In a week, on 31 March – which is also Easter 1 – the Eliteserien starts again. It is a somewhat “strange” Elite series that is being kicked off. YMCA is the only representative from Oslo, after a promotion that was not very easy to predict.
That it became “Oslo’s Stolthet”, namely Vålerenga, which will not be on the Eliteserien’s table in 2024, was far from written in stone before the season last year. Something more expected was that Fredrikstad Football Club made a comeback to the elite. They last played at the top level in 2012.
We are not going to come up with an exact table tip for 2024, because the “heavier” football experts on TV can miss that more, but rather present the clubs in three pools, based on which end of the table we think the clubs will end up near at the end of the season . Here are the clubs, with position in 2023 in brackets:
You will probably find the Eliteserien’s medal winners among these five
BODØ/GLIMT (1): What a Northern Norwegian adventure of a club, with three league golds and two league silvers since 2019. Successful coach Kjetil Knutsen has extended his contract, and an earthquake is needed if Glimt is not to fight for the top spot again. The club also strengthened its coaching staff in 2023, with Gaute Helstrup and at the expense of Tromsø.
BRANN (2): The Bergens are in a good flow, with silver in 2023 and NM gold in 2022/23 (the final was played in 2023). Brann is a club that is not always easy to predict, and which often has its internal conflicts and non-sporting noise. Coach Eirik Horneland seems to have created a good working environment at Brann Stadium, and we believe they can capture medals again in 2024.
MOLDE (5): After a superior league gold in 2022, the club took a “rest year” in 2023. Anything other than a tightening and fight for a medal this year will be a bomb. The club has the foundations for a quick comeback on the podium, and the somewhat spoiled Romsdalinen probably won’t accept a new season with as many as 19 points up to the gold.
TROMSØ (3): “Gutan” lost his coach to great fanfare in 2023. This is what happens when Gaute Helstrup leads a club to a rare medal, then “stepped up” to an assistant role in Bodø/Glimt. The club has nevertheless built up a squad that we don’t think will suffer more than that, in the worst case, they end up just outside the medal match.
VIKING (4): They have lost the solid stopper Brekalo and their midfield general Markus Solbakken since last season. Viking topped the Eliteserien straight after the summer of last season, but collapsed in the autumn. Will the siddis be any threat to the medal-fighting teams in 2024? We don’t quite believe this!
These clubs will fortify the safe spaces around the middle
SARPSBORG 08 (8): The Sarpings have for a number of years been in the elite, despite a large draw in the playing staff. They are an intermediate station of a club, which recruits cunningly, brings in players at the “last verse” and which sometimes sells players for handsome sums. They always have a team that takes more than enough points. This will probably be the case in 2024 as well.
ROSENBORG (9): Yes, what should we write? The club with the richest history in Norway is now a long way from what the people of Trondheim expect from them. But they can very well set up a team that will make a name for itself again. In 2024? No. Within 3-4 years? Relatively likely.
FREDRIKSTAD (Won the OBOS league): The Norwegian Mikkkjal Thommason and the management have put together a solid structure, and the club seems to be aiming for a longer and more stable period in the elite. This is high time, based on the club’s name and history. The ticket sales for the first two home games against Glimt and Sarpsborg 08 show that things are boiling in the wooden town. At the time of writing, around 20,000 of a total of 25,000 have been snapped up.
STRØMSGODSET (7): Good periods of high scoring, followed by a weak period and then vice versa, have characterized the club at the top level in recent years. But the supporters around “Old Grass” usually feel that Godset steers well in and out of the OBOS ghost. They will probably be a Mediterranean danger this season as well.
LILLESTRØM (6): The club has lost several pieces since last season, and the fans at Åråsen do not believe in any new top 6 placing. Eirik Bakke was in charge of the team after Geir Bakke’s antics to Vålerenga, but it did not end in anything permanent. New coach in 2024, will make his mark with ideas. This can quickly end in a tiring season for “Fugla”, but hardly worse than our tip.
ODD (10): This club from Skien is an unpredictable club that keeps up with strong victories, but also “stupid” losses. The result every year, however, is that the Odders maintain their stable position in Norwegian football, having played in the elite from the 1999 season. The position is probably not threatened this time, either.
Clubs that will have a hard time in 2024
HAUGESUND (12): The club has lost some ground to the better teams in recent years, and a struggling season is expected. Jostein Grindhaug, who has coached the club for a number of years, resigned in 2024. Will a new coach bring in his ideas and types for some climbing? We doubt it.
HAMKAM (11): The Hamar club is in a group of clubs that are most likely to be a yo-yo club between the OBOS league and the Eliteserien. As always, the clubs’ resources determine a lot of their opportunities, but now they have a couple of seasons at the top level and we believe that this will be a war for survival.
SANDEFJORD (13): Hans Erik Ødegaard, father of Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard, has kept the team afloat for a few years now, but it is often by hanging. The whalers have to count on another season where the fight to reach a certain number of points is the top priority. Anything other than bottom line is a surprise.
YMCA (no.2 in the OBOS league): The former national team player and international professional Haitam Alessami has arrived in the squad that moved up and can certainly spread some enthusiasm and routine. Nor should we underestimate the progress the club feels, with a surprising promotion to the Eliteserien for the first time. The club doesn’t seem to have much to lose. It may give you some points, but hardly enough.
KRISTIANSUND (no. 4 in the OBOS league and moved up via qualifying): After many years in the Eliteserien, the team had to take the hard way down in 2022. After a weak start in the OBOS league in 2023, they finally managed to fight their way in in a qualification which eventually gave them promotion, after two “final matches” against Vålerenga. We believe that life in the elite can be short-lived.
It is Odd and Haugesund who kick off the Eliteserien on Easter Sunday. Six matches follow Easter Monday and YMCA – HamKam rounds off the opening round on Tuesday 2 April. How to play the 1st series round:
31/3 at 18.00 Odd – Haugesund
1/4 at 14.30 Fredrikstad – Bodø Glimt
1/4 at 17.00 Tromsø – Fire
1/4 at 17.00 Molde – Strømsgodset
1/4 at 17.00 Rosenborg – Sandefjord
1/4 at 17.00 Lillestrøm – Kristiansund
1/4 at 19.15 Viking – Sarpsborg 08
2/4 at 19.00 YMCA – HamKam
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