Östers IF Växjö v Örebro SK, Swedish Superettan

Östers IF 0-0 Örebro SK

Saturday 11 April 2026, kick-off 13:00
Swedish Superettan (tier 2)
Spiris Arena, Växjö
Attendance: 4260

An hour's drive west to the city of Växjö and another game at Spiris Arena, home of Östers IF. This is their first home game of the season and finds them back in the second tier of Swedish football after a quick visit to the top level last season. They could have saved themselves in the top flight but threw away important points and turned a few victories into defeats in the last minutes. So it's now a case of rolling up the sleeves and trying to bounce right back. Unfortunately they haven't made a great start with a 1-4 defeat away to Helsingborg last weekend so today's home game should see them going all out for the three points. I posted a match report from here on this blog (the first post to be more exact) a couple of year's ago so I don't need to add too many details about the ground.

Öster are a bit of a sleeping giant in Swedish football having won several league titles during their heyday of the late sixties and seventies. They were, in fact, the first Swedish team I ever saw, playing away to Hibernian in 1976 in the UEFA Cup (Öster won 4-3 on aggregate). Örebro is a similarly sized town and the club has had quite a few seasons in the top flight in recent years without ever challenging at the top. They missed relegation to Division 1 by the skin of their teeth last season (penalty win in the rlegation play-off). That scared the team and the fans and they will expect to see big improvements this season. They started well with a win last weekend.

The ground
No changes since my last visit - a modern tidy ground with good views all round. Today's crowd was a bit disappointing considering the spring sunshine, first game of a new season and a lunchtime kick-off. However the home fans made a lot of noise all game long and had a nice tifo at the start. If you like strong sunshine and warmth then the east stand is where to go. The west stand is always in the shade and that's where I usually go after getting badly sunburned on my first visit, staning in the east stand.

There's plenty of parking around the ground and it's easy to get to by bus. I just wish they could fill the ground more often but they probably need to get promotion to do that.

Food and drink
Standard Swedish selection of hotdogs, popcorn, coffee and snacks. My vegetarian and tea preferences mean that I usually eat and drink before matches here. I did notice that they actually offered a veggie option in the kiosks, a cheese roll, but it didn't tempt me. No tea either so I abstained. I wish Swedish grounds could invite a street food vendor into the grounds to offer something more imaginative for people who don't eat hotdogs or burgers.

The match
No goals and not too many chances as neither side made any significant breakthroughs. Örebro were better in the first half with a few half chances but Öster were rather unimaginative up front and didn't threaten the Örebro keeper. The hosts were more lively in the second half and could have won the game if they had been sharper. Too often the last pass was off target or they passed backwards to start again. I get very frustrated with the modern game of long periods of sideways and backwards passing against a compact defence. I saw too little movement up front today and few through balls.

A fair result though there was drama at the end when Öster won a corner only for the referee to blow the full-time whistle. However, I think he was right since we had 5 minutes of added time and they were up. The home fans were angry but a draw was the logical result. Neither team impessed and will have to improve to be challenging at the top this season. Early days yet of course.

What made my day was meeting an old colleague from work who just happened to have the seat next to me. Hadn't seen him for 15 years. A good chat was had!

Lindsdals IF v Hanaskogs IS, Swedish divison 3 south east

 

Lindsdals IF 4-1 Hanaskogs IS
Monday 6 April 2026, 15:00 kick-off
Swedish division 3 south east (5th tier)
Fjölebro Idrottsplats
Attendance: 86

The Swedish season 2026 started up this Easter weekend and I made the short trip to Lindsdal, a few kilometres north of Kalmar to see a match in the regional division 3. I've been to this ground several times now but not on this blog. Lindsdal is a village that has grown to become a suburb of Kalmar with a population of about 6,000. The football team was founded in 1926 and its greatest achievement was when the women's team played in the highest division back in the 1990s. They have a substantial youth programme and have produced several players who have gone on to greater things. The men's team have spent most of their time in the lower leagues apart from a few seasons in division 2 back in the 2010s. Last season they only just missed promotion, losing the play-off so this season they will be aiming at going all the way. They play in yellow and black but today turned out in an all black kit.

Today's opponents, Hanaskogs IS, were a completely new acquaintance for me, winning their regional division 4 last season. They also play in yellow and black.

The ground

Not a classic to be honest but modern and functional for this level. Club house, kiosk and dressing rooms at one end, a scaffolding stand with bucket seats on one side and the wooden dugouts on the opposite side. Artificial pitch of course. No frills and no cover. The weather was windy, grey and rain threatened several times without becoming more than a brief drizzle. I was well wrapped up with woolly hat and a blanket.

Clubhouse and kiosk

Food and drink

In Sweden the hot dog is compulsory but it is smaller and less tasty than what you get in Denmark. Otherwise you can get various snacks, coffeee and even toasties. Sadly no tea for me.

The match

Kick-off

Solid 4-1 win for Lindsdal and it could've been more. They took the lead after only 3 minutes with a lovelt shot from Benjamin Bengtsson from the right of the penalty area. That became 2-0 after 17 minutes when the same player stuffed it in from close range after a cross from the right was headed back into the box. Hanaskog were dangerous on the break and pulled one back with a close-range header from Kojo Annor after a corner from the right. Lindsdal got a penalty at the end of the first half but the visitor's keeper meade a fine save so the half ended at only 2-1. 

In the second half the hosts looked much more lively and were soon 4-1 up after a fine shor from the left by Seferovic and then a close range shot from Schylström wrapped up the points. A perfect start of the season for Lindsdal but the visitors can take away a few pluses. They had their chances and fought well. Points will come I'm sure.

Seconds before Hanaskog scored from a corner