Iceland Bets on Viking Thunder-Clap to Reignite Tourism Boom
- Smallest country at World Cup aims to profit from global stage
- Biggest export shows signs of a slowdown amid krona gains
Photographer: David Keyton/AP Photo
Iceland is betting on its soccer fans’ famous Viking thunder-clap celebrations to provide a vitamin shot for its flagging tourism sector.
With a population of about 350,000, Iceland is the smallest country to have ever qualified for a World Cup. And despite being considered a favorite second team among global fans, few expect it to get past the group stages of the tournament, which pits the north Atlantic amateurs (the coach is a dentist) against mighty Argentina, Croatia and Nigeria.