New season, new haircut: Erling Haaland ditches iconic long hair for new season

Erling Haaland was one of the most viral stars of the 2026 World Cup as he led Norway and their Viking-rowing fans on a Cinderella run to the quarterfinals. Haaland shared behind-the-scenes footage of his time in the United States, and a kind of mania took hold -- fans wore Haaland wigs, shared memes of his running style on social media and even held a lookalike contest in Miami. That contest, though, would look a lot different now. On Sunday, Haaland shared his latest viral social media post, showing him cutting his long blonde hair in favour of a buzz cut. "New season, new trim," he said in an Instagram post. Haaland has been the Premier League's top scorer in three of his four seasons since joining Manchester City in July 2022, but this term he will embark on his first campaign without manager Pep Guardiola. Guardiola stepped down as City boss last summer, replaced by former Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca. They got off to a worrying start in the Community Shield last weekend, suffering a 3-0 defeat to Arsenal. City kick off their Premier League campaign at home to Bournemouth on Sunday.