Erling Haaland becomes the fastest player to score 50 international goals

Erling Haaland has had a blistering start to his season for both Manchester City and Norway, scoring a hat-trick for the latter in the 2026 World Cup qualifier against Israel on Saturday.

However, the 25-year-old had a difficult start to the match after his early penalty was saved by Israeli goalkeeper Daniel Peretz, but the referee ordered the spot-kick to be retaken for infringing the area, allowing Peretz to parry Haaland’s second attempt.

He made up for the miss by scoring three times in the 5-0 defeat in Norway to take his tally to 51 international goals, while also moving closer to qualifying for a first World Cup final since 1998.

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He also became the fastest player to reach the 50-goal mark on the international stage, in just 46 appearances, well ahead of Harry Kane’s record of 71 for England.

List of players who reached 50 international goals the fastest:

• Erling Haaland (Norway) – 46

• Harry Kane (England) – 71

• Neymar (Brazil) – 74

• Kylian Mbappé (France) – 90

• Robert Lewandowski (Poland) – 90

• Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 107

• Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) – 114

Published on October 12, 2025