They beat England at football, are one of the happiest countries on earth and have better beards than us…here’s why we love Iceland.
Now we’re not one to takes sides when it comes to teams who beat England…but when Iceland’s national football team booted England out of Euro 2016 we couldn’t help but sit up and take notice.
That’s right, the tiny nation went from zero to hero with their 2-1 win over England, and now we are seriously thinking of moving to Iceland (or at least becoming major Iceland fans).
Here’s five more reasons Iceland is our favourite country right now:
1.They love us right back
Iceland was the first European nation to offer the UK a post-Brexit shoulder to cry on. Their president, Ólafur Ragnar Grimsson, suggested that we even join a “triangle” of non-EU nations including Greenland, Iceland, Norway and the Faroe Islands. England might not feel so great about this proposed union now though…
2.There are no strangers in Iceland
The country has a tiny population of only 323,000. Of course this means everyone know everyone. Icelanders can also research their heritage online and it’s virtually impossible not to find how you are related to someone (including the president).
3.They are a cheery country
That’s according to a UN survey this year that ranked Iceland just below Switzerland and Denmark in terms of happiness. They were ranked third best for things like people’s health, family lives and jobs.
4. They borrowed our victory cry
Their celebratory “Viking cry” comes from Scotland apparently . Supporters of football team Stjarnan made the chant theirs after being inspired by fans of the Scottish team Motherwell back in 2014. The Iceland national team now join supporters in a celebratory howl at the end of the match to show their appreciation to their fans.
5.They keep it real
While England’s manager is paid £3.5 million a year, Iceland’s manager is a qualified dentist.The dentist/manager, Hallgrímsson still practices part-time but will give it up once he becomes Iceland’s sole manager after the Euros. Goalkeeper Hannes Halldorsson is also multi-talented. He only turned professional three years ago, before that he worked as a film-director and even produced the video for Iceland’s 2012 Eurovision entry. Beat that Beckham.
Will you be cheering on Iceland in the Euros? Let us know on Twitter!