The photo did the rest. Erling Haaland stood by the plane steps in Oslo with a stuffed raccoon tucked under one arm, and posted it to Instagram with a two-word caption: “It followed me home.”
The raccoon came from Wild Bill’s Western Store in Dallas, where Haaland had taken Norway teammates during the squad’s World Cup run. According to Sporting News, he settled the entire $10,000 bill at the till.
The shopping list:
- Taxidermy raccoon holding a liquor bottle: $750
- Two taxidermy squirrels, including one dressed as a sheriff: $900
- Cowboy hats, cowboy boots, western shirts, hip flasks and belts
“I think this has changed my life”
Norway’s campaign ended on July 11 with a 2-1 quarter-final defeat to England. Haaland posted a short farewell after the loss.
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“I think this has changed my life, to be honest,” he wrote of the tournament.
He has form for the extravagant away from football. The Manchester City striker paid £100,000 at auction for a 1594 edition of Snorre Sturlason’s Royal Sagas, a record price for a Norwegian book, and donated it to the municipality of Time, his hometown, where it is now on permanent display at the local library.
Back in Oslo, he ran an Instagram poll asking fans to help him name the raccoon. The options were Cowboy, Ranger, TEX and R.O.W.
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