Hammarby IF are part of the Hammerby sports brand.    Like many other clubs in Sweden they are related to a wide variety of conducted sports activities such as handball, ice hockey, speedway and athletics.   Footballing wise they are a cult club in Sweden with one of the most loyal fan followings. FourFourTwo magazine have tagged the home ground  Soderstadion one of the most intimidating grounds in Europe once full and energized.    Some of the atmosphere created during the title win of 2001 may account for such esteem but certainly the fans are noted even during leaner times for impassioned support against the odds.

The club is known in a number of quarters by its footballing nickname of Bajen which is a short form of a mock-English pronunciation of Hammarby.    A match ticket purchased for a Hammarby game will show Bajen and not Hammerby IF on it whilst the inner stadia scoreboard will state Bajen as well.   

Owing to its southerly geographical location in a lesser than affluent district of Stockholm, Hammarby IF has historically been regarded as a club with a mainly working-class fan base although things have changed in the last decade.    Indeed glancing around outside the ground pre-match it is easy to see why this is sometimes regarded as the case.   The ground looks rough edged and so do many of the supporters but not all of them.   What is visable is that lots of people in Stockholm do not fit the Swedish stereotype image.   Very few people have blond hair/blue eyes and Stockholm feels multi-cultural and multi-national.   The image that drinking is expensive and rarely done in Sweden also would appear to be a non starter.   Despite it being midweek and early evening many look drunk and worse for wear. A pint of beer or sweet cider cost about 49 SK which is around £4 and in general a decent deal.     All in all whilst the majority of the Kalmar fans look affluent types Hammarby's supporters base in general looks less so.  

Disembarking the Stockholm metro at Gullmarsplan a short walk takes you to the ground. Security checks outside the stands look and feel extensive with throngs of stewards checking bags and body checks also occurring.     Fans mill around outside drinking pre-purchased cans of beer or pints from one of the nearby pre match bars.    Snus is also commonly used in Sweden and clearly is so pre-match. This habit involves placing small packets of steamed cured tobacco inside the pallet or lips of the mouth. The General brand seems very popular with many used empty tins lying around outside the ground.

Around the ground are both neighbourhoods with clean and attractive social housing and a bus station near where the metro and the majority of fans disembark. Hammarby is based in Sodermalm one of the southernmost boroughs of Stockholm City centre. The journey from T-Centralen takes less than 10 minutes. Nearby the ground is the Stockholm Globe Arena a newer but attractive arena where concerts, ice hockey and other public events are held.

The opponents for Bajen were Kalmar FF the reigning Allsvenskan champions.   Being literally, "The All Swedish" Champions Kalmar FF were favourites for the game despite both they and Hammerby having lowly positions in the league table. Outside the ground a programme seller warned that Hammerby in his words 'were not doing well' but Kalmar themselves seemed to be struggling with the weight of being champions and the forthcoming Champions League qualifications ties they would face. With the lofty esteem Hammerby hold both in Sweden and in Stockholm Kalmar FF are dismissed out of hand as minnows by Bajen fans. One fans tells us that the club badge of Kalmar FF 'looks like a pair of red underpants being hung out to dry.'

Inside the ground the stadium feels small, rural and lower league at least when compared to grounds in the English leagues. At most around 16,000 could cram in but even with only 8,500 inside it feels like a ground more of less full. One small section of the ground holds a tight knit group of red and white clad Kalmar fans who after crashing in four goals celebrate each one almost conservatively. Absent seems to be any sort of youth or ultra culture and there are very few fans flags, chants or passion from Kalmar fans. All in all it feels like a family travelling support despite there clearly being a variety of ages amongst the grouping.

All of the singing comes from the Hammarby fans before, during and after the game. Despite being truly hopeless and clearly lacking in form or confidence Bajen fans in one of the home ends hoist flags and twirl scarves from start to finish. Even when they are down 4-0 and it looks like Kalmar may score more the hardcore groups of fans on staplats crave a goal and when they get it celebrate the consolation harder than any of the Kalmar fans celebrated any of the four they got.

In terms of quality, skill and technique both Hammarby and Kalmar look average sides incapable of making any impression on either the Europa League or as with Kalmar the Champions League. Of the two Kalmar were streets ahead but that is to be expected due to there status as Champions. Very few players in either side is well known but the busiest goalkeeper on display is relatively well know. Rami Shaaban has played for the Swedish national side on a number of occasions and was a first choice for Sweden at the 2006 World Cup. As well as spells at Arsenal and West Ham he played successfully for near neighbours Djurgardens. With his tall imposing stance he made a number of crucial saves during the game and if it had not been for Shaaban then Kalmar could have scored 6 or 7.

Hammarby's ultras fan groupings have links with a number of other clubs fans. In terms of club colours there are links with Sporting Lisbon and Rapid Vienna. Also developed are links with AS Roma fans. Things though have been difficult for supporters of this type in the Allsvenskan with Swedish football authorities clamping down on any signs of fan violence at every opportunity. Away travelling supports of clubs such as Hammerby, Djurgardens and AIK have been restricted on a number of occasions and this has meant that some club game atmospheres have been compromised. Nevertheless, Bajen fans make every effort during this game to wave flags, sing and aggressively get behind the side.

Football in Sweden is of a decent standard but unfortunately this mostly refers to international football where the Swedish national team with stars such as Ibramhimovic, Ljungberg and Larsson have regularly taken the team to championships where an impact has been made. However, despite the clear interest there is in the national team and the interest in football this has generated, Swedish clubs continue to under perform in European competition. Apart from the appearance of Helsingborg in the UEFA cup group stages success has been non-existent. Even the traditional successful IFK Gothenburg have struggled in Europe despite a track record of two UEFA cup wins and a number of Champions League appearances.      AIK Solna have qualified once for the League stages of the Champions League in 1999 but even this brought only one point against the likes of Fiorentina and Arsenal.    

The Allsvenskan feels like a low key affair with low crowds and an under developed football fan culture outwith the Stockholm clubs and IFK.    Due to the growth of European football on television things are slowly changing and prominant Swedish business is starting to pump money into the game. But few key players if any stay to play in Sweden and even if they do, as is the case with Larsson, it is due to impending retirement. Like many other northern European countries one problem for the Swedes at club level may be that Sweden's league campaign does not end until after main European wide competition has begun. Swedish teams book a ticket to participation via there position in the previous year's season. By the time they come to play in the Champions League qualification round key players may have been sold or retired or team wise the form of a championship winning season may have all but evaporated.    Kalmar FF may have been worthy champions in 2008 but by early 2009-2010 season after six games they sat 3rd bottom of the pile.

Scandinavia has its big clubs and respected clubs who have carved a niche worthy of note in European football.   IFK Gothenburg, Rosenborg, Malmo and Brondby are four clubs who have achieved noteworthy results in European football competition. The story for clubs from Stockholm seems slightly different where even the largest side AIK Solna have done very little in terms of success.    Even though the Swedish capital has the liveliest football culture scene and three equally sizeable club sides it may be some time before clubs such as AIK or Hammarby find themselves competing regularly against Europe's best. Instead cross border competition is only likely to come via participation in the much touted yet failing Royal League rather than the progressing Europa or Champions Leagues.