18/07/2026
20260713 Weekly News Review
Norwegian Air Swaps Instagram Logo After Losing World Cup Bet to British Airways
The wager was straightforward. Whichever airline's national team lost the England vs Norway quarter-final in Miami on Saturday would swap its Instagram profile logo to the winner's for a day. Norwegian Air kicked off the exchange on 8 July, asking: "Ready to risk your logo? If Norway wins, you have to switch to our logo on Instagram on Sunday. And vice versa. Deal?" British Airways initially replied: "Don't make bets you can't win." Norwegian Air pushed back: "Does this mean you're too scared?" BA fired back with the line that would come back to haunt its rival: "Scared? Nor-way, mate." On 10 July, BA
formalized the deal: "Challenge accepted! Just don't be surprised if we take the win at cruising altitude.” England beat Norway 2-1 after extra time in a match that twisted twice before settling. Norway were playing in their first-ever World Cup quarter-final. Their last appearance at the tournament was 1998, and Erling Haaland had dragged them there with a performance against Brazil in the Round of 16 that made the football world sit up. Norwegian Air honored the bet. Its Instagram profile picture, which normally carries the airline's red nose cone logo, was replaced with the British Airways speedmarque. The exchange drew a flood of comments from football fans who, by their own admission, were more invested in the airlines' wager than in the football itself. Brand banter during major tournaments is hardly new, but the stakes here were concrete. A logo is a logo, and a public bet leaves nowhere to hide when you lose.
Sources: https://www.instagram.com/flynorwegian/
https://www.2oceansvibe.com/world/norwegian-air-instagram-logo-bet-british-airways-july-2026/