AGF Champions

The first time I went to watch a football match was in 1986 in Ikast, when now foregone Ikast FS was playing AGF. AGF won the league that season, and today, 40 years later, AGF have again won the League.

AGF won deservedly as FC Midtjylland, the usual favourites (and who incidentally used to be Ikast), could not keep up with the team from Århus. They had tied to FC Nordsjælland which meant that if AGF defeated Brøndby, they would effectively be champions with one match left.

AGF did what they had to do and won 0-2; surely next week a big celebration in Århus as they get their medals in an unimportant match against Viborg. 

Some Brøndby fans, including myself, may have thought back to the sad day in 2024 when Brøndby just needed to defeat AGF at home to win the league, but AGF won and FC Midtjylland instead became champions, and thought of revenge against AGF. 

Don't mistake me: I am not an AGF fan, but revenge is so old-fashioned and pointless. Instead, I find it refreshing that finally the championship goes to a club that is not a recent money-creation (FC Midtjylland and FC Copenhagen), but is instead one of the old traditional Danish clubs, and comes from the otherwise lovely second city of Denmark, Århus.

So congratulations to AGF, but most of all to all Århusianere, who today have every reason to smile! 

Cruel to the hopeful one

This weekend was full of hope. After watching the FA Cup final I went to the beach. El Tunco is a surf town with not so nice beach, but a good laid-back atmosphere and plenty of drinks, and I was in a good mood as I enjoyed watching people, reading and cold beers. In the evening I watched the final of the Salvadoran Championship, where my adopted Salvadoran side of Alianza destroyed Municipal Limeño 5-0 to take the Salvadoran title.

For me this was buildup for what I really wanted to celebrate: Brøndby taking the Danish League title! 

The Danish league has been awfully close, but with last day, all Brøndby had to do was win at home against AGF, and they would be champions. In the meantime, FC Midtjylland were playing their rivals of Silkeborg (recent winners of the Danish Cup), and had to win, and hope that Brøndby did not win.

I was perhaps too optimistic, but I felt that Brøndby could not lose this at home, with the support of the best fans in Denmark, and having played a great season.

9 AM I sat in a restaurant by the beach, ordered breakfast, and started watching the match live on the "OneFootball" app.

And it all started so well...

Brøndby went ahead 1-0 on a header by the defender Rasmus Lauritsen, and in the meantime Silkeborg went up 0-2 against FC Midtjylland. The title felt so close!

But then things started falling apart.

The same Rasmus Lauritsen missed a clearing and scored an own goal, making it 1-1, which was the score at halftime. "Ok", I thought optimistically, "FC Midtjylland losing, and second half to score a second, things cannot go wrong!".

But they did.

 Within 8 minutes of the second half, FC Midtjylland had scored 3 goals and were ahead 3-2. The title was now with them if Brøndby failed to score! We were all nervous as the unthinkable happened, and Tobias Bech brought AGF ahead 1-2, and suddenly the title was two goals away.

We were all hoping when Sebastian Sebulonsen equalised for Brøndby with 25 minutes left. 3-2 would give Brøndby the title, and we all pushed the team forward. 

But football is like life: cruel to the hopeful one. Instead of 3-2 for Brøndby, AGF scored a third by Patrick Mortensen. At this point I lost hope, but kept watching, and Brøndby received a penny of hope when Silkeborg equalised for 3-3 in Midtjylland. This meant that if Brøndby managed to get 3-3, they would be champions!

I never really believed in it, even though there were some chances. And as the match ended, thousands upon thousands of Brøndby fans all over the world had our hearts broken. 

What do you do when hope is destroyed? When darkness descends over your life, and you feel there is no way forward? 

There is no shame in crying and expressing your disappointment. Just remember to raise your head, be proud of your team, and look forward to the next season where we will again stand together behind the team!

Forza Brøndby!

And to console myself in this deep pain, I will have beer (gravøl), and make a steak on my bbq.

Brøndby Nummer 1

I watched the top match in the Danish League between FC Copenhagen and Brøndby on my little Mobile phone, in my office, at 6 AM as the gorgeous sun was rising over San Salvador. Of course I was a bit multitasking, but managed to be disappointed when Peter Ankersen brought FC Copenhagen ahead at the end of the first half, when I thought that Brøndby had otherwise played well, holding possession, but unfortunately without creating the necessary chances.

At the same time the best fans in Denmark were making a lot of noise in Copenhagen!

Second half started with FC Copenhagen holding the ball more, and even creating some chances, and I started to begin to think it may not work when I happily shouted goal, as Mathias Kvitgaarden made a great counter run towards goal, cut off a defender and placed the ball in the far corner. A great goal! And 1-1 would be a good result for Brondby to keep first position before FC Midtjylland was to play.

But last seconds of the match: a high pass into the area by Jacob Rasmussen towards Sean Klaiber, who perfectly first-timed the ball into goal and a fantastic 1-2 victory for Brøndby in Copenhagen!

The victory put Brøndby 5 points clear of FCK on top spot, and as FC Midtjylland lost to FC Nordsjaelland, they are 2 points clear as well.

Still long way to go, but if Brøndby is to win the league, this could be a hugely important victory, and I happily shouted at Klaiber’s goal and colleagues told me to be quiet, but I don’t care!

How I became a Brøndby fan

Recently Brøndby won the Danish league for the first time in 16 years. This made me happy, very happy, but also led to a reflection about why I support Brøndby; how did I become a Brøndby fan?

The first time I saw Brøndby play was in 1987, the year that Brøndby won their second Danish title, and were emerging as the dominant force in Danish football through the 1990s. This was in Ikast, a small town in central Jutland, which had a team that competed in the top Danish league. Now, you could consider that I was an Ikast fan; living nearby I went to many matches in Ikast, so it was the team I supported. That said, Brøndby was putting Danish football on the European stage, and that same year, 1987, Brøndby made it to the quarterfinals of the European Champions Cup only to be eliminated by the later champions of FC Porto.

In 1989 I went to the Danish Cup final with my father. Ikast-Brøndby is a legendary match that ended 3-3, and only in extra time Brøndby ended up winning 6-3 (check it out on Youtube). This was a Brøndby side with players that would become legends: Peter Schmeichel, Lars Olsen, Kim Vilfort, John Faxe Jensen, Brian Laudrup..., and although I supported Ikast in that match, I was impressed by the club and the fans.

Soon after I moved to Spain, USA, and the reference point when living abroad increasingly became Brøndby, and less and less Ikast. In fact, Ikast FS ceased to exist in 1999, when it merged with Herning Fremad to form FC Midtjylland. By this time FC Midtjylland, a team based in Herning, was simply too far from my Ikast-memories, and although I sympathize with the wolves from Herning, I simply feel no connection to the side.

My attachment to Brøndby on the other hand only grew. As I moved to the outskirts of Copenhagen for university, a rivalry was emerging between Brøndby and the newly minted FC Copenhagen. For me Brøndby, the team that had already given me some memories became my natural choice among the many teams in the Danish Superliga. 

I went to Brøndby matches  once in a while (far from enough) and in 1999, when Brøndby qualified for the Champions League, I went to all matches against Bayern Munich, Manchester United and FC Barcelona. The first match, against Bayern Munich, remains a treasured memory, when Allan Ravn's memorable late kick gave them a victory against a German side that would make it to the CL final that same season (against Manchester United).

Although I increasingly spent time outside Denmark, I was in the stadium in 2002 against FCK, another memorable match, when a late equalizer by Mads Jørgensen effectively gave Brøndby the title. 

By this time there was no doubt that I supported Brøndby, and as I have moved from country to country over the last years, Brøndby has remained my point of entry to follow the Danish League. I have been hugely disappointed over the last 10 years, as the club almost went bankrupt (and I purchased stocks in the club) and as they have been unable to wrestle the two powerhouses of Danish football: FC Copenhagen and FC Midtjylland.

But a new title has come, hopefully more years of Brøndby giving us new memories, wherever we are in the world!

Brøndby Champions

Monday I was in the office, and listed eagerly to Danish radio as Brøndby took their first Danish title for 16 years after defeating FC Nordsjaelland 2-0. Despite a nervous start the victory never seemed in doubt, and every Brøndby fans has surely felt a sense of relief and eager victory. 

At least I did, as I alone in my office, lifted my arms in celebration, and held my head a little bit higher as I walked out of the office. 

And make sure of one thing: there are now some people even in El Salvador, that know about Brøndby´s triumph! 

Cheers!

Keep Attacking

 Last time Brøndby won the Danish title was in 2005 under Michael Laudrup as manager. Since then things have not been good as the club barely avoided a bankruptcy as other clubs, most notably FC Copenhagen and FC Midtjylland became the best clubs in the country.

The last couple of years Brøndby has been a title contender, but without luck for the club or the passionate fans.  This season the title race is proving particularly close, but it has always seemed that FC Midtjylland were one bit ahead in the title race. With one match left that has changed: ironically, the arch-rivals of FC Copenhagen gave Brøndby an opportunity to take first place by defeating FC Midtjylland. Brøndby "only" had to win away to AGF, from Aarhus.

Although Brøndby went ahead early, they suffered a red card and an equalizer by AGF, and things suddenly looked bleak. But deep into the second half Mikael Uhre scored a winner for Brøndby punishing a dreadful but fortunate mistake by an AGF defender. 

I did not watch the match. I am in El Salvador; I was at work, but put on the radio in the office, and must admit that I could hardly even pretend to work as the nervous second half advanced.

On Monday, Brøndby faces FC Nordsjælland at home. A victory will give them the title. So nothing is decided yet, although anything but the title would be heartbreaking for Brøndby fans all over the world, even in El Salvador...

FC Midtjylland grasping the title

 I don't have a way to watch Danish football in El Salvador. But I listened to the radio today as I have been grasping to the last straw of hope that Brøndby may take their first title since 2005. But FC Midtjylland has been one point ahead, and looked the stronger side as the Jutland team faced FC Copenhagen today. Ironically, a Copenhagen victory over FCM would give Brøndby a renewed chance for the title, and I must admit that I shortly hoped that FC Copenhagen would win. That said, as I heard in the radio that FCM got ahead 3-0 and were outplaying FCK, I was relieved that at least they were destroying Copenhagen (they ended winning 4-1) A lucky 1-0 victory would have been unbearable.

FC Midtjylland are now 4 points ahead of Brøndby on top of the league. There is still hope, but it seems most likely that they will again take the title. They deserve it, and are probably the most  ambitious professionally managed team in Denmark, and their hard work is rewarded. So a (premature) congratulations to FC Midtjylland, and will continue hoping for another season for Brøndby.

Never say never

Last week I was following the Danish league from El Salvador, hoping to learn that Brondby had ensured the Danish title. A win at home against FC Midtjylland would make it certain, while a tie would make it highly likely. But they lost at home to the team from Jutland, and so the ace was with the latter, and in the last two matches they did not disappoint, defeating first the defending champions of FC Copenhagen and finally defeating Horsens at home to take the title. Brondby, in the meantime, only managed two meager ties, and ends on a hugely disappointing second spot, after having led the league for most of the season. Their recent Cup title is only a small reward for a team that has been mediocre for many years, and not won a Danish title since 2005, and suddenly seems far from a new title.
I had been ready to wear my Brondby shirt and celebrate. Instead I chose a weekend with no football, not even the FA Cup final (won by Chelsea), promising myself that I would NEVER again watch football.
But next weekend is the Champions League final, so I will wait a bit to never watch football again.

Hoping for the first title since 2005

Last time my favourite team, Brøndby, won the Danish league title was in 2005. Back then, I was living in Ghana, but had returned on vacation and saw my favourite side take the title against Herfolge. Since then I have traveled the world, currently living in El Salvador, but Brøndby have not won a title since then, but have come through deep crises that almost saw the club disappear. The last few years Brøndby have been building a team to supersede the new "artificial" clubs of FC Copenhagen and FC Midtjylland (both are relatively recent clubs established in 1992 and 1999 respectively as mergers of more traditional sides. Since 2005 Copenhagen have won eight Danish championships and FC Midtjylland one). As a Brøndby fan I have been following it and hoping from afar, but not daring to really hope they could take the title despite them having had a consistent lead this season. While FC Copenhagen are no longer in the fight for the title, FC Midtjylland have been keeping up with Brøndby, so yesterday's match between the two sides was almost a final.
The match did not show in El Salvador....
But I was delighted to learn that after being down 2-0 in Herning Brøndby came back from behind and took a 2-3 away victory, and are now three-points clear at the top of the league.
Hope has become expectation, and I am ready to celebrate alone here in El Salvador!

Brøndby on top

Living abroad for many years I have had difficulty following Denmark’s greatest Club, Brøndby. Interestingly a Salvadorean colleague told me she had been in Denmark and said she had enjoyed going to football matches. I was too afraid to ask if it was FC Copenhagen or some other second rate Danish side, but she said: “Brøndby were so great”!
This made me happy, and how it seems to be going is making me even happier. Last time Brøndby won the league was in 2005, with Michael Laudrup as manager. Since then, things have been difficult, also as the club was close to bankruptcy and flirted with relegation. Only in the last couple of years things have begun looking up, and this season seems to have fully grown: they are top of the league, having both defeated the defending champions and runners-up. There is still a long way to go, but this is the best things have gone for years.
So let s dream!

Legendary Moments

The UEFA Website has a pretty cool competition going right now where you have to vote for your favourite moments of the Champions League. With the (slim) chance of winning tickets to the Champions League final in Berlin, this is something I of course cannot let go. But of course, at the same time, it leads to a more personal reflection on the most memorable (and not necessarily best) moments of this fantastic tournament.
So here are ten memorable moments:
10) Lionel's Messi's one-man-show against Bayer Leverkusen in 2011
9) Bayern Munich's first half against Roma in 2014, which I watched in an airport before boarding a plane, but which is probably the best I have ever seen a team play in one half.
8) Rabah Madjer's heal goal for FC Porto in the 1987 final against Bayern Munich is a goal that is imprinted in my mind
7) Manchester United's late 2-1 victory in the 1999 final, which made me feel sorry for a Bayern Munich side that had played better throughout the match.
6) Bayern Munich's 2001 penalty victory in the final over Valencia which made me feel sorry for myself.
5) Chelsea-Liverpool's 4-4 quarterfinal in 2009.
4) The incredible final between Liverpool and AC Milan in 2005.
3) First time I was at the legendary Anfield was in December 2013, to see the great Liverpool against Basel in the Champions League. Incredible to be there, although Liverpool were not so great that day.
2) In 2000 when Valencia defeated FC Barcelona 4-1 in the semifinals of the tournament. 
1) The first Champions League match I went to was in Copenhagen in 1999 when Brøndby faced Bayern Munich in the first round. Allan Ravn gave Brøndby the victory and myself an out-of-body experience.

That said, I could think of quite a few more as I finish this list!!! The only ones I am completely sure about are the top 4.

Brondby on a roll

In the Danish league Brondby defeated the number one team, FC Midtjylland, 0-1 in Herning. After a near bankruptcy and starting the league as dead last, the end of the year is finally bringing positive news for the fans of this beleaguered side. I am one of those fans. Who know? It may become interesting to watch the Danish league again!

The poor men and the champions

I have not been able to watch Brøndby play the entire season, so it was perhaps in place that the match I watched was against the arch-rivals FC Copenhagen, in the match that could make the latter champions. 0-0 was enough to make the Copenhagen team champions with three rounds to go.
Deservedly.
In spite of the fact that I have not seen them play this season it was obvious that in spite of the spirit and fight that Brøndby played with, FC Copenhagen are the best side tactically and technically. Brøndby was recently saved from bankruptcy by a massive input of money by fans and supporters, and that is to be admired. That said, when the leadership of the club is talking about European football within a few seasons it seems like they have remained living on planet "Illusion". Tactically Brøndby plays a primitive type of football where high balls are kicked up to a tall (and talented) striker. Technically, the quality of the average player is no better than the lower clubs of the English Championship.
This is not a team that will play European football within a few seasons, so they should just concentrate on surviving, for now, and then on building up a new team by replacing the weaker players.

FC Copenhagen continues to be the powerhouse of Danish football. That they did not win the title last season (FC Nordsjaelland did) was largely a fluke, and the team that was created in 1992 won its 10th title, and the 9th since 2001. With a variation of strong Danish players and foreigners they remain the only team with possibilities to compete decently in Europe, and not get the thrashings FC Nordsjaelland received last season in the CL.
I am not an FC Copenhagen fan, but I recognize them as the strongest and most competitive team in Denmark, and the right chanmpions.

Another Brøndby flop

Last year Brøndby was eliminated from the Europa League in the most pathetic way, after being up, and then fucking it all up when it counted.
Now, this bunch of useless idiots have done it again, and this time against an even worse opponent than last season, the unknown Austrian side SV Ried. Brøndby had lost the first match 2-0 in Austria, but midway through the second half they were 4-0 up, and one step from the Europa league. But with two goals against the most useless group of talent-less pieces of shit, SV Ried managed to get 4-2, and qualify for this season's Europa League.
Brøndby used to be a flagship of Danish football. Now, it is a club run by incompetents, and a team without talent, spirit or discipline. Worthless

FCK-Brøndby

And Brøndby lost 0-2 to FC Copenhagen in the Danish derby. I think it was to be expected, although my Brøndby heart always keeps a tinge of hope - the Danish league is effectively a one-team league, and Brøndby has not been able to win in Copenhagen for six seasons.
Sadly, Brøndby fans behaved ungracefully again, so only thing that remains is to congratulate FCK fans, and hope again: "next season...."

Forca Brøndby

I didn't watch tonight's Europa-League qualifier between Brøndby IF and Sporting Lisbon. Although I still support Brøndby (and must, these days, admit to be one of those fans who have invested some money in the club, upping the stakes), they have not given me much to be happy about over the last years, and the memories of glorious time in the UEFA cup and Champions League are not gone but just that: memories.
So I did not have much expectations when they drew Sporting Lisbon, and even less expectations from the first away match. But lo an behold! To my surprise, I followed the match on the internet, to see dear old Brøndby go ahead first 1-0 and then 2-0, and well, take a hugely important victory and step towards the Europa League group stages!
Thank you Brøndby! In spite of it all, and being so far away, they can still make me happy!

Scandalous Brøndby

In the last few games of the Danish season Brøndby has managed to throw all away and end the season an appalling way. It all started to go wrong when they were destroyed 0-4 by FC Copenhagen in the match that in reality decided the title. But even after the debacle in Copenhagen, Brøndby should have managed to remain in second position ahead of Odense B. However, yesterday, Brøndby lost 2-4 at home to FC Midtjylland, and were surpassed by OB, who won well-deserved silver medals.
Brøndby on the other hand ended as a pathetic team whose season will be sadly remembered for hooliganism and players that were simply not up to the challenge when it was called for. In any other club with great ambitions such a horrible season would be a wake-up call for drastic changes, but I am afraid that Brøndby's leadership is not up to it, since the leadership itself is one of the problems. Brøndby is still led by Per Bjerregaard, the emperor of Brøndby, who quietly pulls all the strings of the club - did so succesfully for some years, but the last few meager seasons for a club of great ambitions should call for a new leadership, who will look into some of the deeper problems of the club.
Firstly, they need to have a serious discussion with the coach, Kent Nielsen. I would often be the first to argue that the coach should be the first to be fired, but the problem is that except for Lars Olsen from OB (who will be unlikely to leave OB for now), I see no alternative to Kent Nielsen. Also, although I feel that he has been too careful and unable to motivate the players, I am not sure whether the problem is Kent Nielsen, or the lack of players. No matter what, Kent Nielsen will have to reconsider his style and approach entering next season, or Brøndby will seriously have to start looking for a new coach.
The second aspect that needs to be looked at are the players. Some are simply not up to this level, most notably the strikers: Morten Duncan and Ousman Jallow are simply not good enough and should go. In midfield there should also be a major resturcturing: Michael Krohn-Dehli may have been one of Brøndby's best players, but truth is that he is a player who only performs when it goes well, and is unable to lift a team. Samuel Holmén should also be taken out, while they need to look for a strong midfielder with good technique, and with strong leadership skills. Finally, a they need a more wide selection of defenders: the only one with any quality is Max von Schleebrügge, and guys like Mikkel Bischoff and Daniel Wass are simply not good enough for this level.
The final aspect that I hope Brøndby looks at in detail next season is the small group of very bad fans that again and again have behaved violently wherever Brøndby plays. The club leadership apparently keeps believing that this has nothing to do with the club, and does not seem eager to want to register and ban people from its games. The club leadership should be much more resolute in tackling this issue if they are not to be seen as accomplices to the violence.
It has been a depressing season yet again for any Brøndby fan, and I hope that next season the club will start showing again what it is all about: Brøndby the best!

Being a Brøndby fan....

I am a Brøndby supporter, and I consider Brøndby the best team in Denmark. That said, there are some bad things about supporting Brøndby, primarily the "fans"/hooligans who give the rest of us Brøndby supporters the following reputation:

• We have never read anything but the label of a beer
  
• Our diet is composed of pizza, burgers and cheap beer
• We have never talked to any woman besides our mothers and the woman selling beer at Aldi
  
• If we ever have children, we will name them all Kim Vilfort, even the girls
  
• Our geographical abilities are limited to knowing the bus number to the stadium
  
• We cut each others hair, and that is why we're all bald skinheads
  
• None of us have ever held a job for any longer than until the next match
• More than a Brøndby victory, we like beating up people
• Burp, fart, shit, puke...
  
• None of us actually know the rules in football...

Sadly for the real Brøndby fans, the vast majority of supporters who dearly love the blue-yellow team, who love football and who know how to behave, there is a small group of Brøndby supporters who for some reason keeps following our team, giving us the above reputation and making trouble like they did yesterday in Århus, after Brøndby lost 2-1 to AGF. Therefore the loss is doubly sad.

Go Brøndby!

End of season

Today Brøndby defeated FC Copenhagen 2-1 in Brøndby stadium. There isn't much to play for: AaB already won the league, and Brøndby is trailing in 9th place in the league. But FC Copenhagen are Brøndby´s arch-rivals, and a victory at least puts a bit of sweet taste into an otherwise bitter season.
I am back - and I have a good influence on these teams ;-)

Aalborg Boldklub

With a 2-0 victory at home against Brøndby IF, Aalborg BK just became Danish champions for the third time in their history. This happens with style, as there are still two rounds left in the league, but they can not be reached by their nearest rivals, last years champions, FC Copenhagen.

I have been away, but was very surprised to see AaB (as they are usually called) be leading the league as I returned; but apparently, the team from northern Jutland has been a surprise throughout the season, showing stability and commitment, something the defending champions of money-spending Copenhagen hadn´t.

As a Brøndby fan, I am happy FC Copenhagen didn´t win the title, and well, happy to see the AaB fans party their asses off: they are great fans, a great town (Aalborg), and deserve to be champions.

I know they will celebrate it with massive amounts of beer: Cheers!