Cocaine with Erling Haaland's face on it seized by cops as woman arrested
Cocaine with Erling Haaland's face on it seized by cops as woman arrested
Sahil KurupThu, August 13, 2026 at 10:43 PM UTC
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Several cocaine packages had stickers featuring the image of Norwegian soccer star Erling Haaland -Credit:Getty
Ecuadorian police seized 469 kilograms, roughly 1,034 pounds, of cocaine from a truck near the Colombian border this week, with many of the packages bearing stickers featuring the image of Norwegian soccer star Erling Haaland.
According to a police statement, anti-narcotics agents were conducting an operation along the Pan-American Highway after receiving an anonymous tip early Tuesday when they noticed a suspicious truck.
A search of the vehicle uncovered 370 packages hidden inside a false bottom. Video released by Ecuador's National Police showed officers removing the green-wrapped packages, many stamped with images of the Manchester City striker, from the vehicle's hidden compartment. It comes as Haaland has been basking in his fame ever since he captured the hearts of fans around the globe.
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A woman identified only as María R., who held Colombian identity documents, was arrested during the operation, which took place in the Guagua Negro area near the border city of Tulcan, roughly 153 miles north of the capital, Quito.
The seized shipment carries an estimated value of nearly $842,000 within Ecuador's domestic market, more than $11 million if sold in the United States, and over $19.6 million if trafficked to Europe.
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Police did not offer an explanation for why Haaland's image appeared on the packaging.
Erling Haaland was unable to find the net vs England in the World Cup quarter-final. -Credit:Liu Lu/VCG via Getty Images
According to the , drug traffickers commonly label shipments with the likenesses of well-known athletes, celebrities and other public figures as a way of signaling which criminal network produced the product and which client it's intended for.
Haaland is not the first major soccer star to have his image appropriated this way, Argentina captain Lionel Messi's likeness has previously appeared on a separate seized cocaine shipment.
The discovery comes just weeks after Haaland became one of the breakout stars of this summer's World Cup, held across Mexico, the United States and Canada, where he scored seven goals across four matches for Norway and became a viral sensation for his humor, personality and on-field dominance.
Erling Haaland's World Cup exit included bringing home a taxidermy raccoon -Credit:X/@Erling
Ecuador has increasingly become a key logistical hub for drug trafficking in recent years, serving as a stockpiling and distribution point for narcotics moving through Central American routes toward the United States, with additional shipments also making their way to Europe.
Local criminal organizations operating in the country often work in coordination with Colombian and Mexican cartels, with roughly 80% of the cocaine passing through Ecuador originating in Colombia and the remainder coming from Peru.
Ecuadorian authorities reported seizing 80 tons of drugs in the first half of this year alone, following seizures of nearly 215 tons in 2025 and almost 295 tons in 2024.
Distinctively branded drug packaging has surfaced in several other high-profile seizures in recent years, including cocaine wrapped in "Yosemite Sam" packaging that washed ashore in Florida, bricks marked with bald eagle designs found floating off the Florida Keys, and packages bearing counterfeit Nike "SB" branding discovered by divers near Key West.
Source: “AOL Sports”
