Sorloth's girlfriend speaks out after death threats follow Norway's World Cup exit

Lena Selnes, the girlfriend of Atletico Madrid striker Alexander Sorloth, has publicly called out the torrent of abuse she and her partner received on Instagram after Norway were eliminated from the 2026 World Cup by England in the quarter-finals. Among the messages she shared were multiple comments urging both her and Sorloth to take their own lives.

Selnes posted a screenshot of her notifications to her Instagram story, showing seven hateful comments directed at either herself or the Norwegian forward. “The World Cup and football bring a lot of joy, but also a lot of hate,” she wrote. “I don’t really want to give it any attention, but feel the need to after comments like this.” She closed the post with an appeal for basic decency: “Hope everyone can think a little extra before making such comments, regardless of the situation.”

The abuse came despite Sorloth not even being on the pitch when England won the match in extra time. The former Crystal Palace striker had been substituted during the second half of Saturday’s game, meaning he played no part in the decisive moments.

Sorloth did, however, feature in what many observers considered the match’s pivotal moment just before half-time, when Norway were still leading 1-0. He and Erling Haaland found themselves two-on-one against John Stones, with Declan Rice and Nico O’Reilly tracking back. Rather than releasing the ball to the better-positioned Haaland, Sorloth continued to dribble and was eventually crowded out by England’s defenders.

“I take a touch and look up, and then I see that Stones blocks that pass,” Sorloth said afterwards. “Then I take another touch, and that is too bad. I wait for him to make a move instead of me making him make a move.”

He added: “The only thing I want in that situation there is to pass to Erling. Then it feels like that pass isn’t there, and then I go for the shot.”

Sorloth started four of Norway’s five matches at the tournament, with his only absence from the starting lineup coming in their 4-1 defeat to France, when coach Stale Solbakken rotated his squad. He shared minutes with Fulham’s Oscar Bobb throughout the competition. The quarter-final defeat to England brought Norway’s run at the North American tournament to a close.