Viking

Football arrived in Stavanger bundled with athletics. The split came in the 1930s, when football broke away on its own, and by then the founding date already sat three decades in the past — 10 August 1899.

The club had to relearn itself more than once. It dropped out of the top flight for the first time in 1966, and worse followed in 1987, when Viking finished eighth in the second division, the low point of its modern history. What came next in Haugesund earned its own name locally: a match that turned around a season written off, and sent the club straight back up. Alf Kåre Tveit, who had converted the decisive penalty that year, belonged to a squad that had already known how to win — nothing to match the run of four league titles in a row between 1972 and 1975.

Money later did what relegation battles couldn't: Egil Østenstad left for Southampton for £900,000, Thomas Myhre for Everton for £800,000. The colours tell a smaller, stranger story — the crest's red and yellow used to bleed into the white kit in the wash, so the club gave up on white altogether and went dark blue, which is where the nickname De mørkeblå comes from.

Viking Stadion opened in 2004 in Jåttåvågen, replacing the old Stavanger Stadion, and has carried sponsor names since — Lyse Arena since January 2025.

Ten Norwegian championships now sit next to six Norwegian Cups.