FIFA World Cup 2026: From Vikings to motorcades, most spectacular send-offs ahead of mega event

With the FIFA World Cup set to begin on June 11, almost every participating country has landed in North America dreaming of lifting football's ultimate prize.

But before a single ball was kicked at the World Cup, a different tournament was played; a battle for the most legendary and jaw-dropping send-offs took centre stage.

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When a nation sends its team to participate on the world's grandest stage, it is not just a departure but a moment of cultural pride, and recently, these send-off moments have caught people’s eyes and have taken the internet by storm.

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Norway: Viking photoshoot

This is the first time since 1998 that the Norwegian team has successfully qualified for the World Cup. To celebrate this, the Norwegian football federation went a notch above what anyone could have imagined.

Thanks to the Scottish photographer David Yarrow, the entire 26-man squad traded their modern tracksuits for heavy wool, leather armour, shields, and axes as they assembled for the photograph on a private beach beside a fjord in Oslo, Norway.

The portrait, titled Norway is Coming, instantly went viral, as it was seen as a historically-rooted nod to early Norse explorers sailing to North America.

Brazil: Water salute

A country where football is a religion, and their send-off from Rio de Janeiro's Galeão International Airport was also treated like a ceremony.

As the fire engines sprayed water in an arc formation – an aviation salute – over the aircraft before it took off, carrying the Brazilian dream of World Cup glory.

Traditionally, this sort of ceremony is reserved for special flights, and in this case, it is seen as a spiritual rite that is meant to invoke divine protection, safety and good fortune.

Turkey: Motorcade

For the first time in 24 years, the Turkish team is all set to play in the World Cup. When the time came for the fans to give their team a final send-off before the World Cup, they made sure to treat them no less than royalty, as a literal convoy of 100 vehicles escorted them to the airport.

With fans hung out of windows, waving massive crescent-and-star flags, honking in rhythmic unison, and setting off red-and-white smoke bombs right on the highway, it remains a sight to remember.

To put the scale of the spectacle into perspective, even the US President Trump convoy is typically composed of 40 to 50 vehicles.