Norway World Cup hopeful avoids prison sentence after sharing explicit video of minor with suspended punishment dished out

Those pleas ultimately fell on deaf ears, with Schjelderup remaining a free man. Reports in his homeland claim that the judge placed emphasis on the 21-year-old not seeking out the video in question, with it merely being forwarded online.

The Benfica forward was charged with sharing a 27-second video of sexual content featuring a minor. Schjelderup posted the video in question on Snapchat when he was 19 years of age and playing in Denmark for FC Nordsjaelland.

The judge in his case told the Norway international: "You get a yellow card." He has been ordered to pay legal costs and been given a one-year probation. Schjelderup has 14 days in which to consider any appeals against the verdict.

Schjelderup’s defence attorney, Anders Nemeth, said that sharing the video had been a "regrettable mistake" on the part of his client. He added: "It should be no secret that Andreas has apologised for the whole incident, as you have heard. It was a bad joke that he forwarded it. He deleted it immediately and has apologised."

Norway have qualified for the 2026 World Cup with Schjelderup still in contention for selection, meaning that they will grace that event for the first time since 1998. The nation's football president, Lise Klaveness, has said of Schjelderup's ongoing involvement: "We take note of the verdict and wait until it becomes legally binding. It is roughly as expected, and as before, we consider that Stale [Solbakken] is free to select Andreas for national team games. We continue to have good dialogue with Andreas and his lawyer, and we will investigate whether the verdict will affect entry to the host countries of the World Cup."

Prior to his appearance in court, Schjelderup posted on social media as he asked for forgiveness: "Hi everyone, I want to be open to all of you about a stupid mistake I did around 2 years ago. At the time I was 19 years old and I will now have to face the consequences of this mistake.

"I take full responsibility for what happened and what I've done, but it is important to me that you know the context of the episode. I was living in Denmark at the time. I received a short video and forwarded it to my friend a few seconds later without thinking clearly. We have always sent memes to each other, like many teenagers do. When I received this video and forwarded it, as we usually do, without thinking that this one was different.

"I only saw the first seconds and not what the video developed into. My friend, after having seen it a few seconds later, reminded me directly that it was of course illegal to send, so I deleted it immediately. In the moment, I unfortunately didn't think about the consequences and how it could be illegal to share. I should have realized the seriousness of sending it but I didn't at the time.

"My only explanation is that I was really shocked over seeing, what appeared to be two young men, in an old quality video and sent it to a friend without thinking. My intention was not to spread anything or to harm those involved. It was a stupid one-time mistake that I deeply regret.

"When the Danish police contacted me this year about what happened, I told them the truth and I have cooperated through the entire process. I was charged for this offence which I probably will be convicted for in the near future and most likely receive a suspended sentence.

"There are no excuses from my side. What I did in Denmark at that time was illegal and not okay. I will take full responsibility for it, and I hope my mistake can mean others don't make the same mistake after hearing or reading about my story. I hope that they will think clearly when they receive something that should not be shared.

"I would like to apologise first and foremost to those affected by the video. Then to my friends, family, employers, country, and all the fans I have disappointed. Right now, I wish I could go back in time and change my mistake. I have never done anything illegal before, or been involved with the police, so I have been in shock for a long time while this has been going on. But here we are. I screwed up and I am ready to face the consequences. The offence I will be convicted for, does not reflect on who I am as a person and what I stand for.

"I am truly sorry for my mistake and embarrassed to be in this situation. Everyone who knows me, also know what I stand for, so I understand this will be a shock for many people. I also know, this will be an unneeded disturbance to the national team of Norway before some of the most important games in our history. My intention was to share this after the games to avoid that. But unfortunately, that is not possible anymore.

"And to everyone, please do not watch or spread videos with harmful or offensive content. It is illegal. I want to apologise again and hope that you will forgive me. And I will do anything in my power to make things right again."

Norway, who are heading to their first major international tournament since Euro 2000, will discover their 2026 World Cup group stage opponents when that draw is made on December 5.