The first-ever real-life character in Clash of Clans is Erling Haaland.
It may come as a surprise to many followers of both Clash of Clans and Premier League football, but here we are. The striker Erling Haaland, who plays for both Man City and Norway, has joined the ranks of players in the immensely popular smartphone game Clash of Clans. In an enormous seasonal gaming event with a football theme, his pixelated alter ego, the "Barbarian King," will burst into the scene.
A ton of additions with a football theme are also coming to Clash of Clans in May, including new troop characters and medal events that are sure to be thrilling. You may even try your hand at conquering the in-game settlement of Haaland if you're really ambitious.
If you're not a big football fan, this connection is interesting and might lead to countless celebrity sponsorships and entertaining events. It's the first time a Clash of Clans character has been based on a real person. With a staggering two billion downloads to date, we assume Clash of Clans has much more in store for its fans, and creator Supercell is known to be willing to take more chances with their future titles.
Given Erling Haaland's prominence in the football world, it's simple to get cynical about large-scale partnerships like this one in the gaming industry. While most people might worry that this is merely a ploy to extract money from both sides, Haaland has really been playing the wildly popular smartphone game Clash of Clans for years and is a true enthusiast. The amazing teaser for the collaboration can be seen here.
Haaland said, "I'm thrilled to finally be able to talk about this epic partnership with Clash of Clans, but it's been tough to keep this one quiet." Being able to play as an in-game character is incredibly wonderful since I've been a major fan of the game for a very long time and know everything about it. Players like Haaland would likely find it ideal to unwind with one of the best mobile games after a taxing game of football and demanding training sessions at the height of the Premier League.
As part of their collaboration with Haaland, Clash of Clans will be announcing a ton of more football-related news and events, so be sure to follow both the game's YouTube and Twitter accounts and Haaland's Instagram account, where his announcement about Clash of Clans has already received well over 400k likes.
Go out and raid on Clash of Clans—available for both iOS and Android—as we wait for one of the most surprising partnerships in recent memory. Check out our tutorials on how to get Clash of Clans gems and how to download Clash of Clans if you're as anxious as we are.