This Manitoba MLA is related to 22 of the 23 players on Iceland's national soccer team

You could say Len Isleifson has the thunderclap in his veins.

The powerful clap andhwah sound rose to prominence from deep in the belliesof thousands of Icelandic soccer fans in 2016, as Iceland's national soccer team surprised some by rising through the ranks ofthe European Championship.

It rang out again last fall, when the team from the small island nation with a population of about 350,000 clinched its first-ever spot in the FIFA World Cup.

For Len Isleifson, an ocean away, it was kind of a family affairalbeit a distant one. According to genealogical research pursued by Isleifson's dad and conducted by Icelanderheritage company Icelandic Roots, the Manitoba politician is related to 22of the 23 players on the team plus the coach.

"I played soccer about 40 years ago when I was in elementary school. I wasn't an avid fan to sit down and go absolutely crazy like some people do," Isleifson, who is the Progressive Conservative member forBrandon East in the Manitoba Legislature,said this week.

"But again, when you put that connection of soccer and our heritage together, it just made it that much more exciting."

Isleifson'sconnections to the players range from a feweighth cousins including defender Hordur Magnussonand goaltendersRunar Alex Runarsson andFrederik Schramto a third cousin, midfielder Emil Hallfredsson, and many more in between.

Big scorer Gylfi Sigurdssonis his fifth cousin, Icelandic Roots found, and team captain Aron Gunnarssonis his seventh cousin, as is team coach and part-time dentist Heimir Hallgrimsson.

The only one he's not related to is midfielder OlafurSkulason, the company found.

Isleifson said he hasn't touched base with any of his distant relatives, but he may just look them up once the World Cup buzz and Manitoba legislative schedulingslowdown.

"Their schedule's pretty busy and ours in the legislature right now is pretty busy," he said.

This year marks Iceland's debut in the World Cup it's the smallest nation ever to qualifyafter securing a spot last fall when the team beatKosovo.

When that happened, Isleifsonread a statement congratulating the team during question period at the Manitoba Legislature, mentioning his own Icelandic roots and connection to the team.

Since then, he said he's gotten excited messages from Iceland supporters across the province and the country. Last week, the Icelandic consul general in Winnipeg,Thordur Bjarni Gudjonsson, presented him with a World Cup jersey, courtesy of the Icelandic football club.

"We had members of the legislature wanting to do that chant [the thunderclap] one day in the House when I read my statement, which obviously we couldn't do," he said.

"It creates an opportunity. It just shows that you can go from something to something big, and it doesn't matter who you are or where you are."

On Saturday, the team will play Argentina in its first World Cup game, starting at 8 a.m. CT.

It's a little early, butIsleifsonsaid he'll definitely be watching. He shared some words of encouragement for the team ahead of Saturday's game.

"I would simply say to them, keep up the good work. You've worked hard, you've done us really proud. And you know, do the best you can," he said.

"And hopefully you'll walk away holding up the big trophy and maybe we'll all come to Iceland and celebrate together."