Erling Haaland is one of the hottest properties in the soccer world. While fans would debate his place as the number one in soccer, he easily comes in the top three. But in a shocking turn of events, the youngster has failed to make it to the top five on the list of most-liked athletes in Norway as he gets overshadowed by an Olympic gold medalist.

Notably, this comes only a few days after he lost the race for the Ballon d’Or that saw Lionel Messi lift the prestigious award.

Norwegian Olympic gold medalist overpowers Erling Haaland

There’s no doubting the popularity of Erling Haaland. The 23-year-old continues to add to the list of his admirers. While there’s no doubt about his popularity in the beautiful game, one will be surprised to hear about his vogue in his very own beloved country. This comes after Sponsor Insight surveyed the most-liked athletes in Norway.

While many would expect Haaland to top the list, it’s his country’s hurdle runner, Karsten Warholm, who came on top with 32% of the votes. In the standings, biathlete Johannes Thingnes Bø and rower Birgit Skarstein both share second place with 32%. Surprisingly, Haaland lags in eighth place with 27% of the votes.

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The Manchester City star is behind Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard, sitting in sixth place. Indeed, this is quite an eyebrow-raising list. However, Haaland outshines all other Norwegian sports figures regarding Instagram followers, boasting an impressive following of over 36 million.

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Yet shockingly, the guy who leads the goal rankings in soccer isn’t topping the charts for the most-liked athletes, that too, in Norway. Perhaps the criteria might be different, which would have kept the youngster outside of the top five. Nevertheless, he may top the charts in the coming years. Meanwhile, this wasn’t the first blow this week for Haaland.

Ballon d’Or Blow for Haaland

Days ago, the striker suffered another major blow at the 2023 Ballon d’Or. After enjoying a stellar season with treble-winning Manchester City, the striker was backed to win his first prestigious award. Sadly, that didn’t happen, as instead, Lionel Messi lifted his eighth Ballon d’Or.

The striker did finish in the top three alongside Kylian Mbappe. Additionally, Haaland also managed to win the remarkable Gerd Muller trophy. Thanks to his 52 goals in 53 games, he clinched the award for being the best striker of the year. Nevertheless, as we say, better luck next time!

Watch this story: LeBron James, James Harden, Trae Young, and Other NBA Stars Give Lionel Messi His Flowers After Argentina’s FIFA World Cup Win