Bodo Glimt’s Jens Petter Hauge celebrates scoring his team's second goal with teammate Kasper Hogh during the Champions League first leg match against Inter Milan at the Aspmyra Stadion on Feb. 18.
Photographer: Martin Ole Wold/Getty Images EuropeThe Football Club That Bans Talk About Winning Is Winning. A Lot
Norway’s Bodo Glimt has made it to the last 16 of the elite Champions League thanks to what it calls a culture transformation.
There are no tributes to the conquering heroes at Bodo airport, no banners proclaiming their success hang in the streets outside. But visitors venturing this far north shouldn’t let Scandinavian understatement detract from Bodo Glimt’s achievements, and the impact on its hometown.
The football team from the Norwegian Arctic fishing port has beaten giants Inter Milan, Atletico Madrid and Manchester City already in the Champions League this season. On Wednesday evening, it will host Sporting Lisbon, the club that produced global star Cristiano Ronaldo, at its 8,200-capacity stadium more than 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometers) north of the Portuguese capital.