Haaland images found on 469 kilo cocaine seizure in Ecuador

Images of Norwegian football star Erling Braut Haaland were found on packages in a 469 kilo cocaine seizure in Ecuador, NRK reported. The shipment was stopped this week near the border with Colombia.

Ecuadorian police have not given a possible reason for using Haaland’s image. Silje Anderdal Bakken, an associate professor at the Norwegian Police University College, said she believed it was likely intended as marketing.

“Haaland has become a relatively well known figure during the World Cup summer, and that has spread worldwide. It is not surprising that he is being used as marketing,” Bakken told NRK.

She said famous athletes are commonly used to market drugs, both to distinguish products from competitors and to associate them with the athletes’ qualities.

“There are probably enormous quantities of legal Haaland merchandise in circulation around the world, so it is possible to imagine that this could become part of that flow. But I would primarily think of this as marketing,” Bakken said.

She also said media coverage of the seizure could increase demand for the cocaine or encourage others to use the same strategy.

Images released by local police show officers removing packages from beneath the cargo bed of a small truck. The green packages carry stickers featuring Haaland in Norway’s national team shirt.

One person has been arrested in connection with the seizure. The Norwegian Football Federation has been asked to comment on the use of Haaland and the national team shirt but has not yet responded.