On 17 November 2025, I stood outside Oslo City Hall with a camera around my neck and had no real business being there for football. I have no interest in sport. The closest I get is a vague glance at curling or show jumping, and even then I know nothing about either.

Still, I had decided to head into town that evening, because there was a crowd out there and crowds are something I like to photograph. The night before, the men’s national team had beaten Italy 4–1 at San Siro, securing Norwegian men’s national football team World Cup qualification since 1998.

50 000 people and a balcony

The celebration was held at Rådhusplassen. The Norwegian Football Federation estimated around 50 000 people were present, which I cannot confirm, but it was certainly very packed and very loud.

Mayor Anne Lindboe welcomed the players inside the City Hall, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre was there, and there was no shortage of familiar faces from Norwegian politics and culture. The players came out onto the balcony and were met with a roar. I caught some of that, but it was not what I came to photograph.

A good excuse to test new gear

The real reason I brought a camera that evening was to test equipment. I used a Nikon Zf with a NIKKOR Z 28mm f/2.8 (SE) lens and a newly purchased Godox flash running on a remote trigger. A large crowd is a decent place to practise flash photography.

Not much can go seriously wrong, and there is plenty to work with. The lens is small and unobtrusive, and the flash produces a hard, direct light that suits portraits of people in motion. I moved through the crowd, experimenting with flash position and power. The combination performed better than I had expected.

I photographed the crowd, not the players

I deliberately pointed my camera at the crowd rather than at the players on the balcony. That is what most people would have photographed, but for me it is those who turn up that are interesting. Who are they, and why do they care so much? The faces in the crowd say more about what this means to people than a player waving from a podium ever could.

That is the same choice I make in situations like this: I am more drawn to the audience than to those on the stage. The photos below are a result of that choice.

One small observation

It did not take long before my mind drifted to something other than shooting. The men’s team is almost always referred to simply as «the Norwegian national team» or just «Norway». The women’s team is something you specify.

After a quick research on my phone during shooting, I found out that Norway’s women’s national team has qualified for every World Cup since the first official tournament in 1991, and won it in 1995. That is nine consecutive World Cups.

As far as I can recall, those achievements have never attracted the same enthusiasm from the public, politicians, or the cultural world, as the men received for qualifying once after 28 years.

Curious.

Anyway, here are the photos: