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Ecuadorian authorities have intercepted a huge consignment of cocaine near the country’s border with Colombia, but what caught attention was not just the quantity of drugs seized. The packages were reportedly marked with the image of Manchester City and Norway football star Erling Haaland.
Anti-narcotics officers recovered about 369kg of cocaine on Wednesday after receiving an anonymous tip about a suspicious truck travelling along the Pan-American Highway.
According to police, officers stopped the vehicle in the Guagua Negro area near Tulcán and discovered 370 packages of cocaine hidden inside a specially constructed false compartment.
The driver was arrested following the discovery.
Images released by the police showed stickers bearing Haaland’s image on the packages, leaving many wondering why one of football’s biggest stars had suddenly found his face on a shipment of illegal drugs.
Authorities have not suggested that Haaland had any connection to the drugs or explained specifically why his image was used.
However, CNN reported that drug trafficking organisations sometimes use the names or images of famous athletes and celebrities to identify their shipments, including the criminal network behind them and the intended recipient.
Haaland’s image may have been chosen because of his enormous popularity, particularly following his impressive showing at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where he reportedly scored seven goals in four matches and became a major figure across social media.
Interestingly, Haaland is not the first football superstar whose image has reportedly appeared on seized drug packages. The image of Argentina captain Lionel Messi has also reportedly been found on another shipment intercepted by authorities.
The latest operation took place around 246km north of Quito, Ecuador’s capital. Police also arrested a woman identified as María R., who was reportedly carrying Colombian identification documents.
Authorities estimated that the seized cocaine could be worth nearly $11 million in the United States market and more than $19.6 million in Europe.
Ecuador has increasingly become an important transit point for international drug trafficking, with criminal organisations linked to Colombian and Mexican cartels reportedly using the country to store and move narcotics destined largely for the United States and Europe.
Reports indicate that roughly 80 per cent of cocaine passing through Ecuador originates from Colombia, while much of the remainder comes from Peru.
The scale of the drug trade is reflected in Ecuadorian police seizure figures. Authorities said they confiscated about 80 tonnes of drugs in the first half of 2026, compared with nearly 215 tonnes throughout 2025 and almost 295 tonnes in 2024.
Cocaine reportedly accounted for the bulk of the seizures.
For now, the biggest talking point remains the bizarre appearance of Haaland’s face on the packages — a reminder of the strange ways international drug networks attempt to mark and identify their illicit cargo.
