The 2026 FIFA World Cup is filled with stars. Kylian Mbappe is fresh off his 2022 Golden Boot in Qatar. Lamine Yamal, Spain's 18-year-old superstar. Ousmane Dembele is the reigning Ballon d'Or winner. Lionel Messi is chasing history at 38, and Cristiano Ronaldo is chasing his first-ever World Cup trophy at 41.

And then there's Erling Haaland, Norway's star striker, who just won his third Premier League Golden Boot in four years with Manchester City, scoring 27 goals and eight assists in 34 matches. At 25 years old, and this being Norway's first tournament in 28 years, this will be Haaland's long-awaited World Cup debut.

But on Monday, Haaland revealed another layer to the story that reshapes the narrative surrounding his journey to soccer's biggest stage.

In an exclusive interview with ESPN, Haaland opened up about his father, Alfie Haaland, who also represented Norway at a World Cup on U.S. soil over 30 years ago.

"Of course, it's a special thing," Haaland told ESPN. "It's special that he played in the World Cup as well for Norway, especially in the U.S., so it makes it more special ... The plan is to get a lot of people over and to be a part of this and to watch the games, and that is something I think he has in his mind for sure."

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Who is Alfie Haaland?

Alfie Haaland, born in Stavanger, Norway, in 1972, spent two decades playing professionally, including time with Premier League side Nottingham Forest, Leeds United, and Manchester City. Unlike Erling, who's already Norway's all-time leading goalscorer as a striker with 55 goals in just 50 matches, Alfie played right-back and midfielder.

Alfie made his senior Norway debut in January 1994 in a friendly against Costa Rica, then represented Norway at the 1994 FIFA World Cup in the United States, marking his only appearance in a major tournament for the national team.

Alfie featured in two matches, against Italy and Mexico. And as ESPN noted, both of his appearances came at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, the same city where Erling will face Senegal in this tournament, this time at MetLife Stadium.

In 1994, Norway beat Mexico 1-0 before losing to Italy 1-0, and drawing 0-0 with the Republic of Ireland in Group E. It remains the only group in World Cup history where all four teams finished with the same points and goal difference. Norway went home fourth on goals scored, with just one goal across three matches.

With Erling Haaland now leading the way, you can bet that won't happen again.

Norway is in Group I this time around, with matches against Iraq on Tuesday, June 16, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, followed by Senegal at MetLife Stadium on June 22, and France on June 26 back in Foxborough.

It's a daunting group, but Norway has already been labeled one of the tournament's most dangerous dark horses, and Haaland is a major reason why. And if he can lead Norway on a deep run, he'll have the chance to build on his father's legacy that began more than three decades ago on the very same soil.

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