Erling Haaland Sues Norwegian Airline Over World Cup Ad Featuring His Haircut

Manchester City forward Erling Haaland is suing Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA, a Norwegian airline, for using an image of a plane with his distinctive ponytail haircut in a World Cup advertisement. The airline posted the image during the tournament with the caption, "We've never felt more Norwegian." The post has since been deleted.

Haaland has accused the airline of violating Norway's Marketing Act. A preliminary meeting between a judge and lawyers is scheduled for October 9, ahead of the main hearing. Haaland's lawyer, Thomas Hagen, stated that the case concerns the "illegal use by Norwegian of Haaland's distinguishing features to sell air tickets during the World Cup finals."

A spokesperson for Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA, Catharina Solli, expressed confusion over the lawsuit, saying the airline "struggle to understand why we have been taken to court." Solli added that the company "published a few things spontaneously, inspired by social media trends" as part of their encouragement of the national team. She concluded, "It is unfortunate that this encouragement has been greeted by a lawsuit. But we hope to have a reasonable dialogue, in order that we can continue in the future to support our sporting heroes together."

Haaland, who has since cut his hair, was known for his ponytail during his time with Manchester City and the Norwegian national team. Norway reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup this century, losing to England, with Haaland scoring seven goals in the tournament.