Erling Haalands playful side masks terrifying World Cup threat

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.— There was something ironic in Erling Haaland describing Americans as “kind of hilarious” on Thursday, and not just because portion sizes here seem much more able to account for his 6,000-calorie-a-day diet than those in Europe. Haaland is 6-foot-5 and 205 pounds.

He has flowing blond hair, eats tomahawk steaks, drinks raw milk and scores goals like Pac-Man eats dots.Before Norway’s Round of 32 match in Dallas, he went shopping for cowboy boots and put it on his YouTube channel, part of an effort to become a household name in America that appears to be working. It’s a bit reductive to compare him to a viking, but as long as Norway’s fans are still rowing, it’s a bit hard to avoid.

For a country that last made a World Cup in 1998, and which had never won a knockout game before this year, it’s hard to imagine a better avatar. That all is, kind of, hilarious. “It’s important to joke around, I think,” Haaland said.“I think every one of you kind of ‘know me’ now that I like to joke around a little bit and to have fun.

I think that’s a key for my daily life, to joke around and of course train good, focus and prepare well.You also need to joke around.

You need to enjoy the moment. “That’s what we’ve been doing now.Just as we play in the World Cup, we have to enjoy it.

Nothing lasts forever.We have to enjoy it while we’re here.” Every match of the FIFA World Cup will air on either FOX or FOX Sports 1.

If you don’t have cable, you can take advantage of a DIRECTV free trial to stream it all.Prefer to check out the action live and in person? Shop World Cup 2026 tickets on SeatGeek and make sure to use promo code NYPOST10 for $10 off purchases over $250 at checkout if you’re a first-time SeatGeek user.Serene as Norway have felt at points at this World Cup — Haaland openly dismissed the idea of beating France to win the group stage, saying “They are probably going to win against us, they’re probabl...