Norway bid farewell to the 2026 World Cup with a 2-1 loss to England in the quarter-finals, but the exit was not without controversy, as their players believed that the equalizer scored by Jude Bellingham should have been disallowed for an unusual reason.

According to the British network BBC, the Norwegian team argued that the ball hit one of the camera wires suspended above the pitch in Miami during the build-up to Bellingham's goal. According to the laws of the game, if it had been proven that the ball touched the wire, the goal should have been disallowed and play resumed with a dropped ball.

Norway and Fulham midfielder Sander Berge said: 'What happened with the wire is unbelievable. The 2-1 result shows that the margins were very small, and we know well which way it tipped.'

Meanwhile, Norway captain Martin Ødegaard expressed his displeasure with some officiating decisions, saying: 'I didn't see the play myself, but the small details were not in our favor today. You probably need such luck in matches like these.'

Tuchel said there is an electronic chip inside the ball that can tell you if even a hair touches it (AFP)

This was not the only incident that angered the Norwegians, as the referee disallowed a goal scored by Torbjørn Heggem in the second half after a VAR review, due to Erling Haaland pushing England's Elliot Anderson during a corner kick.

Berge said: 'Haaland's immense physical strength is an advantage, but you get punished if you hold the opponent.'

England were trailing to a goal by Andreas Schjelderup when the controversy occurred in first-half stoppage time. Replays showed that goalkeeper Ørjan Nyland's goal kick passed near the suspended camera wire, before the ball dropped in front of Elliot Anderson, who passed it to Anthony Gordon, who then set up Bellingham to calmly score the equalizer.

Several Norwegian players immediately surrounded French referee Clément Turpin, demanding the goal be disallowed, while coach Ståle Solbakken was seen discussing with the referee at halftime.

Solbakken said: 'The referee told me he didn't see the play himself and received no signal confirming it happened. That's a logical explanation, and if FIFA says the ball didn't touch the wire and no signal came from the electronic chip inside the ball, then the referee can't do anything.'

He added: 'But the ball suddenly dropped from the sky in front of the substitutes' bench, so I think it touched the wire. Many on the bench noticed it immediately, although I wasn't one of them.'

Former England striker Wayne Rooney said on BBC: 'The ball's trajectory seemed to change and then it dropped quickly, as if something altered its direction.'

Later, the International Federation of Association Football announced that 'there is no evidence' that the ball touched the wire.

FIFA explained via its media account that the electronic sensor inside the ball did not register any change in signal while it was in the air, meaning there was no evidence of it hitting the wire or changing its path because of it.

FIFA explained that the electronic sensor inside the ball did not register any change in signal while it was in the air (AFP)

Despite this, Solbakken stuck to his opinion, saying: 'If the chip didn't send any signal, I can't argue with that, but everyone, including the goalkeeper and the player waiting for the ball, saw it drop suddenly from the sky. For me, it was clear and a very strange play.'

This incident comes just days after a similar controversy in the tournament, when the 'Snicko' technology was used to help disallow a goal for Croatia against Portugal in the round of 32, after the electronic chip detected a slight touch from Igor Matanović, who was in an offside position.

England coach Thomas Tuchel said: 'There is an electronic chip inside the ball that can tell you if even a hair touches it, as happened in the Croatia-Portugal match, so it should be able to determine whether it touched the wire here. I personally didn't see the play.'

Tuchel, however, acknowledged that luck was on his team's side in some crucial moments, saying: 'I'm not saying we won by luck, but we were lucky in the decisive moments.'