Groundhopchristmas 2004

There is little more beautiful than visiting a football game in England on Boxing Day. It is something special, something particular British.

Birmingham City FC – Middlesbrough FC (26-12-2004)

At 11.00 I had flown from Schiphol Airport to Birmingham and at 13.30 (local time) I dropped off my stuff at my hotel. As the game started only at 15.30, I had ample time to get to the stadium. I took a taxi and walked the last part uphill. Enjoying a quarterpounder and the typical English football atmosphere I picked up my ticket at the stadium (I had ordered it through the Internet for the steep price of 28 pound or ca. 40 euro). As I still had more than an hour before kick-off, I walked around the stadium where it was agreeable.

BCFC plays in the St. Andrew's Stadium, which holds somewhat over 30.000 spectators. For the game against Middlesbrough, no highflyer in the Premier League either, there were some 29.000 – almost full. The atmosphere was very amiable; little verbal violence, yet quite some singing. Both teams are mediocre, although Boro has a couple foreign ‘stars’ (i.e. Hasselbaink and Zenden). BCFC has two strong black guys in the attack (Morrison and Heskey), while their playmaker is an old, somewhat corpulent, very slow Irishman: Dunn. For the rest few players caught my eye, except for the Dutch player Melchiot, who came in the BCFC team at the end of the second half.

Overall it was a poor game in which BCFC scored relatively early, but Boro was the better team. Still, if I say that Zenden was the Boro playmaker and best man on the pitch, connoisseurs will know enough. In the end BCFC was able to score one more through, who else, Emile Heskey (what a non-player is that). 2-0 was also the final score.

You don’t have to go to England for the quality of football, but the atmosphere and experience of an English football game on Boxing Day is and remains unique!

Wolverhampton Wanderers - Brighton Hove & Albion (28-12-2004)

Two days later I travelled with my English mate L.M. to Wolverhampton, a surprisingly nice town at roughly 30 km northwest of Birmingham. (At least since the (short) period of John de Wolf at the local pride the Wolves are also known in the Netherlands.) Wolverhampton Wanderers is a club with a great tradition and support and has one of the most beautiful logos in the world.

We arrived well in time at the Molineux stadium, a fairly classic English stadium with a capacity of 28.500. Although we were about to visit a game between two teams from the bottom half of the English First Division (now: The Championship), the stadium was almost sold-out! L.M. had ordered tickets through the internet at a cost of no less than 26 pounds (ca. 37 euro); only 2 pounds less than the BCFC game, which, however, was in the Premier League.

The atmosphere was excellent and I have been surprised by the friendly comments throughout the game – almost no cursing! The level of play was below any expectation, except for the beautiful goal of Wolves (after a great combination of three passes). The most remarkable things of the game, which ended in 1-1 (the Seagulls had already scored luckily after 1 minute), was Glenn Hoddle. This former super footballer and national coach of England is now coach of Wolverhampton Wanderers... how the mighty have fallen.

KV Mechelen – RC Mechelen (28-11-2004)

Scotland has the Glaswegian derby Celtic-Rangers, Serbia the Belgrade derby Partizan-Crvena zvezda, and Belgium… Belgium has the Mechelen derby KV-Racing. I know, the Mechelen derby does not have the same scale as the other two, but within the Belgian context it is comparable to these big ones in intensity.

This Sunday KV Mechelen played at home against Racing Mechelen in a sold-out stadium of almost 13.000. True, this is comparable to a game like, say, FC Groningen against AZ, but this was not a game in the First Division, not even in the Second Division; no, the Mechelen derby was played in the Third Division! This notwithstanding, the game was sold-out weeks in advance and attracted fans from as far as Germany and the Netherlands (e.g. Roda JC fans at KV and FC Dordrecht fans at Racing).

As the game had gotten serious out of hand the year before, among others because of foreign hooligans (mostly from the Netherlands), the security measures had been increased even further. To me, they were similar to what I have experienced at Feyenoord-ajax in the 1980s; there was minimally one police helicopter, two water canons, ca. 8-10 police vans, and approximately 100 policemen. The few thousand Racing fans marched from their own stadium, escorted by a heavy police presence and closed-off streets, to the KVM-Scarlet-Stadium, popularly known as “Achter de Kazerne” (Behind the Barracks).

After having circled the whole stadium, to kill the time needed to wait for J.B. (who was having his private battle with Belgian Railways), we entered the already quite full stadium at 13.30. J.B. had arranged tickets through his work (buying them through the ticket office would have been impossible); for 11 euro we had standing places at Stand 3, area G, behind the goal. From there we had a decent view, although we sometimes had to stoop to stay under the roof and bend to avoid the posts of the stand. Obviously, we were among the Kakkers, the fans of KV!

At 14.00 the teams kicked off at a beautiful green pitch, which had become nice and slippery because of several days of rain. Perfect for a Derde Klasse (Third Division) derby game! From the start both teams went full for it, tackling whatever moved. The referee kept everyone on a tight leash, leading to two yellow card for KV players within the first 5 minutes. It also prevented the game from exploding, which was not self-evident in this pandemonium. As a consequence a fierce but entertaining game developed in which not much good football was shown, but where both teams battled for each inch of the pitch and every minute something would happen.

In the 25^th minute KV got a deserved 1-0 lead through a goal by “Patje” Goots, the former striker and top scorer of d´n Antwaarp (RFC Antwerp) and (self-proclaimed) star player of KV. The stadium erupted and the home goalie and players ran around the pitch like madmen. In the 39^th minute the hosts even scored 2-0, somewhat flattered but not undeserved. J.B. and I swayed back and forth with the KV supporters around us into the half-time break.

Already early in the second half (60^th minute) the game seemed all but over, when a Racing player got his second yellow card and had to leave. But soon after a KV player met the same fate, by stupidly obstructing a free kick, and it was 10 against 10. KV had played laconic, while Racing continued to fight, which would be rewarded. Although KV remained the better team, the game was changing and around the 75^th minute the visitors scored the 2-1. Both before and after that goal KV had various counterattack opportunities, but most were squandered by Goots, whose starlike airs begged for a substitution. In the 91^st minute KV was still punished by a late equalizer. Seconds later the excellent referee blew the final whistle.

After having processed the dramatic dénouement of the game, J.B. and I walked to a café to warm our frozen bodies. Having returned to a body temperature of approximately 37 degrees Celsius, we could not but conclude that we had been witness to a fantastic football afternoon. KV-Racing might not be Celtic-Rangers or Partizan-Red Star, it is without a shadow of a doubt the premier derby of Belgium and a football fest that is not to be missed.

Groundhopweekend October 2004

On a Friday afternoon my brother picked me up in Antwerp for another epic groundhopweekend. The first stage of our tour was going to be a game at 20.00 of the famous and faded (what is more beautiful) French club Stade de Reims. Unfortunately the traffic between Brussels and Charleroi was hellish and soon it became clear that we were not going to make Reims in time. Fortunately T.M. has a much better memory than me and remembered that there was also a game in Amiens that evening, so we changed our plans and route.

Amiens SC – Niort (29-10-2004)

After a significant detour and search expedition we finally made it at 20.25 to the remarkable Stade de la Licorne. This remarkable stadium has been the home of the local Amiens SC since 1999 and can hold 11.900 spectators. On the program for tonight was a game in the French Ligue 2 (Second Division) between Amiens SC and Niort.

We bought a ticket for the stand behind the goal for 7 euro, and found out at arrival that the home team were already 1-0 up. Having seen that all was well, I headed downstairs and rushed on the Merguez sausages, a compulsory snack at any French stadium, although this time it would not sit well on my tormented stomach.

In the second half we and the circa 3.000 other spectators (minus the ca. 25 away supporters) were very well entertained. Amiens was by far the better team (they were also 4^th) and passed the ball around well. Up front was a (French?) Yugoslav player who ran after truly every ball, what often led to throw-ins and corner kicks for Amiens. His work was also rewarded with one of the four goals Amiens would score that evening. Niort, which was also brought back to 10 men, saved their honor with a goal. They remained, however, last in the league.

Five goals for 7 euro, now that is good value for your money! Moreover, we saw an absolutely unique stadium too. Only the sausages were a disappointment. In short, also the French Ligue 2 is worth visiting!

FC Wohlen – FC Baulmes (30-10-2004)

After the pleasing French game we had to drive several hours to make sure that we would be back on schedule for our next game. Indeed, after only a couple of hours sleep we continued driving on Saturday morning to make sure we would make the ‘top match’ in the Swiss Challenge League (Second Division) between FC Wohlen and FC Baulmes.

Around 17.00, a half hour before kick-off, we parked in front of the brand-new Stadion Niedermatten, comparable to an (brand-new) accommodation of an average Third Division team in the Netherlands. We bought a ticket for CHF 7.50 (ca. 5 euro), which gave us access to the whole ground except of the one covered seating stand. According to the website that one stand can hold 624 spectators, and 10 journalists!, while the whole stadium takes up to 3.034 people. For this game, however, only some 550 diehard had made it to the Niedermatten.

Despite the amateurish setting, the biting wind, and the fact that it was a game between the numbers 12 and 15 in the Swiss Second Division, we were well amused by the game. The ball technique of most players – mainly French and Italian speaking Swiss – was very good and both teams liked to pass the ball around.

While there were not many clear-cut chances, both teams had chances to win the game. In the end, it would be the visitors who would take the three points home. Against the run of play FC Baulmes score the 0-1, which was also the final score.

1. FC Kaiserslautern – Arminia Bielefeld (31-10-2004)

After another late night, visiting a concert of football rock bands at the Swiss-Italian border, we were back in the car at 10.00 to take route to Kaiserslautern. Although I had visited die Rote Teufel (Red Devils) already years ago, I was happy to go back and help my brother to another groundhop-point. Moreover, Der Betze is a true football temple and I was curious to see how the renovations for the WC 2006 were coming along. (If you ask me, it hasn’t improved.)

Well in time we parked our car near the stadium and started the traditional climbing of the Betzenberg, the steep hill in the middle of town on which the stadium is built (and after which it is named, at least among football fans). Have reached the top, it was time to get us a ticket. As the game was on Sunday, and the opponent was Arminia Bielefeld, the stadium was far from sold out (in fact, only some 32.000 people would turn up). This notwithstanding, it cost me quite some time to get us tickets for the long side of the pitch – 29 euro for a seat pretty high up the stand. After having sampled the stadium snacks and bough a shawl for a friend (a Kaisi fan) we took our places and started to enjoy the fanatic fans at the Westribune.

Before the game the 1.FCK was at the bottom of the 1. Bundesliga (First Division), while Arminia Bielefeld was sixth and, together with Mainz 05 and VFL Wolfsburg, responsible for a very surprising start of the season. All in all there were few known players on the pitch, let alone many particularly talented ones. Not surprising then that the game was of a rather poor level, in particular from the home team’s side. What a staggering lack of talent! Die Arminen created various chances, but because the number 11 was adamant about not finishing them, it remained 0-0 for a long time. Only deep in the second half Bielefeld scored the deserved 0-1, to the great dissatisfaction of the people around us. Although none really believed in a home victory, they kept supporting their team with great energy. And not without result, as a minute later it was 1-1 and in the 90^th minute 1. FCK even scored the 2-1: both goals by substitute Teber. And so everyone (except for a few hundred Arminen) went home happy, although they must have realized that the season was going to be long and hard with Kaiserslautern being a top candidate for relegation.

Again, I really regret the renovation of the Fritz Walter Stadion, as again one of the classic football temples in the world has disappeared. Still, the club needs money, etc. We can only hope that when the renovation is complete, and the Westtribune has also become an all-seater stand, the atmosphere will still be as good as in the past, and the Betzenberg will stay a football temple.

FC Zürich – GC Zürich (26-09-2004)

Last Saturday I had to be in Zurich for work and to my great surprise and joy I found that the city derby between FC Zurich en Grasshopper-Club Zurich was played that Sunday afternoon. After a usy tram ride to the stadium, in part because of the car-free Sunday, I arrived shortly before kick-off. For CHF 35 (ca. 22.50 euro) I bought a ticket for the covered seating stand at the Tribune Ost (East Stand).

Stadion Letzigrund is the home of the Fussballclub Zürich and can host 19.400 people. It is more an athletics than a football stadium, having a horrible cinder track around the pitch. At the moment it is also simply an ugly building, but it is nominated to be completely renewed.

The stadium was quite well filled with officially some 10.800 people (considering he game was also live on Swiss tv). The visitors of “GC” (Grasshopper-Club) were with some 2.000, including a hardcore behind one of the goals. The atmosphere was electric from the start, despite the rather poor level of play. The Swiss league is probably best comparable to the Belgian, reasonably defensive, slow, and technically mediocre. I was particularly struck by the lack of tactical skills and the many different position takings of the players. Most players on the pitch were Swiss, but there were also some Africans, a Brazilian (Nunez), and a well-known Romanian (Filipescu).

I can be short of the game itself: the first half hour GC had a bit more of the game, but without creating many chances. Surprisingly, it would be FCZ that scored after some 30 minutes, after a mistake of the GC goalie. 1-0 was also the half time score. The second half started some 7 minutes later because of the dense clouds of smoke from the fireworks of mostly the away supporters. The GC fans would dominate most of the second half anyway, breaking through the fences twice (once with the help of a garbage container), demolishing the fence behind the goal, and fighting with the police outside of the stadium for much of the last 20 minutes of the game.

The home supporters remained untouched by the hooliganism of their city rivals, as their team scored the second and final goal of the game in the 80^th minute. This meant that, for the first time in 20 years (7334 days!!), FCZ won a city derby at home again. As you can imagine, this was celebrated frantically by the home fans!

VW Hamme – AA Gent (25-07-2007)

Wow, it has been a long time since I visited a game. With the last game being over six weeks ago, you can imagine how much I was aching to go and see this game. We combined it with an afternoon crossing the Wallonian part of Brabant, in which we got so caught up that we arrived in Hamme only 10 minutes before kick-off. As always, my loyal co-groundhopper J.B. was present, but so was my girlfriend, and social-groundhopper M.G.

Having parked the car at the parking lot of the Lidl, as suggested by the club’s website, we walked to the Gemeentelijk Stadion (Communal Stadium) to see the friendly game between Second Division team Vigor Wultens Hamme and First Division team AA Gent. As Hamme is only 40 km from Gent, and is in the same province (Oost-Vlaanderen), this is a huge game for the home team. We paid tickets for the standing areas at 7 euro per person, and entered the stadium.

We took some time to circle the ground, taking in the new building of the club, attached to the one main stand, and unsuccessfully following a sign saying “hamburgers & sausages” -- despite this being the biggest friendly of the summer season, with some 500 people attending, there was nothing to eat that evening! After a stop in the cantina, which provides a great view of the pitch, we took our place in the sun.

Although AA Gent had come with their strongest team, to the delight of the hosts, they didn’t seem to take the friendly too serious. Rather, it was a practice game in between two Intertoto Cup games, in which everyone seemed most worried about not getting injured. This gave VW Hamme more chance at getting some of the game, and they did. The home team had the first chance, but than had to be saved by the crossbar and the post.

Mainly as a consequence of uninterested defending, VW Hamme was able to score the first goal: 1-0. Gent seemed not bothered, or interested for that matter, and continued to play at low pace and with too many passes and too few shots. Practice was clearly more important than result. And thus Gent continued to dominate the game, but Hamme would go into half time with a 1-0 lead.

The second half started furious. While we were still trying to get our ice cream – I have never seen such a slow ice cream vendor as at this game – AA Gent scored the equalizer (46th minute). And before some of us had finished the ice cream, I’m not referring to yours truly of course, Gent had gotten ahead by a goal of its captain and best man, the Irish striker Dominic Foley. While Hamme did have some small chances at equalizing, it was again Foley who scored: 1-3.

As Hamme continued to fight for its honor, and Gent seemed uninterested in getting a big result, the game wasn’t played yet and the hosts scored 2-3. That would be their last goal though, the rest of the evening would be exclusively for the visitors. They scored twice more, once Foley and once substitute Gregoire in extra time, making it an acceptable final score of 2-5.

Starved by the un-Belgian absence of snacks in the stadium, we headed to our car and searched for a snackbar. This wouldn’t prove an easy task and it was only after crossing St Niklaas for several minutes that we finally made up on our grease intake. After that, we headed back to Antwerp, a short drive, thanked J.B. for his chauffeuring services, and headed to bed. But, a tired grondhopper is a happy groundhopper.

KV Kortrijk – KV Mechelen (10-06-2007)

Being back in good old Antwerp unfortunately also means less groundhopping. Moreover, with most European leagues having finished, it is almost impossible to still find games… almost! In Belgium the competition is finished with various play-off games for promotion/relegation. The most interesting is a poule competition for a spot in the Eerste Klasse (First Division) between four teams. This year the competition is between four Flemish teams, three of which from the Antwerp province: Lierse SK, Antwerp FC, KV Mechelen, and KV Kortrijk. The first one battles relegation, the other three try to get promotion. J.B. and I went to see a game in the fifth round, between the top team and the bottom team: KV Mechelen needed a win, or at least an equal result as Antwerp FC against Lierse SK, while KV Kortrijk had already lost all hope at promotion. This promised to be a special game!

Guldensporenstadion

At about 14.00 we left Leuven to make the 1h15 drive to Kortrijk, a town in the Southwest of Belgium, close to the French border. While the last time I visited KV Kortrijk, we could park the car practically next to the stadium, this time the visitors were “Malinwa”, not Virton, the team with one if not thé biggest away crowd in Belgian football. So, after 10 minutes of looking for a spot closer to the Guldensporenstadion, we parked and picked up our reserved tickets. Fortunately, we had bought tickets in advance, as people before us were stunned to learn that there were no more tickets.

The explanation could be clearly seen in the stadium, which holods 6.122 people, where at least two-third of the stadium was yellow-red, the colors of Malinwa.

Already walking to the stadium we could here the away fans sing. The had come to celebrate the promotion to the Eerste Klasse. It would be the honorable return to where the team belonged, after having been relegated to the Derde Klasse (Third Division) four years ago to avoid bankruptcy. But before the game started, the home team brought a highly original show of appreciation to its fans. All players (including reserves) wore a t-shirt with one letter, together spelling “Fantastische Fans!!!”.

But although KVK had nothing to loose or win, they clearly wanted to make a point. KVM might have expected a walk-over, but instead got one of the toughest fights of the play-off. Already in the 9^th minute KVK scored 1-0, to the great delight of the (home) supporters around us, who were clearly upset by being outnumbered in their own stadium. About five minutes later KVM headed the ball on the crossbar. Another five minutes they equalized: 1-1. In the next ten minutes KVK hit the post, while KVM again hit the crossbar (this time the KVK goalie had the tip of his finger on the ball). Malinwa seemed stressed by the pressure, which benefited the relaxed home team, which scored again just before half-time: 2-1. In the following minutes the KVK goalie made two more great saves, but despite increasing KVM pressure, promotion seemed far away at half time.

At half time I passed on the opportunity to get me a burger, but instead listened to the radio I had brought. In addition to hearing the first surprising election results, 10 June was also the day of the federal elections in Belgium, I was also comforted by hearing the half time score at Lierse SK - Antwerp FC: 1-0. With these scores Malinwa would achieve promotion after all.

The second half started less exciting as the first half ended. The first 15 minutes Malinwa dominated without creating clear chances. But in the 62^nd minute they were awarded a (soft) penalty, which they converted: 2-2.

A couple of minutes later KVK hit the crossbar, followed by the deserved third goal of Malinwa in the 67^th minute. The yellow-red part of the stadium went mad and accompanied the last quarter hour of the game with loud singing. In the final part of the game KVM had various chances at scoring another, but 2-3 would be the final score.

As soon as the final whistle was blown, the players and fans of Malinwa went nuts. The players ran to the visitors stand, which was completely packed with yellow-red fans (some of them no longer wearing their shirts), and were celebrated passionately.

Final Whistle

Malinwa promoted!!!

Players and Fans Go Wild

Ok, I admit, this groundhop was for me not really about the home team. As said before, I am a Malinwa supporter (in part to thank them for the win against ajax in the 1998 European Cup Final). Moreover, I had visited KVK already before, in a more representative game against Virton. But this was a historic game, in which KV Mechelen celebrated its return to the top flight of Belgian football. I was very happy to have witnessed it.

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.