Erling Haaland lookalike gets UT Austin crowd pumped up for big game: ‘vikings never left’

The Erling Haaland craze has made its way to American college football. One fan at the University of Texas at Austin made sure the Vikings’ presence was felt.

Maddie (@addie.x.mae) posts a TikTok of a man dressed as the Norwegian soccer superstar, which has more than 105,000 views. He stands in front of a section of Longhorns fans, wearing Haaland’s signature ponytailed blond hair and a red Norway No. 9 jersey.

Amid a sea of burnt orange, the lookalike raises his arms. The crowd in front of him enthusiastically joins in, reciting the viral “Viking Row” celebration that became iconic during this summer’s FIFA World Cup. A person wearing a Spider-Man suit and a Bevo head is visible in the front row.

And the man really does look like Haaland; you’d be forgiven for assuming it was him.

“He cut his hair off since [the] World Cup but [great] job on the Halloween costume,” one viewer wrote.

Nobody seems concerned about the fact that they’re celebrating a soccer player at an American football game.

“Americans long for football thank you Erling Haaland,” reads the video’s text overlay.

The TikTok was recorded on Oct. 31, when the Longhorns hosted Mississippi State for a Halloween-night matchup at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Many of the more than 103,000 spectators showed up in costume to the game, which ended in a 31-3 win for Texas.

What is the Viking Row?

For those who missed it, the Viking Row became one of the defining viral moments of the 2026 World Cup. The celebration involves fans mimicking the motion of rowing a Viking ship. It is typically accompanied by a drumbeat (or just a hand clap, in this instance), and a collective shout of “Row!”

Haaland led the tradition alongside his Norwegian teammates, notably after the country’s historic 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast on June 30, 2026, in Arlington, Texas.

Although Norway’s tournament ended with a quarterfinal loss to England, Haaland’s lovable personality, funny social media presence, and skill on the field cemented him—and the Viking Row—as global superstars.

In fact, American college football fans have already begun embracing the celebration. Earlier this season, Minnesota Golden Gophers fans performed their own version of the Viking Row. They adopted it as a game-day tradition for the 2026 season.

This is partly due to the fact that Minnesota is currently home to “the largest population of Norwegian-Americans, with 750,000–812,000 residing in the state,” partly because the state’s NFL team is the Minnesota Vikings, and partly because it lends a tidy tie-in to Gophers head coach P.J. Fleck’s philosophy, “Row the Boat.”

The official Minnesota Golden Gophers X account even announced the Row as part of their fan ceremonies at home games.

Haaland actually already has a special connection to the Lone Star State. During Norway’s World Cup run, the Manchester City striker embraced Texas culture after his team’s win against Ivory Coast, going on a shopping spree in Dallas and dressing up as a cowboy on his Snapchat.

The World Cup might be over, but the Viking Row is forever.

This story is republished with permission. It originally appeared on Subplot News.