Sweden vs Norway

The big rivalry soccer match!

I was sitting at work on Wednesday morning when all of a sudden I started getting messages from my brother in Sweden!  He and his family were at a soccer game in Solna, on the outskirts of Stockholm, and he wanted to share with me.  I started getting more messages and photos, too.  Now, how fun is that?  

I feel like I was able to attend as well.

God bless modern technology!

Stockholm's new Friends Arena

Stockholm's Friends Arena is a recently built national stadium with a seating capacity for 50,000 fans. It's a multi-functional arena that can be adapted for all kinds of venues - from rock concerts to soccer.  It also has a retractable roof - which my brother said is a good thing, as it was raining as he texted me.

The arena set up for fotball, or soccer, as we call it

The brand-spanking new arena is located in a mostly residential neighborhood on the northern end of Stockholm.

The game just happened to be a soccer match between the teams of Norway and Sweden.  It's a long-held rivalry between the two nations.  We are of Norwegian descent, but my sister-in-law's family are (of course) all Swedish.  I asked my brother which team he was rooting for.  

He diplomatically told me the Swedes looked like the better team.

Uncle Stig (the #1 fan) and Kirsti

 Then Norway scored a point and I got a text that read "The score is tied 2-2!  Heja Norge!".

"Heja Norge" basically means "Way to go, you Norskies!"

It might not be really tactful to yell that in a stadium full of people wearing yellow and blue shirts - those are Swedish colors!

And the crowd leaps to its feet!

Sweden won 4-2, but it was a close match til the end.  What was fun was following along with it while I was sitting at work, thousands of miles away.

An hour or so later I got one last message from my brother.  They had stopped by McDonald's for a bite to eat on the way home and they were heading off to bed.

Hmmm...  the world IS smaller than you think!