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Texas (KTVT) — Wild Bill’s Western Store welcomed soccer fans from around the world over the past month, but owner Cody Newport says no visitor made a bigger impression than Norwegian superstar Erling Haaland.
“We got a call, and they said, ‘Hey, we want to bring in a player.’ We didn’t know who it was. We said sure, bring him in,” Newport said.
An hour later, Haaland was trying on cowboy hats, getting fitted for boots, and posing in a T‑shirt that read, “Y’all Can Kiss My Dallas.”
Before leaving, he bought a taxidermied raccoon holding a whiskey bottle – a store decoration – and was later spotted carrying it off a plane in Norway.
“It was insane,” Newport said. “It was kind of a joke. We bought them just to put in the store as decoration.”
Since Haaland’s visit, the store has sold more than 2,000 T‑shirts.
For Wild Bill’s, the World Cup has become much more than a tourism boost.
“Last month was the best month the store has ever had in the history of the store,” Newport said.
The business, which has operated for more than 40 years, is now shipping merchandise internationally.
Newport expects orders to keep coming long after the World Cup concludes.
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