As he moved through the concourse at MetLife Stadium, Tobias Melseth was approached by a total stranger looking to take a selfie.
He obliged. As he has nearly a dozen times since arriving in the region last weekend.
Is Melseth an international celebrity? Hardly.
He’s one better: He’s from Norway.
Melseth drew attention simply for wearing the uniform of country that seemingly has been the big winner of a World Cup that won’t decide a champion for two more weeks.
“I’ve had like ten people ask me for photos — and I just got here Friday,” he said.
Norway has won over the region for more than just its play on the pitch — which has been stellar; it is now a quarterfinalist for an event it was just hoping to qualify for.
Its national spirit is the difference.
The Norwegians captured the attention of the country with their rhythmic “Ro! Ro!” cheers — an effort that has moved from World Cup matches to wherever a crowd of Norwegians has been spotted the past few weeks — at baseball games or in Times Square.
It was a big hit Sunday afternoon, too, as even non-Norwegians attempted to participate.
Here’s the deal: Melseth said the rowing cheer wasn’t all that popular with Norwegian fans when it was introduced during qualifying.
“I was surprised at first, because in Norway, when we first started routing, everyone hated it,” he said. “It was like 10 people doing it, and everyone was laughing, saying, ‘No, no, no — don’t do that.
“And then suddenly everyone loves it around the world.”
The only question now? How long can they keep it going.
As long as it has star player Erling Haaland (two more goals Sunday), Norway is a legitimate contender to win it all. But this is no longer a win-or-go-home situation.
The attention on the country could add to greater tourism.
Øyvind Stubberud, the father in a father-son combo who made the trip together, sure hopes so. He encouraged New Jerseyans to come visit Norway’s fjords this summer.
“To the west coast, all the fjords, the mountains,” he said, rattling off an impromptu travel itinerary.
Marita Wemsley, a Norway native now living in Washington, D.C., also pushed for more publicity for her native land.
“I love it. I think it’s great,” Wemsley said. “It’s like, so fun to be Norway in the States right now.”
Back home, the greatest impact of this 39-day event could be a changing of culture in a sports-crazed country.
Norway is known mostly for skiing (they are the best in the cross-country discipline) and handball (not the handball you’re thinking; the cool sport that should have a greater following here).
Soccer is now taking over.
Norway’s soccer history is short. And not all that impressive. It qualified for the World Cup in 1994 and 1998 (failing to get out of the group stages both times) and for the European Championships in 2000. But it failed to qualify for the next twelve major tournaments from 2001-25.
Melseth and Leander Østrem, who traveled to the match from Ålesund, Norway, broke down the sports of choice in their native land.
“It’s football or skiing or handball,” he said. “That’s what we do. That’s our culture.”
As for Rowing.
“That’s just what we do when we’re watching football,” Østrem said.
