More than the Score

What the report says

BBC World Service’s “More than the Score” focused its July 21, 2026 episode on Erling Haaland’s surge in popularity in the United States during the World Cup, despite Norway being eliminated in the quarter-finals. The BBC framed Haaland as one of the tournament’s major social-media beneficiaries, noting that his off-field appearances and posts became part of the wider conversation around the event.

The programme highlighted examples from Haaland’s time in the US, including a Texas trip to buy a cowboy hat and his return home with a taxidermied raccoon. According to the BBC episode description, those moments helped expand his online audience and pushed his profile further into US pop culture, raising questions about how much larger his global celebrity could become even without a World Cup title.

Crystal Bell, Mashable’s digital culture editor, appeared on the episode with presenter John Bennett to discuss why Haaland’s image has resonated with younger audiences, particularly Gen Z and Gen Alpha. The BBC said Bell pointed to his perceived authenticity and use of Snapchat as important parts of that appeal, while also considering how his personal brand is developing in China and other markets.

The episode also featured Tobias Hovland, reporting from the US for Norwegian broadcaster NRK, who discussed what he observed around Haaland during the tournament and how the reaction has played in Norway. The segment sits within the BBC podcast’s broader remit of looking beyond results to the cultural and business stories surrounding global sport.