Erling Haaland may not have come back from the tournament with the silverware, but he still returned with a very unusual souvenir: a taxidermy raccoon.
Plenty of people have gone home from a trip carrying something odd, but the Manchester City forward appears to have raised the bar considerably.
After spending time in Dallas, Haaland was seen heading back with a collection of purchases, including cowboy boots, custom Stetson hats and, most notably, what looked to be a stuffed raccoon.
It wasn’t just a standard piece of taxidermy either. The raccoon appeared to be posed with a bottle of alcohol, and Haaland even shared a photo of the pair on his X account.
“It followed me home.”
The post quickly drew attention online, with social media users joking about the unusual keepsake. Even the Transportation Security Administration joined the conversation.
Posting on X on July 14, the TSA addressed the growing curiosity around flying with such an item.
“We’re getting some questions about flying with taxidermy raccoons holding empty liquor bottles…
“It’s ok with us but pls check with your airline first.”
The agency’s tongue-in-cheek response prompted plenty more jokes from users online.
One wrote:
“Love the humor lately….can you train your gate people to have the same humor and stop yelling at me from now on?”
Another replied to Haaland’s original post, saying:
“Popped in for milk at Aldi and ended up down the middle aisle.”
A different user added:
“Hi is this PETA?”
Haaland also reportedly shared another image of the raccoon on Snapchat, alongside photos of two squirrels, which he called ‘geezers’.
According to The Telegraph, the raccoon may have been bought from Wild Bill’s Western Store in Dallas for $750.
The Texas shop has since leaned into the attention, with its website highlighting Haaland’s visit and the viral reaction around the “Whiskey Raccoon” souvenir.
So while a trophy may not have been part of the trip home, Haaland still managed to leave with a memorable haul.
Norway returned after a 2-1 defeat to England in Miami on Saturday, July 11.
Even so, supporters still turned out in huge numbers to greet the team, with more than 100,000 fans reportedly filling the streets of Oslo to welcome the players back — along with Haaland’s now-infamous raccoon.