Erling Haaland scored a brace as Norway beat Italy 4-1 in their final FIFA World Cup qualifying fixture on Sunday.
The emphatic victory allowed Norway to top Group I with a perfect record and reach the finals for the first time since 1998.
Norway scored 37 goals and conceded only five in eight qualifiers, recording statistically the best World Cup qualifying campaign in history.
Haaland drove Norway’s charge to the grand stage, scoring a whopping 16 times in eight games, with none of them coming from the penalty spot. He is now the joint-highest scorer in a single World Cup qualifying campaign alongside Robert Lewandowski (Poland).
| Player | Country | World Cup Edition (Qualifiers For) | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Erling Haaland | Norway | 2026 | 16 |
| Robert Lewandowski | Poland | 2018 | 16 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Portugal | 2018 | 15 |
| Predrag Mijatovic | Yugoslavia | 1998 | 14 |
| Memphis Depay | Netherlands | 2022 | 12 |
| Harry Kane | England | 2022 | 12 |
| Romelu Lukaku | Belgium | 2018 | 11 |
| Robin van Persie | Netherlands | 2014 | 11 |
Haaland will enter the 2026 FIFA World Cup with the weight of expectations on his shoulders.
In their previous three World Cup finals appearances (1938, 1994, 1998), Norway could not go beyond the Round of 16. With the joint-top scorer in World Cup qualifying leading the attack, the Norwegians can dare to dream big.
History, however, shows that World Cup qualifying top scorers have rarely been able to live up to expectations at the main event.
How World Cup Qualifying Top Scorers Have Performed at the Finals
WCQ Heroes Who Underperformed at the World Cup
Robert Lewandowski (2018)
In the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Robert Lewandowski topped the scoring charts. The Polish striker scored 16 goals in 10 matches, netting three hat-tricks (Denmark, Romania, Armenia) en route.
However, at the World Cup finals, Lewandowski could not score as Poland exited in the group stage.
Mephis Depay and Harry Kane (2022)
Memphis Depay and Harry Kane scored 12 goals each in the 2022 World Cup qualifying, finishing as joint top-scorers of the campaign. However, in the World Cup finals, neither managed to live up to expectations.
Depay scored only one goal in five games, in the 3-1 win over the US in the Round of 16. He was ineffective in the quarter-finals as Argentina knocked the Netherlands out.
World. Class. 👏
Harry Kane now has more international goals than Pele 🦁
Pele scored 77 in 92 caps for Brazil, while England's captain got his 77th and 78th tonight in his 112th cap. 🇧🇷🏴 pic.twitter.com/lVVvFaMIel
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) November 16, 2025
England frontman Kane was also disappointing in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. After failing to score in any of the three group-stage games, Kane found the net in the 3-0 win over Senegal.
He scored one goal in the quarter-final against France but then missed a late penalty. Les Bleus came away with a 2-1 win.
Romelu Lukaku (2018)
Romelu Lukaku scored 11 goals in eight 2018 World Cup qualifying matches. The former Chelsea man had an equally explosive start to the World Cup finals, as he scored back-to-back braces against Panama (3-0) and Tunisia (5-2).
However, Lukaku could not score in the next four matches for Belgium (Japan, Brazil, France, and England).
Predrag Mijatovic (1998)
Predrag Mijatovic was the top scorer in the 1998 World Cup qualifying, scoring 14 goals for Yugoslavia. Seven of his 14 goals, however, came in the play-off tie against Hungary, which Yugoslavia won 12-1 on aggregate.
He scored only one goal in four games at the 1998 World Cup. Mijatovic missed a penalty in Yugoslavia’s 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands in the Round of 16.
World Cup Qualifying Stars Who Performed at the Finals
Cristiano Ronaldo (2018)
Cristiano Ronaldo also posted world-class numbers in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying. The Portugal captain scored 15 goals in nine games. He averaged 1.67 goals per game and scored two hat-tricks (Andorra, Faroe Islands).
Ronaldo laid down the marker in the first group-stage fixture of the World Cup. He scored a hat-trick, which included a free-kick, as Portugal drew 3-3 with Spain. He also scored the only goal in Portugal’s 1-0 win over Morocco.
Ronaldo’s goals proved invaluable as Portugal reached the Round of 16. However, he blanked in the Round of 16 and Portugal lost to Uruguay and exited the competition.
Ronaldo is bidding to participate in his sixth World Cup next year. However, after his red card against Ireland, fans are anxious to know how many World Cup matches Ronaldo could miss.
Robin van Persie (2014)
Dutch striker Robin van Persie lit the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign, scoring 11 times in nine matches.
He carried over that form to the finals, scoring a brace in the Netherlands’ 5-1 win over Spain in the group opener. Van Persie also scored in the 3-2 win over Australia and in the third-place play-off victory (3-0) against Brazil.
Erling Haaland will head into the 2026 FIFA World Cup as one of the players to watch. Stats show that he will not have it easy, as only two formidable scorers in recent history have left a mark in the finals.
However, considering the form that he is in and how good Norway have become in feeding him the ball, it will not be a surprise if he takes the tournament by storm.
