They have not played each other that many times but it is still a tie that is being talked about as a “hate game” in Sweden and Denmark. On Thursday evening FC Copenhagen play at Malmö FF, 23 miles across the water, in a Europa League group game that has brought excitement and apprehension in both countries.
First and foremost there will be an almighty battle on the pitch. This is not just about three points in Europa League Group B, this is about two teams who have been dominant in their respective countries for years and think they deserve to be called “the best team in Scandinavia”.
In addition there is the added rivalry of two neighbours going head to head in Europe. Swedes and Danes do not hate each other as such but is there a desperate desire to get one over the other in sport? Oh yes.
The background to this particular game is intriguing. In 2005 MFF and FCK were playing a Royal League game in Copenhagen. The Royal League was a shortlived tournament in the mid-2000s between the best clubs in Scandinavia. It lasted three years but that particular game will never be forgotten by Malmö fans.
After the Swedish side had taken a 2-1 lead there was unrest in the section housing the Malmö fans, with several altercations between Danish police and supporters. The Malmö fans said that they had been beaten up, unprovoked, by the Danish police, while the FC Copenhagen chairman Flemming “Don Ø” Østergaard saw it differently.
“There were individuals in the stands that were hitting undercover police officers and then it is not that strange that there are fights,” he said at the time. “There is one reason for this trouble happening and that is some provocative people who are not even interested in football.”
Some Malmö fans, including one who had been beaten by a baton on the head and lost consciousness, took the case to court but after a three-year battle it was decided that there was not enough evidence to convict anyone.
Malmö FF supported their fans financially throughout the three years and people connected with the club were, above all, furious that FC Copenhagen at no point apologised. FCK felt that they had no need to apologise but there is no doubt that that game has contributed towards the ill-feeling in the build-up to this one.
Swedish police have been preparing for the game for months and have been co-operating with the clubs and Danish police in an attempt to ensure there is no trouble inside or outside Stadion on Thursday. They have not divulged how many police officers will be in operation “for tactical reasons” but expect between 1,200 and 2,000 FCK fans will travel.
Danish fans will be marched from the central station to the square Lilla Torg, where they will be allowed to drink in the bars, before being shepherded to the stadium. “We don’t think that everyone will have tickets and some will probably watch the game somewhere else, like in a pub,” said a police spokesman. “Our aim is to make sure that the two sets of fans do not meet each other. Are we worried? No, but it is a task we are taking very seriously.”
Football-wise it will be an intriguing contest between two good sides. Malmö are second in the Swedish top flight, three points behind Djurgården, while FCK are also second, a point off the top, although the Danish season is only 11 games in whereas the Swedish one is coming to the end.
FC Copenhagen players made the short journey over the bridge on Wednesday, the club producing a one-minute video of the trip. The squad included Nicklas Bendtner, who signed from Rosenborg on deadline day in September and is edging closer to a place in the starting XI.
Spillerne tog onsdag turen over Øresundsbroen forud for udekampen mod Malmö FF. Tag selv turen fra Telia Parken til Malmö Stadion på ét minut i 'rejsevideoen' her! 🇩🇰🚘➡️🇸🇪 #fcklive #eldk #mfffck pic.twitter.com/JbFfVfJZQR
— F.C. København (@FCKobenhavn) October 2, 2019
There are several Danes playing for Malmö and Swedes playing for FC Copenhagen. One of Malmö’s best players, Anders Christiansen, is Danish but he was stoking the rivalry this week rather than playing it down, claiming that FCK “have bought success”. He said: “The game in 2005 is obviously one reason for this rivalry but another, I think, is the way they have been built in comparison to Malmö, as a club who have bought success. I think that is very important to Malmö.
“Apart from that, we have very high ambitions here at Malmö. We want to be the best side in the Nordic countries, so there are a lot of factors that make this into a big game.”
The coaches, Malmö’s Uwe Rösler and FCK’s Ståle Solbakken, have, naturally, tried to downplay the significance of the game. “I have heard about the incident [in 2005] but I wasn’t here then,” Rösler said. “I am very happy that we have this game for our supporters. Everyone has waited for this for a long time – it is a fantastic game.”
