Nordic nose candy? Erling Haaland unknowingly becomes face for Ecuador’s cocaine trade

Sometimes, you just cannot control the ingenuity of the underworld.

In Ecuador, there is a new rage — Erling Haaland-branded cocaine. Seeking to capitalize on the massive growth of the Manchester City star’s popularity, some Ecuadorian entrepreneur really wanted to make a big splash in his local market.

That person’s genius solution? Brand his cocaine with Haaland, the Premier League and Norway star, who people fell in love with during the World Cup:

The Associate Press gave some background on the news:

Norway’s soccer star Erling Haaland ‘s face has appeared on billboards, trading cards and television screens, becoming a social media phenomenon for scoring seven goals across four World Cup matches in July.

Now, police in Ecuador have found it in an unexpected place — printed on green rectangular packages that made up a stunning cocaine shipment seized in a truck near the Colombian border.

The driver of the vehicle was arrested following the seizure of the stash of 469 kilograms (1,034 pounds) of cocaine on Wednesday, police said but provided no explanation for the stickers with the image of the golden-haired Norwegian striker.

For what it is worth, the Associated Press also reported that there was another shipment bearing the likeness of Lionel Messi, so at least Haaland is in good company, right?

Anyway, Haaland does not need any help with endorsements as he already counts Nike, Budweiser, Visa, Beats by Dre, Breitling, and Midea among his sponsorship deals, but this Haaland-branded cocaine will not be found in his portfolio any time soon.

For fans of The Wire, you might remember the corner boys and local dealers yelling out, “WMDs!” or “Pandemic!” What do you think the dealers are yelling out to pitch this product to their customer base?

Anyway, there is nothing Haaland can do about this, except hope it goes away.

If we have any readers out there, who might have run into this on the streets of Ecuador, shoot us a pic and let us know if you are available talk — that would blow us away and we would surely bump you up on our list of priorities.

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