Norway beat Ivory Coast 2-1 and have now qualified for the round of 16 at the 2026 World Cup. The winning goal, as is almost always the case, was scored by Erling Haaland.

Just as the match looked set to go into extra time, the Manchester City forward popped up in the heart of the box to slot home and secure his side’s qualification.

Norway’s next opponents will be Brazil. A real test that the ‘Vikings’ are ready to face, thanks to their striker’s excellent form.

With that goal, Haaland reached the 60-goal mark for his country – a milestone also held by Kylian Mbappé for France. However, the Norwegian took far less time to reach it.

The winner of the 2023 Gerd Müller Trophy shows no sign of tiring when it comes to finding the back of the net or racking up the stats. With that in mind, we’ll now take a look at all the new records set by ‘The Android’ following his last-gasp goal against Ivory Coast.

The fastest goalscorer in history

Haaland’s statistics in a Norway shirt defy logic. With his goal against Ivory Coast, the striker became the fastest player in football history to reach 60 international goals.

To put the magnitude of this record into perspective, it took him just 53 official matches. And this is where that statistic takes on a unique significance.

For example, Kylian Mbappé, one of the game’s current greats, has scored the same number of goals for the French national team, but it took him 101 matches to reach that figure.

  • Haaland for Norway: 60 goals in 53 matches

  • Mbappé for France: 60 goals in 101 matches

In practical terms, the Norwegian striker needed almost half the number of matches to reach that mark, recording an incredible average of 0.88 goals per match. Impressive.

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The Norwegian striker has now scored in 13 consecutive official matches for the Norwegian national team. During that period, he has netted 25 goals.

Furthermore, his performances have a direct impact on the result. Norway have strung together 16 consecutive victories in every match in which Haaland has scored a goal.

If the striker scores, victory is practically guaranteed. With this statistical ‘good luck charm’, Norway is preparing to take on Brazil.

Haaland also has his sights set on the Golden Boot

The victory over Ivory Coast also left an indelible mark on the domestic scene. With his last-gasp goal, Haaland reached five goals in the World Cup.

This tally places him at the top of his country’s record books, making him Norway’s all-time leading male goalscorer in the tournament’s history.

At this 2026 World Cup, only Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé have scored more goals than him (6). As a result, the race for the tournament’s Golden Boot will also be epic right up to the very end.

The Nordic side’s journey will continue against Brazil in the round of 16. However, with a striker like Haaland, the ‘Vikings’ have every reason to be confident of pulling off a feat.