After a quarter of a century of near misses and heartbreak, Norway’s rout of Italy in their World Cup qualifier has reignited the country's hope of a return to international football’s biggest stage.

There was little doubt that Norway were the better team on Friday as they easily dominated Italy in Oslo, pushing on until the scoreboard read 3-0 and taking a big step towards next year’s World Cup.

For supporters of the Norwegian team, the result has sparked a glimmer of hope in hearts that have been broken many times over the past decades.

Norway have not participated in an international football tournament since the European Championship in 2000, which was hosted in Belgium and the Netherlands.

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