Traditional club as guest

“The whole city lives and loves Färjestad”

When the Eisbulls face Färjestad BK at home in the first leg of the Champions Hockey League quarter-final on Tuesday, a European heavyweight will be coming to the city of Mozart. In the "Krone" column "Bauerntrick", sports editor Manuel Grill reports on a local inspection in Sweden's ice hockey metropolis Karlstad.

Karlstad has around 62,000 inhabitants, but the "sunshine city" can still confidently be described as an ice hockey metropolis.

This is because Färjestad BK is home to Sweden's most successful club since the Elite League was founded in 1975. FBK have been champions ten times, reached the final 17 times and are the only club never to have been relegated from the top division. They are still unbeaten in the CHL this year and have won all of their last five games in the league.

Färjestad BK was founded in this kiosk in Karlstad, Sweden, in 1932.(Bild: Manuel Grill)

The iconic home ground, Löfbergs Arena, has space for over 8,000 people.(Bild: Manuel Grill)

The arena can also be seen from the inside.(Bild: Manuel Grill)

No longer assigned numbers of the traditional club, the who's who of Swedish ice hockey.(Bild: Manuel Grill)

And the fan support is second to none. "The whole town lives and loves Färjestad," said supporter Linus S., whose eyes lit up when the "Krone" asked him about the club logo on his chest during a local inspection. No matter where you looked, the traditional club was omnipresent. Be it on buses, children playing in shirts, matchday menus in the pub or pennants in cabs. The kiosk where the club was founded in 1932 (back then as a bandy club) is considered the unofficial landmark.

In sporting terms, the Ice Bulls have a heavyweight on their hands: rivals HV71 were sent home with a 7:2 win. Färjestad - ex-Bull Damian Clara in goal - showed no weaknesses. The Bulls' trump card could be their forechecking. HV71 did not dare to do that.