"Erling Haaland runs like no one taught him to train his dragon." That line went viral during the World Cup, and apparently it wasn't just Twitter that fell for him — Peru's entire birth registry did too.
According to Peru's National Registry of Identification and Civil Status (Reniec), 486 Peruvian newborns have been registered simply as "Haaland," with a further 91 given his full name, "Erling Haaland," since the tournament began. That's 577 children named after a six-foot-five Norwegian who moves like he's slightly annoyed at physics.
Seven goals and a continent's worth of goodwill
It didn't come from nowhere. Haaland finished the World Cup with seven goals — one behind Kylian Mbappé, and more than double Cristiano Ronaldo's tally. For a 25-year-old playing his first World Cup, that's not a breakout. That's a statement.
The internet latched onto the contradiction of him immediately: built like a Viking longship, personality of a golden retriever. "How does someone built like a Viking manage to radiate the energy of a golden retriever?" one user posted, and the sentiment spread faster than any press release could manage. That kind of organic affection is rare for a player at his level — most elite forwards inspire awe or envy, not warmth.
Peru, for context, takes this kind of thing seriously. Reniec's records show 3,402 Peruvians named after Lionel Messi, 1,185 after Ronaldo, and a staggering 33,809 named after Neymar. "Different football stars serve as inspiration for Peruvians to register their children with these names," registry spokesperson Ivan Torres told Panamericana Television.
Haaland is new to that list. With 577 names in just a few weeks, he's already outpacing Ronaldo's lifetime tally in Peru. Give it another tournament cycle and he might be chasing Neymar.
