Norwegian has issued a public challenge to British Airways: if Norway wins the quarter-final match of the 2026 World Cup, the British airline must change its Instagram profile picture to the Norwegian logo for 24 hours. British Airways has responded cleverly, but has yet to accept the bet.
The quarter-final match of the 2026 World Cup between Norway and England has not yet begun, but the battle on social media already has a winner in creativity. The low-cost airline Norwegian challenged British Airways to a public bet: if Norway wins, British Airways must change its Instagram profile picture to the Norwegian logo for the entire Sunday. If England wins, it will be Norwegian that displays its rival's logo.
The proposal, launched on Wednesday on Instagram, not only seeks to capitalise on the World Cup fever but also puts one of the most sacred assets of any brand on the table: its visual identity. Changing the logo, even for 24 hours, is a gesture that transcends the commercial and becomes a striking move in the midst of competition.
British Airways responds with a riddle
Rather than ignoring the challenge, British Airways responded with an equally creative post. They uploaded a photo of a Norwegian plane with a cryptic message: “Hey, Norwegian, we have something to tell you. Get close to your engine”. The image included small hidden texts that users had to discover by zooming in on the image. Among them was a phrase that adapted their historic slogan “To fly, to serve” to “To fly, to score!”, making it clear that the response, while clever, was not a definitive yes to the bet.
Norwegian replied the next day with another image: a close-up of a British Airways plane and one of Norwegian below, with the message “Get close to the back of your plane”. The Norwegian airline capped it off with a phrase adapted to the aviation world: “The ball is in your hangar, again”.
The exchange has turned into a series of installments that keeps followers of both companies on edge. Each post generates anticipation about the next move, and users are already awaiting the outcome before the starting whistle.
Other brands join the spectacle
The battle has not gone unnoticed by other airlines and entities in the sector. Finnair reacted with a popcorn emoji, as if watching the show from the front row. airBaltic was more direct, commenting that British Airways “is just afraid of Haaland”, referring to Norwegian forward Erling Haaland, one of the stars of the tournament. The official tourism account of Norway encouraged Norwegian to keep posting, while London’s Heathrow Airport sided with the English.
The participation of these accounts has turned a simple interaction between two brands into a collective conversation within the travel sector. None of them needed to produce their own content to join the phenomenon; a clever comment is enough to go viral.
For football and marketing fans, this bet provides an extra incentive. Beyond the sporting result, on Sunday it will be revealed which airline keeps its word and whether a major company like British Airways is willing to temporarily relinquish its identity on social media. For now, Norwegian has made it clear that the ball — or the plane — is in its rival's hangar.
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