'... far to the north' : geography and football in Norway

Abstract

From an international football perspective football in Norway may be considered as a 'different sort of country'. This essay concerns itself with the tension between the interest in football in Norway and the geographical and topographical preconditions for the sport. This is discussed in three main parts. The first addresses the relation between centre and periphery: how to build a national football community when the local communities are so scattered and different in character? The second part about the 'outsider country' considers the special conditions for playing, the region-building character and the cultural significance of football in the north of Norway. Finally, the essay deals with the conditions for playing football in different economic and cultural circumstances. The importance of political decisions for the distribution of football in Norway is emphasized.