Bergnåsets AIK — Sandviks IK (17-06-2023)

I arrive at the ground of Bergnåsets AIK (BAIK) over an hour before the 2 PM kick-off, just to make sure I am at the right place and they actually play. After having confirmed that, I go to downtown Luleå to raid some food trucks.

Upon returning 30 minutes before kick-off, I see players warm up and even hear some distant music. Somewhat surprisingly, I have to pay (SEK 60 or $5.60), but of course I don’t get a ticket. The game is in the Division 2 Norrland, which is actually the Sixth Division in Sweden, and both Umeå FC and Piteå Ik are mid-table.

The Bergsvallen “stadium” is part of a sport park and constitutes of a small, old, wooden bleacher on part of one long side. There are almost 100 people, a lot of younger guys, some seem to play for the team at other levels.

It is again a surprisingly warm day, roughly 21 C, but the wind makes it a bit cold at times (perfect to play though). Both teams have a lot of young players and the whole refereeing team is very young. In the 3th minute the hosts have an enormous chance but the striker hits it well over the goal from about 5 meters. After another BAIK chance, a S free kick is missed by everyone in the box until a player puts the tip of his foot against it and scores: 0-1.

In the 21st minute, after the game is halted for a long injury break, the hosts score a great free kick from just outside of the box: 1-1. A stunner! Overall, though, the game is a lot of complaining, falling, and high balls to nowhere. After another BAIK free kick is deflected on the crossbar, they do score again, in the 45th minute, after the ball bounces up in the box and the striker shoots it hard in the goal with a half volley. 2-1 is also the half time score.

The second half is just blunt (physical) and includes a lot of smaller and bigger fouls. As a consequence, almost no good soccer is played. Overall, really annoying. In the 60th minute, a slow and low Sandviks shot from outside the box just rolls through players and the goalie let’s it go, but, luckily for him, it ends up on the post.

In the 77th minute the hosts finally have a good attack again, which is finished hard and low in the far corner: 3-1. Five minutes later, a BAIK corner is cleared but brought back well and headed into the goal from 5 meter: 4-1. That would also be the final score.

In the end, it is an easy win for the home team, but it was overall pretty dismal soccer. Too many long high balls, too physical challenges, dives and complaints. The ground is minimal but the tower-shaped kiosk gives it some flair.

Umeå FC — Piteå IF (16-06-2023)

I have driven some 7 hours north of Stockholm to get to Umeå, where I’ll see the local FC in the Ettan Fotboll (Third Division). But when I arrive at the ground, 45 minutes before kick-off, I panic. There is no one! There is no music or other sound.

I walk to the stadium and see that the entrance is open. I ask the older guy at the entrance whether Umeå FC plays tonight and he says “yes” and that entrance is free. At this time, there are only some 25 people.

The Umeå Energi Arena (originally Gammliavallen) sounds like a horrible soulless building but it is in fact a gorgeous stadium with a capacity of 6,000 (although Wikipedia is inconsistent on this across pages), with two stands on the long sides, one low, one a bit higher, made from wood.

They play on artificial turf, which makes sense given the climate. Allegedly, the stadium was built in 1925 but it looks very new. The stadium is shared between three soccer teams: Umeå FC, Umeå IK (top tier women’s team) and Team TG FF, which plays in Division 1 Nord. We are roughly one-third into the 2023 season and Umeå FC is 7th and Piteå IF 12th in the Ettan. Piteå is about 200 km, or 2.5 hours, north of Umeå but I don’t think there are any away fans. Most people in the stadium don’t wear any gear of any soccer team.

It is exceptionally warm in Umeå this evening: some 24 C and even hotter in the sun. This explains why most of the 1,000 people sit on the big stand which gets all the sun. The fans are white and male, overall a bit older.

In the 7th minute the guests have the first chance, but it goes just wide. In the 25th minute, another half chance for Piteå, but the half volley goes straight at the goalie. Three minutes later, a poor pass forward is deflected by a Piteå defender and the goalie, who is running towards to original pass, slips, and the ball rolls into the goal from 20 meter: 1-0. Comedy of errors.

Only in the 35th minute the hosts have their first shot on goal, but it literally goes straight at the goalie. The play is very slow, predictable, and risk averse. Consequently, the half time score is 1-0, to a weak applause from the audience. Overall, the atmosphere is cozy rather than heavily invested in the game.

The second half starts with a big chance for the guests, but the goalie saves at the post.The game is getting really bad now. Piteå attacks, kind of, and Umeå just kicks the ball far away. Very dire. This notwithstanding, the (ca. 25) ultras put on a pyro show.

In the 65th minute, Umeå finally attacks, but the finish is hard at the goalie. In the next minutes there is some pressure from the hosts, leading to several corners. A free kick from just outside of the box is placed low but just wide.

There is now a true onslaught of Umeå corners but none challenge the goalie. In contrast, some of their shots do. Piteå seems perfectly content with the 0-1 lead.

There is some drama in the extra time. First, a desperate Piteå attack ends with a shot at the goalie. Next, in the last attach of the game, Umeå sees a wild shot hit the crossbar from inside the box. Final score: 0-1.

Despite the dire quality of play, I really loved this hop. Sure, the weather helped, but the stadium, despite its modern name, is a true beauty. Go see it!

AIK - Halmstad BK (04-03-2018)

 

Initially I had not expected to see a game during my visit to Stockholm, as the leagues only start in April, but when I heard that the Svenska Cupen (Sweden Cup) started already much earlier, I changed my flight from Greece, and arrived a day earlier, so I could see a game in Group B, between Allsvenskan (First Division) team Allmänna idrottsklubben (The Public Sports Club, AIK) and Superettan (Second Division) team Halmstad Bollklubb (HBK).

 

The game is played at the Tele2 Arena, which is home to two of AIK’s in-town rivals, Hammarsby IF and Djurgårdens IF, whereas AIK normally plays at the Friends Arena in the north of town. Tele2 Arena opened only in 2013 and can hold 33.000 people for sports games. I buy a ticket for the seating stand for SEK 150 ($18) – even at the stadium the ticketing is done by a special company, which charges SEK 20 ($2.50) for the “service” of printing the ticket.

 

In a truly egalitarian fashion, your ticket doesn’t have a specific seat number, so you can sit wherever. Hence, everyone clutters around the middle of the pitch, but as there are only some 3.000 people, I guestimate, this is not a problem. The audience is white, seemingly middle class, and remarkably male (I guestimate only some 15% is female). About half wear some type of AIK merchandise, although primarily scarves – it is freezing outside, so that makes sense. Some 20 away fans have made the 500 km journey from Halmstad in the Southwest.

 

Tele2 Arena feels more like a cinema than a football stadium. First of all, it is fully covered, i.e. indoor, which is also reason why the game can be played – even much of the city bay is frozen and there is snow everywhere. Second, they play on AstroTurf. And, third, you sit on cushy chairs and have free Wifi. No wonder most fans behave like a cinema audience, i.e. they are quiet. The only exception is before kick-off, when everyone sings the club song.

 

In the fourth minute AIK attacks from the right, the cross comes to a striker who makes great gestures to indicate he is going to volley it (that will never happen), but then goes easily down after some weak pulling. The referee gives a penalty, which is easily converted: 1-0.

 

One would think that this makes HBK attack a bit more, but they at times defend AIK’s 1-0 lead even more than AIK itself. The hosts pass the ball around slowly, while both sides hold as many people behind the ball as possible. As passing is slow, they play on AstroTurf, and there are huge spaces, control can be subpar and they still don’t loose much of the ball.

 

In the 20^th minute AIK has a good attack, but the shot is weak. Five minutes later AIK has a good through ball, but the striker reacts too slowly, which allows the defender to get his foot in. Another five minutes later the hosts have a good counter, a doublepass puts the striker alone in front of the goalie, but he shots it straight at him. A minute later HBK has its first ball on goal, a very weak header. Overall it is very quiet in the stadium. Only the “Ultras Nord” are singing.

 

The passing is predictable and the game boring. There are a few half chances, including an AIK shot from 20 meter, straight at goalie, and a surprise HBK cross, which is just missed by the striker. Half-time score is 1-0.

 

After googleing Halmstad BK – free Wifi after all – and finding out they are from a lower division, it all makes more sense. However, they slowly start to make more of the game. In the 56^th minute (!) they force the AIK goalie to make his first safe – albeit a fairly easy one – and four minutes later they get a penalty, after the striker is fouled in the box. It is taken beautifully and HBK is level: 1-1.

 

By this time I have solidly started to support HBK and celebrate the equalizer among the shocked home fans. But just eight minutes later they can celebrate again, as AIK scores out of an insanely easy counter-attack. The home fans are so relieved they break out in the first, and only, spontaneous singing of the afternoon.

 

This time HBK responds directly. They have several decent attacks, but fail to provide any decent finishes. AIK seems to have moved on and no longer is interested in playing. As everyone is counting the seconds to the end, AIK starts to play again. In fact, they play more in the last 5 minutes of the game than in the first 85. In the 88^th minute they score from a very calm and well-executed counter: 3-1. That is also the final score.

I understand, it is cold in Sweden, but really, do you have to play in a cinema-like setting? Let’s face it, you Swedes aren’t the most exuberant people to begin with, so how can this finish anyway else than boringly? Anyway, should you be in Stockholm, do go and see AIK play, in their own Friends Arena, but do it while there is snow and ice outside, so that you at least have an excuse to be watching indoor soccer.

Bunkeflo IF – Landskrona BoIS (21-05-2007)

Almost exactly 24 hours after leaving Malmö IP I was back for more. This time at the program, the Skånederby of the Superettan (Second Division). Skåne is the most southern province of Sweden, running roughly from Helsingborg to Malmö. In fact, the ‘real’ Skånederby is between Helsingborg IF and Malmö FF in the Allsvenskan, Sweden’s highest division. But this Monday evening the game was between Bunkeflo IF, a team from Bunkeflostrand, a southwestern suburb of Malmö, and Landskrona Boll och Idrottsällskap, from the town of Landskrona, 45 km north of Malmö. For some reason the game was not played at Brovallen, the home ground of “BIF”, but at Malmö IP. Moreover, the entrance was free (thus, no chance in hell on scoring a ticket this time).

While the day before a mere 250 people had been at Malmö IP, to see IFK Malmö-Qviding FIF, today it was a completely different ballgame. When approaching the stadium, a couple of minutes before kick-off, I could hear singing and hundreds of bicycles were obstructing the way to the entrance of the ground. In fact, according to the official count an impressive 5,462 people were present, at least 2,000 of them were black-and-white striped supporters of Landskrona BoIS.

This time I headed directly to the sausage stand. Unfortunately, when I was finally served my sausage was still cold inside. A particular shame as the aivar and tartar sauce, which were freely available, tasted great. It was strange to be back in the same stadium, as it felt so different. It was now almost full and the atmosphere was electric. There was a real game going on! In fact, it was not easy to find a good spot. The main stand in particular was packed.

While I was circling the ground to take some pictures, I saw a group of some ten away supporters standing with their hands against the wall. They were arrested by the police, which were present in relatively large numbers, although I don’t know why. Throughout the game I was surprised to see small groups of supporters of both teams touting each other so openly; something I hadn’t experienced at Swedish games before. Something else I hadn’t seen before, neither in Sweden nor somewhere else at this level, was a handicapped player. In the team of Landskrona BoIS was a player with an amputated arm; as this seriously impedes the sense of balance, it is remarkable that this player could perform at such a high level.

After circling the ground, I took my place at the main stand, among both Bunkeflo IF and Landskrona BoIS fans, and saw a decent start of the game. The level was clearly better than the day before. Also, these players did not shy away from serious tackles. While I thought that the visitors had a little bit more of the game, it was in fact the home team that scored the first and only game of the first half, captured by yours truly.

The second half started with a huge chance for the visitors, but he missed it at 5 meters before the goal. While the game deteriorated rapidly, with both teams excelling only in bad passes and wrong choices, the second half proved full of goals. In the 58^th minute Bunkeflo IF scored the 2-0 through a scrimmage goal. Only five minutes later it was already 3-0 after a nice sliding-shot from 11 meters.

This was too much for most away supporters. The fans behind the goal finally stopped their singing, which had increasingly been anti-Malmö rather than pro-Landskrona, while their fellow-supporters throughout the stadium started to leave by the hundreds. In fact, when the visitors had their best chance of the game, in the 83^rd minute, which brought a great safe by the BIF goalie, almost one-third of the spectators (mostly away fans) had left the stadium. They missed a stunning finale.

In the 89^th minute a BIF striker went alone on goal but failed and in the direct counter-attack a BoIS player placed a hard shot only just wide of the goal. In the 91^st minute the away team got their deserved “honorary goal”, although the nice combination of the visitors was finished with an own goal of a BIF defender. This would not be the final score though. In the dying seconds of the 94^th minute Bunkeflo IF scored its fourth goal. 4-1 would also be the end result of this Skånederby.

All in all, it was an Erlebnis to have two such totally different experiences in the same stadium in two days. It shows that Malmö IP is a very nice home ground for whatever crowd, team, and weather. It also shows that Malmö has much more to offer than just Malmö FF. In fact, given its close proximity to Copenhagen, Malmö is a perfect destination for any groundhopper!

IFK Malmö-Qviding FIF (20-05-2007)

Sunday 20 May was truly a sunday in Malmö, so, after some sight-seeing at the Western Harbor, J.B. and I made our way to the Malmö Idrottsplats stadium, a pleasant 10-15 minute walk from Malmö Central Station, to visit a game in the Division 1 Södra (technically, the Third Division in Sweden, which is divided geographically into two leagues, the south and the north). Malmö IP is a cosy little stadium just outside of the centre of town, consisting of four small wooden stands (in fact, five, as one long side has two separate stands). It is home to both IFK Malmö and the newly founded LdB FC, a women’s football club, and has a capacity of 7,600.

At the ticket box we paid 80 SEK (ca. 9 euro) and, for the first time in a long time, got a ticket in return. Ok, it was not much of a “biljett”, but it was an actual ticket. Although it was perfect weather, only some 250 people had turned up for the game; admittedly, almost twice as many as at the HIK game the day earlier. Among them, there were possibly some 10 fans of Qviding FIF, a young club from Göteborg (founded only in 1987), among them these female “ultras”.

IFK Malmö, founded in 1899 (!), used to be the team of the middle class of the city, while Malmö FF, founded in 1910, used to be the team of the working class. Anno 2007 IFK draws relatively many immigrants, maybe in part because quite some local (immigrant) youth play in the first team. One of the most notable players of the home team was a fairly corpulent central defender, whose bold head (rather than imposing physique or defending skills) reminded J.B. and me of the Brazilian defender Alex (on his way from PSV to Chelsea, unfortunately). The visitors had a couple noteworthy players too: the number 17, whose shots and face reminded me of the Norwegian player Jan Arne Riise, and the number 16, a cunning and nasty little striker. Most remarkable was that both teams fielded mainly very young players; in fact, it almost looked like a game between two youth teams.

Despite the youth of the players, the game was not played at the edge or even at a high pace. Both teams passed poorly and most players were afraid to get into duels, often pulling back their leg. Still, the game did start out ferociously: after some 5 minutes the IFK goalie made two great safes within 20 seconds, both at attempts from close range, denying the visitors an early goal. Unfortunately, a bit later he was involved in a collision after a corner kick and had to be attended for several minutes.

Not long after that he made another great safe, but this would be his last moment of the game. He was changed, probably suffering a concussion, and replaced by a far less solid goalie. Although not his fault, it would be Qviding FIF who scored the only goal in the first half: 0-1 in the 44^th minute, a blow to the home team. Although the football hadn’t been great, most people, including JB and me, had enjoyed themselves in the burning sun. As I had eaten a (bulky) Dallas Burger at the Statoil gas station before coming to the game, I did not go for a sausage at half time; although the lines were short and the sausages did smell pretty good.

The second half started with a big safe from the Qviding goalie. Shortly after, in the 54^th minute, a Qviding player got a red card, and only one minute later IFK equalized: 1-1. The goal came after several attempts, of which one might have already crossed the line but wasn’t counted. After that, the home team tried to look for the winner, but the level of the game deteriorated quickly. Maybe it was the warm weather, maybe it was just a lack of talent, but few passes over more than 10 meters made it without interception and both teams excelled in making the wrong choices. Somewhat surprisingly, and not even that deserved (given that they had played more than 30 minutes with a man more, yet created little in terms of plays or chances), IFK did finally score the winner in the 88^th minute. It was scored from a very difficult position, almost one meter from the goal line, way out on the left side. 2-1 would also be the final score.

A pleasant surprise awaited us after the game when both teams met again at the center of the pitch, this time to thank each other for the game and to congratulate the winner; a very nice gesture which should be considered in other leagues and countries.

After that, the home team players were celebrated like heroes by the (mainly old) supporters at the main stand. At a more personal level, some players shared their victory with their friends in the audience. Despite the poor level of the game, IFK Malmö is definitely worth a visit. It has an atmosphere reminiscent of my old (amateur) football club, where you knew the players on the pitch personally.

Malmö FF – Hammarby IF (08-05-2007)

Although I had been already in Malmö for five weeks, I had yet to see a game of the local pride: Malmö FF. As the end of my stay in Sweden is drawing nearer, and the number of potential visits is decreasing rapidly, I was happy to find that this Tuesday evening featured a game in the Allsvenskan (Swedish Premier League): Malmö FF-Hammarby IF. After having left my (visiting) mother and girlfriend at my apartment, I walked from the city centre to the stadium, a decent 20 minute walk.

Malmö Stadion is a somewhat smaller version of the (Nya) Ullevi stadium in Göteborg (see 30-04-2007), also built for the 1958 World Cup, with a capacity of 26,500 people. As in Göteborg, the city of Malmö is currently building a new, modern stadium that will house 21,000 people.

When walking to the stadium, I was reminded of an earlier attempt to visit Malmö FF in 1995, when my brother and I drove to Malmö (which at that time still included a short boat trip to Helsingborg) only to find out, one hour before kick-off, that they were rebuilding the stadium and were playing their home games 50 km outside of the city. Fortunately, this time the old, concrete Malmö Stadion was the venue of the game, and just in time for the kick-off (at 19.00) I arrived, paid 150 SEK (ca. 16 euro), again didn’t receive a ticket (what’s wrong with these people?), and entered the stand with the hardcore home fans.

I was surprised to find the stadium quite full. Officially 15,607 people were present, which is a good turnout for a Tuesday evening game in dodgy weather (although it didn’t rain, despite the predictions). Undoubtedly the opponent, Hammarby IF, which brought some 500 fans of its own, played a role. Hammarby is one of the Stockholm teams, which has established itself as a major force in Swedish football in the 21^st century.

The game started in a good atmosphere, with the home fans chanting and waving flags and the away fans regularly breaking through with some songs too. Already in the 9^th minute Malmö FF scored 1-0 to the great delight of the people around me. All seemed to expect a glorious victory, but wouldn’t get what they wanted.

Despite the 1-0 lead, the teams were equal to each other and kept each other in balance. Indeed, in the 32^nd minute Hammarby IF scored the rather deserved equalizer. 1-1 was also the half-time score. Time to ease the bladder.

Having used the impressive facilities, I went to the ticket offices to ask for a ticket. As expected, the people in the booths said they didn’t have any, but fortunately the proved both helpful and resourceful and came up with one ticket. To celebrate, I scored a very decent hamburger; I guess the first one I saw in a Danish or Swedish stadium so far.

The second half was much the same: the home team looking for the attack, and the visitors being more careful and looking for counter opportunities. While this led to some good set plays, neither team was able to create many clear-cut chances and there were no more goals.

Though the game was not that amazing, Malmö FF is definitely worth a visit for football fans. It belongs to the few Swedish clubs with a strong following and home games tend to have a real football atmosphere. While the old stadium doesn’t feature a souvenir shop, you can buy an unbelievable variety of fan goodies online or in the Malmö Support shop in the centre of town.