This is an automated archive made by the Lemmit Bot.
The original was posted on /r/soccer by /u/CouchGiraffe on 2023-10-10 09:02:29.
This past weekend, the biggest news in Norwegian second-tier football was the return of Fredrikstad to Eliteserien after an 11-year abscence. One direct promotion spot remains open, but it might already have been claimed by the team you’d least expect.
KFUM Oslo is a team from Ekeberg on Oslo’s east side. They play with heart and quite a bit of local talent, but they also have the Lord on their side. KFUM, or Kristelig forening for unge menn (Christian Association for Young Men), is the Norwegian version of the YMCA.
Like their Anglican cousins, KFUM has departments spread all over the country. Their Oslo branch just happened to have a surprisingly good amateur football team, and it came as quite a shock when they were promoted to OBOS-ligaen (second tier) in 2015. They went straight back down, but fought their way back up and have enjoyed a stable period of top-half finishes these past few seasons.
After 2/3 of the season, the top-two finishers in OBOS-ligaen (who would thus earn direct promotion to Eliteserien) seemed a foregone conclusion - former giants Fredrikstad would join a revitalized Kongsvinger in Eliteserien 2024. Since then, however, Kongsvinger have fallen off a cliff, while KFUM never let their foot off the gas. With just four rounds to go, the table currently looks like this:
| Team | GD | P | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fredrikstad | 43-17 | 57 |
| 2 | KFUM Oslo | 46-30 | 50 |
| 3 | Kongsvinger | 43-35 | 43 |
| 4 | Start | 45-31 | 42 |
| 5 | Kristiansund | 44-35 | 41 |
| 6 | Sogndal | 41-37 | 41 |
Closing a seven-point gap in four games is certainly no impossible task, but it would require Kongsvinger to miraculously re-locate their spring form. Not to mention, KFUM are coming off of five straight wins and still have a few easily winnable games on their schedule. Surely “Kåffa” can already start packing their bags for games against Rosenborg, Brann, and Molde next year?
This season (Scandinavian football calendar runs from March to November) in Norwegian football has been weird for several reasons - heavyweights Rosenborg are struggling in the bottom half of Eliteserien, we have an unexpected title fight taking place, but this would surely take the cake. It just goes to show that God loves football, and He also has a sense of humor.
A few bonus facts about KFUM because I can’t resist:
- Their supporter’s club is called “Profetene” (“The Prohpets”)
- They have a women’s team. The women’s team is named KFUM Oslo Kvinner, or essentially “YMCA Women”. You’d think there was an easier alternative just sitting there…
- This year, their cross-town rivalry with Skeid mainly revolved around whether KFUM’s concession waffles were actually homemade, or just prepared from a store-bought powder mixture.