{"id":791765,"date":"2026-07-10T17:09:09","date_gmt":"2026-07-10T17:09:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/791765\/"},"modified":"2026-07-10T17:09:09","modified_gmt":"2026-07-10T17:09:09","slug":"erling-haaland-has-already-won-one-prize-the-most-viral-player-of-the-world-cup-erling-haaland","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/791765\/","title":{"rendered":"Erling Haaland has already won one prize: the most viral player of the World Cup | Erling Haaland"},"content":{"rendered":"

He is in the running for the Golden Boot, the trophy awarded to the World Cup\u2019s top goalscorer. But Norway\u2019s Erling Haaland<\/a> has already earned one prize: the most viral player of the competition.<\/p>\n

The striker went into the tournament with legions of fans in Norway<\/a> and in Manchester \u2013 or at least in the blue half of the British city.<\/p>\n

And although he plays for Manchester City, Haaland is also beloved by Leeds United supporters; he was born in Leeds when his father, Alf-Inge Haaland, played for the team, and he grew up supporting the West Yorkshire club.<\/p>\n

Fans hold up a sign for Haaland during Norway\u2019s round of 32 match against C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire. Photograph: Robbie Jay Barratt\/AMA\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

But, with Norway progressing to the quarter-finals, the rest of the world has now also been infected with Haaland mania \u2013 not so much for his goalscoring record, but for the content he creates off the pitch.<\/p>\n

In the first week of July, searches for \u201cHaaland\u201d entered the UK\u2019s overall top 10 platform searches on TikTok, increasing more than 300% week on week and making him the most searched-for World Cup<\/a> player during that period.<\/p>\n

Searches for \u201cHaaland best moments\u201d also increased by 1,300% week on week, and since the start of the tournament there have been more than 14,000 #Haaland and #ErlingHaaland posts combined, representing an almost 500% increase in posts month on month.<\/p>\n

However, while he is soaring in popularity, with 1.4m posts about him in total, he still has some way to go to catch up with #Messi and #Ronaldo, who have 25m and 22.3m posts respectively.<\/p>\n

Last Christmas, in a video posted on his YouTube channel<\/a>, Haaland went undercover as Santa Claus in Manchester, handing out gifts to children, and his tongue-in-cheek Instagram stories have often gone viral, such as when he posted about \u201craw dogging\u201d<\/a> a flight with no food, water or entertainment.<\/p>\n

Haaland dresses up as Santa Claus in Manchester. Photograph: Erling Haaland\/YouTube<\/p>\n

And throughout the World Cup, Haaland content has taken off on Instagram and TikTok, while fans have also been flocking to the player\u2019s own Snapchat stories, where he has 4.7 million subscribers.<\/p>\n

The player himself seems to have been enjoying the hype, even commenting on some of the posts. He posted a meme of a dog winding up its car window \u2013 often used to indicate hiding \u2013 on a post shared by an Instagram user<\/a> that said: \u201cAm I losing it or does this green onion look like Haaland?\u201d<\/p>\n

On Instagram, Haaland\u2019s following grew from 40 million to 60 million during the tournament, making him the fastest-growing major player. His Reels in particular have been viewed more than 683m times since the start of the World Cup.<\/p>\n

He has entertained with posts including a mocked-up picture with the cartoon ogre Shrek, captioned \u201cSelfie with my twin\u201d, a picture of him going undercover as a tourist in New York in a baseball cap and sunglasses, and swapping his famous Viking helmet for a cowboy hat while out shopping in Texas.<\/p>\n

Even Google has joined in the fun: searching Haaland\u2019s name currently brings up an animation of rowers in Viking helmets drifting across the screen.<\/p>\n

And videos have gone viral of Haaland demonstrating sportsmanship and respect for other players and stadium staff. One clip shows him folding and handing over a jersey to a kit man while other players throw them on the floor.<\/p>\n

Haaland\u2019s friendship with his former Borussia Dortmund teammate and England midfielder Jude Bellingham has also delighted the internet, with some even comparing the pair to the two rival hockey players from HBO\u2019s Heated Rivalry<\/a>, as Norway prepare to take on England on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Perhaps aided by Haaland\u2019s popularity, there are 1.3m posts about Bellingham on TikTok, dwarfing England captain Harry Kane\u2019s 277,600.<\/p>\n

Bromance with Bellingham; Anastasia Kostromitina mimicking Haaland, and an animation celebrating his speed. Composite: Lotus\/TikTok\/Mariya___Kos\/Instagram\/Lopes\/Tiktok<\/p>\n

One 18-year-old TikTok creator from the Netherlands made a video about Haaland and Bellingham<\/a> that has been shared more than 100,000 times, but said she \u201cdidn\u2019t know Haaland before this World Cup\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m honestly not that into football except for World Cups and Uefa Euros, so mostly just when my own country plays, because the whole country watches, so you kinda have to stay updated,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI always get really invested in the World Cup every four years, but usually mostly just for my own country,\u201d she added. \u201cThis year, it kinda took over my FYP [For You page], especially Haaland and his funny moments and his Snap stories.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI just like Erling Haaland\u2019s vibe,\u201d she said. \u201cI think his Snapchat posts are funny, and I like the bromance between Haaland and Bellingham, so that\u2019s mostly what has drawn me to making that video.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Russian model Anastasia Kostromitina has also found her own moment of viral fame, thanks to a video her mother posted<\/a> of her daughter mimicking Haaland\u2019s poses after people pointed out she had a likeness to the star.<\/p>\n

Kostromitina shares the footballer\u2019s long blond hair, piercing blue eyes and tall stature, and has said the comparisons between the pair are \u201cnot bad at all\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt first, when people compared me to him I was a little bit confused,\u201d said Kostromitina. \u201cBut then I realised that being compared to such an amazing athlete is not offensive at all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe seems really humble and, of course, he\u2019s a great athlete,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Back in Manchester, City fans have said this is only a case of the world waking up to what they have been witnessing for years.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe is a great asset for our club,\u201d Dante Friend from the 1894 fan group said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s very active on social media, he follows the fan accounts, he\u2019s in touch with some of the main fans behind the scenes, so we really feel he\u2019s one of us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Kevin Parker, the general secretary of the Manchester City official supporters club, said: \u201cHe\u2019s an unbelievable footballer, right up there with the best strikers, goalscorers in the world, but I think City fans for quite some time have seen Erling as just a different sort of footballer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t mean in terms of his ability, I mean in terms of his personality.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just seems a genuinely likable sort of guy,\u201d he added, \u201cand I think that now, because of how big the World Cup stage is, other people around the world are getting the benefit of seeing what we\u2019ve seen for three seasons.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom my point of view, as a City fan, I think it\u2019s absolutely fantastic. I think he gives football such a positive vibe.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven in this World Cup, there have been some negative vibes, particularly about Fifa and some of the decisions they\u2019ve made, but everything that Erling does, it\u2019s just positive, positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Howard Cohen, the chair of the Manchester City Disabled Supporters Association, said: \u201cWhen he first came [to Manchester City], there was a public image projected, certainly in some of the media, of him being quite quiet and reserved.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s really come out of his shell very quickly. He was clearly never that sort of quiet, reserved figure in reality, and he doesn\u2019t take himself too seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cI think that\u2019s important for anybody in public life, but particularly for footballers, and that, I think, is what people love most with him, off the field at least, that he can have a laugh with everybody and enjoy himself.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s certainly picking up plenty of support around the word, and providing entertainment for people and that\u2019s what football should be about, after all.\u201d<\/p>\n