Despite having been to Stockholm many times before, I had never seen a football match there. This is in part due to trips not coinciding with the Swedish football season and not being particularly fond of AIK (Allmänna Idrottsklubben), who are based in Solna, a few miles north of the centre. However, I decided to give them the benefit of the doubt and got a ticket for their match against IF Elfsborg at the Friends Arena.
The 2015 Allsvenskan championship is proving to be a mixed bag for AIK, Their home form is fantastic, but their away form has been dismal to say the least. Their opponents, Elfsborg (from the city of Borås), went into the match in third place in the table (three places higher than AIK).
The crowd was a little disappointing, just over 14,000 (of which no more than 100 were away fans) in a 50,000+ stadium, but the atmosphere in the ground was great. AIK supporters have a reputation for being very boisterous - if not fanatical - and vocal in their support for their team. I was quite surprised to see just how true this was when, just prior to kick off, the club's official song "Å vi e AIK" (Oh We Are AIK) was played over the loudspeaker and everyone appeared to stand up and sing along to it as if their life depended on it. Once the game got under way, the more extreme fans did not stop chanting throughout the match.
The game itself was quite entertaining, but was virtually all over before half-time. AIK raced into a 4-0 lead within 40 minutes and it looked like Elfsborg were in for a severe drubbing. However, the second half was a much closer contest, as Elfsborg grabbed two goals back and could easily have got at least another goal. but - thankfully for the AIK faithful - time ran out. Despite winning, AIK remain in sixth place, but now only 5 points separate the top six teams.
Would I go back to watch them? Yes, I probably would.
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