This century, Premier League clubs have won seven out of ten visits to Norway; the last time an English side was defeated on Norwegian soil was in 2002 when Viking beat Chelsea 4-2.
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace preview
After last Thursday's first leg in South London, it is Crystal Palace who travel to Norway with the advantage, albeit only a slender one. It wasn't a classic, as Selhurst Park hosted major European football for the first time ever, but the Eagles did prevail 1-0, with Jean-Philippe Mateta bundling home the night's only goal shortly after half time. Will they now complete the job on the road?
Domestically, Oliver Glasner's side have been involved in three draws to start this season, first coming from behind twice against Liverpool in the FA Community Shield, before prevailing in the subsequent penalty shootout. In the Premier League, after their trip to Stamford Bridge ended goalless, Palace played out a 1-1 stalemate with Nottingham Forest on Sunday, taking the lead through Ismaïla Sarr, but unable to hold on.
Prior to this season, the Eagles had only ever competed in Europe once, featuring in the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1998 because, well, they were the only English club to apply, but they didn't last long, losing both legs 2-0 against Samsunspor. Thus, Palace are desperate to get into the league phase, requiring just a draw at Fredrikstad Stadion on Thursday to book their place in Friday's draw.
As for Fredrikstad, having left London behind only by one, they'll firmly believe a monumental upset is possible. Unlike Palace, the Norwegian cup winners were allowed to enter this season's Europa League, albeit they were swatted aside 5-1 on aggregate by Midtjylland earlier this month.
This continued the Aristocrats' truly horrendous European record. Fredrikstad won their first-ever European tie, beating Ajax in the European Cup preliminary round 65 years ago, but have lost all ten ties subsequently, failing to win any of their home matches, conceding 49 goals. Prior to this season, their most recent tie saw them demolished 7-3 on aggregate by Lech Poznań in Europa League qualifying in 2009, underlining that it would be a monumental achievement for Andreas Hagen's side to dump out the FA Cup winners. Thus, everything suggests Crystal Palace should have simply too much quality for the side currently tenth in the Eliteserien at Fredrikstad Stadion on Thursday.
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace head-to-head record
- Matches Played: 1.
- Fredrikstad Wins: Zero. Draws: Zero. Crystal Palace Wins: 1.
Fredrikstad team news
Andreas Hagen has had a week to prepare, after Fredrikstad's weekend trip to Brann was postponed, to allow them to focus on this tie.
Jóannes Bjartalíð scored their only goal across two legs against Midtjylland in the Europa League, but was only a substitute at Selhurst, with Emil Holten chosen to lead the line instead.
Fredrikstad predicted lineup vs Crystal Palace: (3-5-2): Børsheim; S Owusu, Woledzi, Fredriksen; Eid, L Owusu, Metcalfe, Øhlenschlæger, Molde; Holten, Sørløkk.
Fredrikstad player to watch vs Crystal Palace
Sondre Sørløkk has scored four Eliteserien goals this season, on target during their most recent victory over Strømsgodset in late-July, so could he be the hero on Thursday?
Crystal Palace team news
As for the visitors, Eberechi Eze has now gone, sold to Arsenal for £67.5m, while Oliver Glasner is without the injured Chadi Riad, Cheick Doucouré, Daichi Kamada and Eddie Nketiah.
This leaves him with very limited options, making just two changes ahead of the first leg, which saw Jefferson Lerma come into defence, while new signing Borna Sosa debuted at left-wing-back.
Forgotten man Odsonne Édouard came off the bench during the first leg, his first appearance for anyone since 10 November, while Romain Esse will also be hoping to see some action, having been introduced as a late substitute against Nottingham Forest.
Crystal Palace predicted lineup vs Fredrikstad: (4-3-3): Henderson; Richards, Guéhi, Lacroix; Muñoz, Wharton, Hughes, Sosa; Devenny, Sarr, Mateta.
Crystal Palace player to watch vs Fredrikstad
Jean-Philippe Mateta, fittingly, bagged Palace's first-ever goal in a major UEFA competition last Thursday, so can he fire them into the league phase in Norway?
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace prediction
It won't be straight forward or stress-free, but we are backing Crystal Palace to get the job done in Norway, likely to have too much quality for their hosts in the end: Fredrikstad 1-2 Crystal Palace.
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace FAQs - UEFA Conference League
How to watch Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace in the Conference League on TV channel?
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace in the Conference League will be available on the following TV channels;
- UK: Channel 5.
- USA: Palace TV+
- Canada: Palace TV+
How to watch Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace in the Conference League on live streaming?
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace in the Conference League will be available on the following streaming services;
- UK: My5.
- USA: Palace TV+
- Canada: Palace TV+
What is the date and kick-off time for Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace in the Conference League?
Fredrikstad vs Crystal Palace takes place on Thursday 28 August 2025, with kick off at 17:00 (BST), 12:00 (EDT) & 9:00 (PDT).