The Manchester City striker, 26, posted the latest look on Instagram, and fans joked that they “need my hair to grow this fast”.
Erling Haaland has unveiled another new hairstyle on Instagram, only two months after he cut off his trademark long blonde hair. The Manchester City striker, 26, shared the pictures, and followers were amazed at how quickly it seems to have grown back since his dramatic summer makeover. One fan wrote in the comments: “I need my hair to grow this fast.” Whether the hair has really grown unusually fast cannot be judged from photographs, as styling, the length left after the original cut and camera angles can all change how it looks.
The August haircut
In August, Haaland ditched the flowing blonde hair he had often worn in a ponytail or man bun, in favour of a military-style buzz cut. He documented the change on his YouTube channel and shared pictures captioned: “Short hair don’t care.” British GQ questioned whether it was a true buzz cut, noting that noticeably longer hair remained on top. He explained that he wanted a fresh start after Norway’s run to the World Cup quarter-finals, and his girlfriend, Isabel Haugseng Johansen, was initially stunned but then approved.
The reaction from football figures was lively. Former Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola joked: “You’re lucky you have hair, I would love to have it!” Former team-mate Jack Grealish burst out laughing and said: “You look about 10 years old.” Zlatan Ibrahimovic was less impressed, jokingly asking whether Haaland had lost a bet and telling him to block his number. The Swede had earlier warned him: “Never cut your hair because the strength is in the hair.” The research notes add that the Oasis musician and City fan Noel Gallagher appeared in the video and joked that the haircut made Haaland look younger, though he approved.
The reveal was a social-media hit. The Straits Times reported 42.7 million TikTok views and 6.6 million likes by 24 August, and the YouTube video had more than 2.8 million views a day after release. Those are historic figures and not current totals.
Less recognisable, and a quiet start
Speaking to Sky Sports, as reported on 10 October, Haaland said the haircut had an unexpected benefit, because fewer people recognised him when he went out. He said the reaction to his new look had been much bigger than he expected, and that he enjoyed the extra anonymity.
He first appeared with the shorter hairstyle against Bournemouth on 23 August. City won 2-1 but he did not score, the first time in his five Premier League seasons that he had failed to score in his opening league game. He had scored seven goals in the previous four opening matches. The Premier League noted the coincidence, though no link between the hairstyle and his form has been established.
His form since has not suffered. He has scored nine Premier League goals this season under Enzo Maresca.
Background
He began growing his long hair around 2021 while at Borussia Dortmund, and it became a recognisable feature of his early City career. The notes say he scored seven goals for Norway at the 2026 World Cup and that ITV reported his Instagram following rose by more than 32 million during the tournament. They could not find evidence of how much his hair has grown since August, whether he has used any hair-growth products, or whether he plans to bring back the ponytail.
