Erling Haaland officially changes name on back of his shirt in surprise announcement

Erling Haaland has decided to incorporate another name on the back of his shirt when he plays for Norway. Haaland has been known simply by his surname for Manchester City and the national side, but has decided to make a change.

The City No.9 will still have Haaland on his shirt when they take on Brighton this weekend in the Premier League. But it will change to Braut Haaland when he pulls on a Norway shirt in the upcoming September international break.

Norway play Finland in a friendly in Oslo on September 5, before taking on Moldova five days later inside the same stadium in a 2026 World Cup qualifier.

The claim has been made by a retailer of Norway shirts, but Norway manager Stale Solbakken was unaware of the change when asked. “That's his name [Braut], it's no longer that difficult,” he said. “I knew nothing of it until now.”

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While Haaland is the surname of his father, Alfe, who was also a professional footballer, Braut is his mother Gry Marita’s maiden name. She previously competed in the heptathlon for Norway and is it common in Norway for children to use the surnames of both parents.

The 25-year-old’s display name on Instagram reads Erling Braut Haaland and it seems as though he wants to honour both of his parents when he plays for his country. Haaland has a staggering 42 goals in 43 appearances for Norway so far – a tally which already makes him the country’s all-time leading scorer.

He joined City in 2022 from Borussia Dortmund and has scored 126 goals in just 148 games for the club, helping to win two Premier League titles, Champions League and FA Cup. Haaland got off the mark for this season by scoring twice in the 4-0 win over Wolves, but drew a blank as City were beaten 2-0 by Tottenham last weekend.

The striker will hope to get back on the score sheet when City travel to Brighton on Sunday before turning attention to the national side. Norway have not qualified for a World Cup since 1998 but are in a good position currently, sitting top of Group I with a perfect record after four qualifiers.

With Haaland and Arsenal captain Martin Odegaard leading the side, Solbakken is under pressure to end that run and send Norway to the United States, Canada and Mexico next year. They have started qualifying in impressive form by beating Moldova 5-0, Israel 4-2, Italy 3-0 and Estonia 1-0.

“Norway will never win the World Cup,” Haaland told TIME magazine over the summer. “If we would qualify for the World Cup, it would be like another big nation winning it. It would be the biggest party ever. The scenes in Oslo would be incredible.”

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