Erling Haaland has won an award in which goals play no part: Instagram has given him one of its Rings Awards. Before that, the Norwegian had become an internet phenomenon through personal videos and unusual comments.
It is an unusual prize for one of the most prolific strikers in the world: a ring featuring a four-leaf clover carved from Connemara marble, designed by Emily Adams Bode Aujla, founder of the New York label BODE. Erling Haaland, the Manchester City striker, is among the 25 winners Instagram honoured with its Rings Awards on 29 October 2026. The only other footballer on the list is the Indian freestyler Muhammed Riswan.
The winners were chosen by a 14-member jury that included Donatella Versace, A$AP Rocky and Bode Aujla herself. They were looking for creative courage, craft and impact. For the ring, the designer chose marble from Ireland’s west coast, which folklore holds brings good fortune and protection.
The clover stands for her idea that you create the circumstances for luck by exploring your own creativity. On Instagram, the winners are also marked out by a gold ring around their profile picture, and they can change the background colour of their profile. Haaland chose blue.
How Erling Haaland Changed His Instagram Strategy
Haaland had already begun to change his Instagram presence in 2025. Rather than polished, professionally produced content, he increasingly shared videos straight from his camera roll: training clips, scenes from everyday life and moments in which he doesn’t take himself too seriously.
Instagram analysed the shift in a case study of its own. In the first half of 2025, Haaland posted five Reels and gained 1.6 million followers; in the second half, it was 19 Reels and 5.5 million new followers. Over the course of a year, his Reels drew more than 500 million views. In November 2025 he also launched a YouTube channel, cutting its longer videos into material for further Reels.
Erling Haaland and the 2026 World Cup: 23 Million New Followers
During the 2026 World Cup, Haaland took his followers with him across the US – to New York’s famous Katz’s Delicatessen, for instance. In another clip, posted on his YouTube channel, he put on a thick Southern accent and told a fan he was just “the social media guy”.
In an interim report published on 17 July 2026, two days before the final, parent company Meta put Haaland’s gain at 23 million new Instagram followers. He had almost doubled his pre-tournament following. No established player had added more. He now has more than 76 million followers on Instagram.
How Erling Haaland’s Comments Became a Trend of Their Own
Meanwhile, a game of its own was playing out in the comment sections: numerous accounts posted with the stated aim of getting a reaction from Haaland. And he did respond to such posts, often with a laconic “nice”.
His replies were not always limited to a single word. Fitness creator Sahil Gupta from Mumbai promised in a Reel to lose 20 kilograms within three months if Haaland commented. Haaland wrote: “Starting now”.
