pitch slot to pick from Norway + Senegal. Switch formation any time. Saved on this device.

▶ SHARE ON X
0 / 11NOR 0·SEN 0
+GK+DEF+DEF+DEF+DEF+MID+MID+MID+FWD+FWD+FWD

Sources: official 26-man squads via football-data.org · Premier League roster fallback when feed lags. Loading saved picks…

HEAD-TO-HEAD · 6 DIMENSIONS

Norway vs Senegal — where each one wins

Each row scores the two teams 0–100 on a dimension. Longer bar = stronger. The colour-coded chip on the right names the winner of each axis.

FormHow strong they are on paper (FIFA world ranking)
SEN +17
70
87
PL footprintHow many Premier League players are in the squad
SEN +4
32
36
Host edgeWhether they have home advantage as a host nation
LEVEL
0
0
Group seedSeed position in their group of four
SEN +25
50
75
ConfedTheir confederation's historical tournament strength
NOR +32
92
60
ExperienceA proxy for tournament heritage (rank + confederation)
NOR +20
82
62
Norway
Senegal
SQUAD CLUBS · PL PERSPECTIVE

Whose PL players are at the World Cup

If you own any of these clubs' assets in FPL, this matchup matters to your pre-season — tournament minutes here become Saturday minutes in August.

SQUAD · PL CLUB BREAKDOWN

Where Norway's 7 PL players come from

For FPL managers: if you own any of these clubs' assets, Norway's tournament minutes shape your pre-season. Man City leads with 2 players (29%).

7PL STARS
Man City2 · 29%
Wolves1 · 14%
Brentford1 · 14%
Arsenal1 · 14%
Fulham1 · 14%
Crystal Palace1 · 14%
SQUAD · PL CLUB BREAKDOWN

Where Senegal's 8 PL players come from

For FPL managers: if you own any of these clubs' assets, Senegal's tournament minutes shape your pre-season. Chelsea leads with 2 players (25%).

8PL STARS
Chelsea2 · 25%
Everton2 · 25%
West Ham1 · 13%
Sunderland1 · 13%
Spurs1 · 13%
Crystal Palace1 · 13%
ONSIDE VERDICT

Coin-toss · no clear structural edge

This is a genuine coin-toss. Both sides are level on FIFA ranking weight and shared structural advantages.

REFERENCE · AXIS BREAKDOWN
AxisNorwaySenegalEdge
Form7087SEN +17
PL footprint3236SEN +5
Host edge00level
Group seed5075SEN +25
Confed9260NOR +32
Experience8262NOR +20
OTHER COMPARISONS
HEAD-TO-HEAD · MODEL RATINGS

Norway vs Senegal

NORWAY
SENEGAL
FORM SCORE
54
79
ATTACK
58
78
DEFENCE
47
70
EXPERIENCE
51
70
SQUAD-STRENGTH BREAKDOWN

Strength by department

NORWAY
  • Attack49
  • Midfield44
  • Defence39
  • GK29
SENEGAL
  • Attack66
  • Midfield61
  • Defence56
  • GK46
PREVIOUS WORLD CUP ENCOUNTERS

No previous WC encounters

These two haven't met at a World Cup in our 2002-2022 window. Qualifier + friendly history will be added as football-data feed warms up.

WC 2002-2022
Norway vs Senegal
No meeting in this window

Source: openfootball/worldcup.json (CC0). World Cup 2002 → 2022 inclusive.

KEY PLAYERS · BOTH SIDES

The match-defining names

NORWAY

Top-3 by projected xP/90 — these are the players the model rates as match-defining for Norway.

View full Norway squad →
SENEGAL

Top-3 by projected xP/90 — these are the players the model rates as match-defining for Senegal.

View full Senegal squad →
WC MATCHDAY BRIEF · ONE LIST, TWO SEASONS

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