British and Norwegian prime ministers banter in Ankara ahead of World Cup match

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre met at the British Embassy in Ankara for a lighthearted chat before the World Cup quarter-final between their countries.

Scraper SystemJuly 08, 2026, 12:21 PM

British and Norwegian prime ministers banter in Ankara ahead of World Cup match

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre met in Ankara ahead of the World Cup quarter-final match to be played on Sunday. The two leaders met at the British Embassy in Ankara.

During the meeting, Norwegian Prime Minister Støre shared a humorous anecdote from the past. Støre said, "First of all, you know, Prime Minister, 45 years ago Norway played England in the qualifiers and we won. The radio commentator then said: 'Maggie Thatcher, can you hear me? Your boys took a hell of a beating!'"

British Prime Minister Starmer responded to the joke with a historical fact. Starmer replied, "Yes, but there’s one thing you didn’t take into account; England only won the World Cup in 1966, under a Labour government. So that was our era."

Turning to his Norwegian counterpart, Støre maintained the friendly atmosphere by saying, "Let’s wait and see. It will be a great match."