Viking played in the Conference League qualifiers this season but did not reach the group stages [Getty Images]Emlyn Begley - BBC Sport journalistSun, November 30, 2025 at 8:38 PM UTC·5 min readViking FK have wrapped up their first Norwegian league title in 34 years, sparking big celebrations in the city of Stavanger.
Sunday's 5-1 home win over Valerenga on the final day of the season saw them finish one point above dethroned champions Bodo/Glimt, who beat Fredrikstad 5-0.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementIt marked Viking's first league title since 1991 - having been in the second tier as recently as 2018.
"A lot of people have been very nervous and excited about what's going on these days. I've never experienced it before," Lars Risan - a Viking fan and podcaster told BBC Radio 5 Live this week.
The schoolteacher, who called for everyone to be given the day off on Monday if they won the title, added: "Hopefully it won't be the only time in their life they experience it, but it's been 34 years.
"It's a big deal. It brings us all together and we can celebrate as a city. It's one of those special things you never know when you'll be able to experience again.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"You can feel the atmosphere in town. I want everyone to be able to take part in that. If we could just go down to stadium and have a big party that would be awesome."
So who are Viking and how did they win this title?
A short Viking history
Roy Hodgson managed Viking in the 2005-06 Uefa Cup group stages, where they beat Monaco and only went out on goal difference [Getty Images]Viking are one of Norway's most successful teams, with this their ninth league title.
However six of their titles came between 1972 and 1982.
They have had several British managers, including former Manchester United defender Bill Foulkes - a survivor of the 1958 Munich air disaster and European Cup winner in 1968 - in 1985, and Roy Hodgson for 18 months from 2004 to 2005.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementViking also had several players who went on to have careers in the English Premier League, including striker Erik Nevland at United, Fulham defender Brede Hangeland, Southampton striker Egil Ostenstad and Thomas Myhre, who was a goalkeeper at Everton and Sunderland.
In Europe they enjoyed famous days too, perhaps most notably knocking Chelsea out of the Uefa Cup first round in 2002 with a 5-4 aggregate win.
But in 2017, under English manager Ian Burchnall and with several British players in the team, they were relegated for the first time in 31 years.
Viking fan Risan said: "They spent too much money on players who weren't good enough. A lot of things went wrong and it ended in relegation. But it turned out to be a good thing for Viking."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementViking bounce back
Viking joint head coaches Bjarte Lunde Aarsheim (left) and Morten Jensen (right) have led the club to the title [Getty Images]As they prepared for the second-tier campaign in 2018, back came Bjarne Berntsen as head coach.
The veteran had previously played for the club, managed them from 1992 to 1995, had another spell as caretaker boss and also been their chief executive for a while.
They won the second-tier title and promotion back to the top flight at the first attempt.
"They realised they had to go back to their roots and make the people of Stavangar proud of Viking, and be part of the Viking family," added Risan. "There were a lot of local players, they invested in the youth academy.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"They built for the future something that would be stable for years and not relying on money from rich uncles, as we say in Norway."
In their first season back in the top flight, they won the 2019 Norwegian Cup - their first trophy since 2001.
After finishing sixth in the Covid-interrupted 2020 season, Berntsen was surprisingly sacked and replaced by assistant managers Bjarte Lunde Aarsheim and Morten Jensen, who took over as joint bosses.
"People were sceptical about it," admitted Risan.
"It seems like it just works for them even though people were laughing or asking questions. They figured out how they wanted to do it and stuck to it. They're both from Stavanger and love the club."
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementThey finished third in 2021 and 2024 and the duo finally got their team over the line this season after finishing with seven consecutive wins.
The captain who helped the rise
Key to their success has been captain Zlatko Tripic.
The winger, who turns 33 on Tuesday, 3 December, joined the club immediately following their relegation in 2018.
He had previously won the Norwegian title twice with Molde in 2011 and 2012 - and arrived from Moldovan side Sheriff Tiraspol, where he had played in Europe.
"It's a great story," said Risan. "We had just got relegated in 2017 and it was a big surprise when Zlatko turned up.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement"He was a profile, someone we didn't think [we could sign]. We thought he just came to keep fit and train.
"But he really liked the idea of taking the club to something great and being part of a good story.
"Viking is traditionally a big club, but it was down in the dust. He's been a big part of taking Viking back to the top of the table."
Tripic scored the winner in their 2019 cup final success over Haugesund, but left in 2020 for Turkish side Goztepe, returning 18 months later.
And the Croatian has reached double figures in both goals and assists in each of the past three seasons - something no Viking player had ever done before.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementTripic notched the third goal, from a first-half penalty, in the 5-1 victory over ninth-placed Valerenga which sealed the title.
And now he has done something no player has done in a generation - lifted the Eliteserien title as Viking captain.
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