Vålerenga - a brief introduction
League champions: 1965, 1981, 1983, 1984
Cup champions: 1980, 1997

Vålerenga, the club from the legendary "Sota corner" in working class Oslo 6 is yet again ready for the European cup.  The club, founded in 1913, enjoyed its glory days in the 60s and 80s but "Oslo's pride" hasn´t represented Norway in a European Cup since the 1986/87 season (0-0 and 0-1 against Belgian Beveren). Finally it is our turn again.

1997 was one of the greatest seasons in the history of the club, despite the fact that they did not play in the premier league. Having been relegated from the top division in 1996, the 1997 season was a triumphant one, winning both the first division and the cup. On the way to the cup victory, several top teams were beaten: Brann (3-0), Sogndal (3-2), Viking (4-1 and 1-1), and finally, in what was arguably the best cup final ever in Norway, Strømsgodset (4-2). To many, the most enjoyable match was the 3-0 win over last year´s quarterfinalists in the cupwinner´s cup, Brann, in front of 18,000 delirious supporters on our home ground, Bislett. The current season has not started as brightly for Vålerenga. They have been off to a slow start in the league, and at the time of writing they are alarmingly close to another relegation (4-3-12 in the first 19 games). It is particularly the away form which creates problems. Nine away games so far have resulted in nine defeats. What about the cup, where Vålerenga are ruling champions? Due to Norway´s participation in the World Cup, the premier league teams only entered the competition in the third round. Vålerenga were drawn against Skeid, an Oslo rival, but a team relegated last season and which, as opposed to Vålerenga, are having a hard time securing promotion to the elite division again. With a 1-0 lead at half time, Vålerenga looked certain winners of the game, but they miraculously managed to let in three goals in the second half. So the cup adventure was over before it really started, and it served as a reminder that the current season will not be as glorious as the previous one.

The fact that Vålerenga are playing below standard these days does not mean that the club has no good players. Central defender Knut Henry Haraldsen and left back Hai Ngoc Tran were part of the Norwegian U-23 team which ended 4th in the European championship in Romania this year. Young striker John Carew had a fantastic first season in 1997, and although he has missed much of this season due to illness, he has already attracted the interest of Liverpool. Midfield dynamo Bjørn Viljugrein is a very important player to the team. When he plays well, Vålerenga play well. He has been on the verge of breaking into the Norwegian national team for a year, but has only gotten one game so far.

Before the start of the 1998 season, Swedish striker/central defender Pascal Simpson was signed from AIK for a club record of 6,500,000 kroner (600,000 pounds), and although injuries have stopped him from playing great so far, there is no doubt that he has a great potential. In the quarterfinal of the CWC last year, he played two very good games for AIK against Barcelona, and scored in the 1-1 game. The club´s supporters are world famous in Norway. Numerous and loud they have managed to get rid of their previous reputation as trouble-makers, and for the last four or five years they have been a positive asset for the club. The supporter´s club "Klanen" has more than 6,000 members, which is more than three times as much as the second largest supporter´s club in Norway. All of "Klanens" members are looking forward to the cupwinner´s cup, but you don´t have to fear seeing them all in your home town. Many of them are young, or new, thus lacking the essential culture of the older members: the urge to travel to as many away games as possible. Somewhat depending on which country our opponents in the CWC are from, we can promise a very lively visit from Vålerenga. If we draw a team close to Norway, 1,000 travelling supporters could very well turn up, but to a more exotic country, 100-200 travellers is a more realistic guess. As a curiosity we can mention that about 50 supporters travel to the annual winter training camp (previously in Cyprus, now Spain). When Vålerenga play away at Tromsø (1600 km from Oslo), usually 100 or so people go with the team.

If you would like more information about the club or its supporters please mail a request to: info@vpn.no
We prefer if you write in English, though since you´re reading this text in English you probably realize that anyway!

We wish you luck in the Cupwinner´s cup 1997/98.

Translated by Stian Reklev (stian@vpn.no) and Viggo Hansteen (proffen@vpn.no)