Erling Haaland
Who was Erling Haaland?
Norwegian association football player (born 2000)
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Erling Haaland (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Erling Braut Haaland, born on July 21, 2000, in Leeds, England, is a Norwegian soccer player. He's the son of former Norwegian footballer Alfie Haaland and Gry Marita Braut. Haaland plays as a striker for Manchester City in the Premier League and is the captain of the Norway national team. He's widely viewed as one of the best players in the world and the top Norwegian footballer ever. He's known for his speed, strength, smart positioning, and accurate goal-scoring.
Haaland started his career in Norway with Bryne and then moved to Molde, where he trained under manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær. In January 2019, he joined Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg, where he won the Austrian Bundesliga and Austrian Cup and gained recognition as an exciting talent in Europe. His UEFA Champions League performances caught the eye, leading to a move to Borussia Dortmund in January 2020. In Germany, he continued to break records and won the DFB-Pokal in 2021 before moving to England.
In the summer of 2022, Haaland joined Manchester City for around €60 million. His first season at the club was remarkable. He scored 36 goals in the Premier League, setting a new record for the most goals in a single season, and totaled 52 goals across all competitions, a record for a Premier League player in a season. He won the Premier League Golden Boot, the European Golden Shoe, and the Gerd Müller Trophy. He was also named UEFA Men's Player of the Year and IFFHS World's Best Player. Haaland was the runner-up in the Ballon d'Or and played a key role in Manchester City winning the Premier League, FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League.
Internationally, Haaland played for Norway at various youth levels before his senior debut in 2019. At the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup, he scored nine goals in one match against Honduras, making it one of the most memorable performances in the tournament's history. He's Norway's all-time top scorer, with 55 goals in 48 senior international matches. Haaland has earned many individual awards in Norway, such as the Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year in 2020 and the Gullballen in 2023. Globally, he was named FWA Footballer of the Year and BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2023 and was included in the FIFA FIFPro World11 for 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024.
Before Fame
Erling Haaland grew up in Bryne, a town in southwestern Norway. His father, Alfie Haaland, was a professional footballer who played for clubs like Manchester City and the Norwegian national team. Sports played a big role in Haaland's childhood, and he quickly stood out in football, both skill-wise and physically. He joined Bryne FK's youth academy and moved into the senior team as a teenager, catching the eye of bigger Norwegian clubs.
His transfer to Molde FK was a key moment, as it put him under the guidance of Ole Gunnar Solskjær and introduced him to tougher competition. His performance at Molde, especially his ability to score goals, led to the Red Bull organization signing him for Salzburg in early 2019. In a short time, he was scoring in the UEFA Champions League and playing for Norway in the U-20 World Cup. His nine-goal game against Honduras announced to the football world that an extraordinary talent had arrived.
Key Achievements
- Set the Premier League record for most goals in a single season with 36 in the 2022-23 campaign.
- Won the continental treble with Manchester City in the 2022-23 season, comprising the Premier League, FA Cup, and UEFA Champions League.
- Named UEFA Men's Player of the Year and IFFHS World's Best Player for the 2022-23 season.
- Became Norway's all-time leading goalscorer with 55 goals in 48 senior international appearances.
- Won the FWA Footballer of the Year and BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award in 2023.
Did You Know?
- 01.Haaland scored nine goals in a single FIFA U-20 World Cup match against Honduras in 2019, a record for that tournament.
- 02.He is the only player in Premier League history to win both the Young Player of the Season and Player of the Season awards in the same campaign.
- 03.He is the quickest player in history to score eight hat-tricks in the Premier League.
- 04.Despite being born in Leeds, England, Haaland chose to represent Norway internationally, the country of his father and where he was raised.
- 05.He won the 2020 Golden Boy award, an annual prize given to the best young footballer in Europe, during his first full season with Borussia Dortmund.
Family & Personal Life
Awards & Honors
| Award | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Kniksen's Honorary Award | 2020 | — |
| Alejandro buceta | 2020 | — |
| Aftenposten Gold Medal | 2020 | — |
| DFB-Pokal | — | — |
| FIFPRO | — | — |
| Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year | 2020 | — |
| Alejandro buceta | — | — |
| FWA Footballer of the Year | 2023 | — |
| BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award | 2023 | — |
| Gullballen | 2023 | — |
| Onze d'Or | — | — |
| Norwegian Sportsperson of the Year | 2025 | — |