Helsingborgs IF v GIF Sundsvall, Swedish Superettan

 

Helsingborgs IF 5-2 GIF Sundsvall
Swedish Superettan, tier 2
Sunday 21 June 2026, 15:00 kick-off
Olympia stadium, Helsingborg
Crowd: 5,131

A day trip down south to Helsingborg, Sweden's ninth largest city with just over 116,000 inhabitants. It's also the closest city to Denmark with only 3.7 km over the water to neighbouring Helsingør, 20 minutes by ferry. More about the city at the end of this post.

Helsingborgs IF, or simply HIF as everyone calls them, are big names in Sweden having won the championship seven times plus five cup wins but have had lean times recently spending most of their time in the second tier with a few brief visits in the top league; the last time was 2022. Their last title win was in 2011, managed by the legendary Henrik Larsson who both played for and later managed HIF, as well as becoming a folk hero in Glasgow with Celtic and playing no less than 106 times for Sweden. The set-up at Olympia, their home since their foundation in 1909, deserves top league football and although today's attendance was modest they have a big following and can fill the stadium when things are going well. The city longs for a return to the big time but this league is not so easy to get out of as several other leading clubs have discovered over the years. The intense derby matches against Malmö FF are particularly missed though their rivalry with nearby Landskrona BoIS is a good alternative for the time being.

This season has been frustrating for HIF mixing encouraging wins with embarrassing defeats, particularly a painful 0-3 defeat at home to rivals Landskrona a couple of weeks ago. They occupy a mid-table position but need to put together a few wins to climb into the promotion race. The visitors today, GIF Sundsvall, are in a perilous position sitting bottom of the table with only 9 points after 13 games and only 11 goals to their credit. GIF have spent quite a few seasons in the Allsvenskan in recent years but are now facing a tough struggle to avoid dropping into the regional division 1 and at the moment there are few positive signs to note.

So, this is a game that HIF need to win to keep them at least on the fringe of the promotion race.

The ground

Olympia has been rebuilt in recent years and is now a comfortable modern all-covered stadium with a capacity of 16,000. The usual facilities of a modern ground are all there with executive boxes, restaurants, a fan pub and a home supporters' end with safe standing. I didn't know this beforehand but today was the last game on the old grass pitch and after the match fans were invited to wait outside where they could get a slice of Olympia turf to take home and treasure. I didn't feel the need to take home a piece of turf and also had a train to catch so I didn't hang around to see how the turf distribution was handled.

Food and drink

As you may have read in previous posts I usually eat before matches since, especially in Sweden, there is usually nothing on sale for vegetarians like me. So I was already well fed before this match but had to check the kiosk menu and to my amazement they had both veggie sausages and veggie burgers for sale! Nothing spectacular but still, better than most clubs. Gold star to HIF! They even had tea. Two gold stars.

The match

As the old cliché goes, it was a game of two halves. The first was slow, nervous and rather dull with few chances. The visitors started well and had most of the pressure in the opening 15 minutes. HIF took over possession but their attacks fizzled out around the penalty area. Then after 33 minutes Malte Hallin headed in a corner from the left and the small band of intrepid away fans (10 of them I think) celebrated. Here we go again said a few home fans around me, anticipating another embarrassing match, but HIF managed to raise their game and started threatening. The pressure paid off a few minutes before the break when the powerful Kevin Nyarko stabbed the ball home after a nice through pass. Half time arrived and we wondered if the hosts could raise their game further in the second.

After the break it was all HIF as they piled on the pressure and the Sundsvall defence looked increasingly vulnerable. Nyarko provided the pass and found Gigovic free around the penalty spot and made no mistake. The relief was tangible around the ground. Two minutes later it was 3-1 after the defence failed to clear a ball and Max Svensson shot home from the left. HIF were now dominant and creating plenty of chances with midfielders Nordin and Bengtsson as the playmakers. Gigovic scored his second on 76 minutes and Nordin scored the fifth with a fine shot from about 20 meters. The visitors got a consolation goal deep into stoppage time.

A much needed win for HIF and something to build on. I'm not sure if they have what it takes to go up but it's a very tight league so who knows. Maybe some reinforcements needed for the autumn. Tough times ahead for Sundsvall with a very unsteady defence and very few goals up front. Changes are needed if they are going to survive.

The home fans were very vocal and the atmosphere was good. Disappointing attendance but the trouble with summer football is that on a summer Sunday like this many people prefer to head for the beaches and parks. Also two days after the Midsummer celebrations (almost as big as Christmas here in Sweden) many people would be a bit tired.

More than football

Up till 1658 Helsingborg and the south of Sweden beolnged to Denmark and the narrow straight between here and Helsingør was closely guarded with fortifications on both sides to ensure that ships passing to and from the Baltic Sea paid their tolls. On the western side is the impressive Kronborg castle where Hamlet has his origins (Helsingør  = Shakespeare's Elsinore) and on the eatern shore was another castle of which only the tower remains. The view from this tower (Kärnan) over to Denmark is a compulsory tourist photo stop (below).

It's a good base for a holiday with two countries to explore and very frequent ferries over the channel. The mansion house, Sofiero castle, and its superb gardens are very popular and the city centre has many charming streets to wander around and shop in. I enjoyed my visit to the art gallery and city museum. Find out more at Visit Helsingborg.