Viking FK

Viking Fotballklubb, commonly known as Viking or Viking Stavanger internationally, is a Norwegian football club from the city of Stavanger. The club was founded in 1899. It is one of the most successful clubs in Norwegian football, having won 8 Norwegian top division titles, most recently in 1991, and 6 domestic Norwegian Cup titles, most recently in 2019. The club has played more top-flight league games than any other club in Norway. It has played in the top division since the league was established, except for the years 1966–67, 1987–88 and 2018. Notable European successes include knocking English side Chelsea out of the UEFA Cup during the 2002–03 season, knocking out Sporting CP from the same tournament in 1999–2000, and qualifying for the group stages of the 2005–06 UEFA Cup. Viking was founded in Stavanger in 1899 and played mainly local games in the early years. From the 1930s, the club established itself at the national level, playing in the 1933 cup final, which it lost to Mjøndalen. During the 1930s the club produced several of its best known players, most prominently Reidar Kvammen, who played in Norway's bronze medal winning 1936 olympic team. His brother Arthur Kvammen was also capped for Norway, while Bernhard Lund later went on to write the club anthem. After the Second World War, Viking became a dominant side in the 1950s, beating Lillestrøm in the 1953 cup final and Sandefjord in the 1959 final, as well as winning the league title in 1957–58. Long-serving goalkeeper Sverre Andersen was the most prominent player in this generation, while Edgar Falch also earned several caps for Norway. Rolf and Kåre Bjørnsen, Asbjørn Skjærpe and Leif Nicolaysen were other prominent players, while a young Olav Nilsen began his remarkable Viking career in 1959. The club attendance record also stems from the semifinal of the 1959 cup, when 18,892 spectators saw Viking beat Odd 4–0. While the 1960s was a somewhat quieter decade for Viking, the club returned to dominate Norwegian football in the 1970s.