Norway's World Cup ended in the quarter-finals, but Oslo celebrated anyway. It was Erling Haaland who provided the talking point, with a souvenir nobody saw coming.
Norway's first World Cup since 1998 ended in the quarter-finals, yet the homecoming felt like a title celebration: a reception with King Harald at the Royal Palace in Oslo, the now world-famous Viking Row in front of tens of thousands on the palace square, followed by an open-bus parade through the city. The most talked-about pictures of the evening, though, came from Erling Haaland, starting the moment he stepped off the plane.
The striker returned with two designer bags, one of them by Dolce & Gabbana, wearing the Fragment Design x Travis Scott x Air Jordan 1 Low, one of the most coveted sneakers of recent years. Under his arm, he carried a souvenir from the US: a stuffed raccoon holding a bottle of whiskey.
Erling Haaland and the raccoon: a souvenir from Dallas
The raccoon comes from a western store in Dallas that Haaland visited with teammates during the World Cup. The owner of Wild Bill's Western Store told local channel Fox4 that the Norwegian had no clue about western wear before walking in. The staff fitted him a cowboy hat, and Haaland went on to buy cowboy boots, t-shirts and the raccoon, for the equivalent of around 700 euros. After Haaland posted photos of the shopping trip on Instagram, the store reported a rush on its stock.
Photo Gallery Block
For the arrival in Oslo, Haaland also delivered the fitting caption: “It followed me home,” he wrote on Instagram about his souvenir. The raccoon doesn't have a name yet, and Haaland is taking suggestions.
Erling Haaland heads off on holiday
Haaland was missing from the big celebrations, though: because the team's departure from Miami had been delayed, he and teammate Sander Berge had to leave the reception early. While the squad rowed in front of the palace square and then rode through Oslo on an open bus, the two were already on their way to a holiday in Sicily.
For Haaland himself, the World Cup was a success despite the exit. He described the past weeks as the best of his life, saying the tournament changed Norway and changed him too. Whether the raccoon was allowed to come along to Sicily is not on record.
