Beauty influencer loving viral Erling Haaland comparisons
South Carolina beauty influencer Emma Willman went viral during the 2026 FIFA World Cup after fans flooded her French braid tutorial with Erling Haaland comparisons. While attention also turned to Erling Haaland’s real haaland sister Gabrielle pitchside, Willman tells TODAY.com she is loving the resemblance—and Haaland himself replied with a thumbs-up.
Willman, a 24-year-old hair and beauty creator from South Carolina, posted a French braid how-to in early June that exploded well beyond the usual tutorial crowd. The video drew more than 1.3 million likes and 181,000 comments as World Cup viewers decided her golden braids and sharp features made her a dead ringer for Manchester City striker Erling Haaland.
Key Takeaways
- Emma Willman went viral after a French braid tutorial sparked massive Erling Haaland doppelgänger comparisons during the 2026 World Cup.
- Haaland commented “Hi👍🏻” on Willman’s post—a greeting that drew more than 2.3 million likes.
- Willman has embraced the moment, recreating Haaland’s bun and double-braid looks and heading to Miami for Norway’s quarterfinal.
- Haaland’s real sister, Gabrielle Braut Haaland, has also drawn fan attention for their striking resemblance pitchside.
- Russian model Anastasia Kostromitina has separately gone viral for her likeness to Haaland in Moscow.
Why Did Emma Willman Go Viral for Looking Like Erling Haaland?
Willman told TODAY.com she had occasionally heard she resembled Haaland, but the comparison did not fully land until her French braid video circulated during the World Cup. “I woke up and literally my video had went insanely viral overnight,” she said.
In the clip, Willman parts her hair down the middle and walks viewers through a French braid—a style Haaland often wears on the pitch. Soccer brands joined the pile-on. Adidas commented, “There is nø way you two aren’t related,” and Modelo USA urged fans to “check the family tree ASAP.”
The buzz intensified after Haaland scored two game-winning goals against Brazil, sending the five-time champions home. With the Norwegian star dominating headlines, Willman’s comment section became part of a wider World Cup conversation about who really looks like the striker.
Who Is Erling Haaland’s Actual Sister Gabrielle?
Amid the lookalike frenzy, fans have also spotlighted Haaland’s real sibling. According to The Sun, Gabrielle Braut Haaland—born January 9, 1998—is the striker’s older sister and a social media personality with nearly 300,000 Instagram followers.
During Norway’s current World Cup campaign, TV cameras caught Gabrielle standing pitchside beside Erling. Fans marveled at their facial resemblance and her height, dubbing her a “female twin” version of the forward. She has worked as a nursing and care assistant in Norway since 2014 and often supports her brother at matches.
How Did Erling Haaland React to His Viral Lookalike?
Haaland greenlit the Willman comparisons with a simple Instagram comment: “Hi👍🏻.” That greeting alone collected more than 2.3 million likes, turning an already viral hair tutorial into a crossover moment between football fandom and beauty content.
Willman said the exchange has been “so fun to see,” adding that Haaland is “someone who has a lot of fun with what he does.” In a July 7 follow-up video, she recreated Haaland’s slicked-back bun and admitted, “I also see the resemblance.”
She is now headed to the England vs. Norway World Cup quarterfinal in Miami on July 11 and hopes she might finally meet her celebrity twin in person. “If I did meet him, I think that would probably be one of the highlights of my life,” she told TODAY.com.
Is There Another Haaland Doppelgänger Turning Heads?
Willman is not the only woman drawing Haaland comparisons this summer. Reuters photographed Russian model Anastasia Kostromitina in Moscow after she went viral with a striking likeness to Norway’s star forward.
The parallel trend has turned uncanny celebrity resemblance into one of the tournament’s stranger side stories—blurring the line between football memes and genuine bizarre news fodder.
For Willman, the moment has been less about confusion and more about leaning in. Because Haaland is known for his “fabulous hair,” she told TODAY.com she feels flattered—and she is having fun learning about the game and its passionate fan base along the way.