Erling Haaland is one of the biggest names in world football, but he will not be taking part in the European Championship this summer.
Although the Manchester City striker has broken goalscoring records since arriving in England, he will not be able to add to his impressive numbers on the big stage at Euro 2024.
Haaland recorded an unprecedented 36-goal campaign as City won the Premier League last year, but he was unable to help Norway qualify for Europe’s elite international tournament.
His national team finished third behind Spain and Scotland in their qualifying group, while results elsewhere denied them a play-off place to keep their hopes alive.
This means the Scandinavian country’s 24-year wait to compete in a major tournament continues, but things could have gone very differently for the three-time winner.
Could Erling Haaland have played for England?
Haaland was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, while his father and former professional footballer, Alfie Haaland, who also represented Norway at international level, was playing for Leeds United at the time.
Learn more about Erling Haaland
It means fans could have seen the Premier League’s top scorer don a Three Lions shirt if he hadn’t pledged allegiance to the country he moved to as a young child.
In an interview with GOAL, the 23-year-old said of his potential for an international career: “I’ve lived here [England] for three and a half to four years and I lived in Norway for a very long time, so it was natural for me to choose Norway.
“You never know what it would be like if my father played longer in England or something. Maybe I would be English, I don’t know. But yes, I’m Norwegian and I’m proud of it.”
England manager Gareth Southgate also confirmed in 2020 that the Norwegian star had always been committed to his current national team.
He said: “We always try to monitor these cases, but I think in this case it was blocked quite early by Norway.
“And I also think that with players like him, they know very well where they want to play as well.
“He feels this allegiance to the country he’s currently playing for and you’re always very respectful of that.”
Although Haaland is clearly a proud Norwegian, he may be wondering what could have been when his England teammates, including Phil Foden, Kyle Walker and John Stones, visited Germany in June.
Erling Haaland is one of the biggest names in world football, but he will not be taking part in the European Championship this summer.
Although the Manchester City striker has broken goalscoring records since arriving in England, he will not be able to add to his impressive numbers on the big stage at Euro 2024.
Haaland recorded an unprecedented 36-goal campaign as City won the Premier League last year, but he was unable to help Norway qualify for Europe’s elite international tournament.
His national team finished third behind Spain and Scotland in their qualifying group, while results elsewhere denied them a play-off place to keep their hopes alive.
This means the Scandinavian country’s 24-year wait to compete in a major tournament continues, but things could have gone very differently for the three-time winner.
Could Erling Haaland have played for England?
Haaland was born in Leeds, West Yorkshire, while his father and former professional footballer, Alfie Haaland, who also represented Norway at international level, was playing for Leeds United at the time.
Learn more about Erling Haaland
It means fans could have seen the Premier League’s top scorer don a Three Lions shirt if he hadn’t pledged allegiance to the country he moved to as a young child.
In an interview with GOAL, the 23-year-old said of his potential for an international career: “I’ve lived here [England] for three and a half to four years and I lived in Norway for a very long time, so it was natural for me to choose Norway.
“You never know what it would be like if my father played longer in England or something. Maybe I would be English, I don’t know. But yes, I’m Norwegian and I’m proud of it.”
England manager Gareth Southgate also confirmed in 2020 that the Norwegian star had always been committed to his current national team.
He said: “We always try to monitor these cases, but I think in this case it was blocked quite early by Norway.
“And I also think that with players like him, they know very well where they want to play as well.
“He feels this allegiance to the country he’s currently playing for and you’re always very respectful of that.”
Although Haaland is clearly a proud Norwegian, he may be wondering what could have been when his England teammates, including Phil Foden, Kyle Walker and John Stones, visited Germany in June.