Brøndby IF

Brøndby IF

Full name	Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening
Nickname(s)	Drengene Fra Vestegnen (The boys fromVestegnen)
Founded	3 December 1964(1964-12-03)
Stadium	Brøndby Stadium
Capacity	28,000
Owner	Global Football Holdings(50.1%) Jan Bech Andersen (10%)
Chairman	Jan Bech Andersen
Head Coach	Jesper Sørensen
League	Superliga
2023–24	Superliga,2nd of 12
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours

Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening(Danish pronunciation:[ˈpʁɶnˌpyˀɐnəsˈitʁætsfɒˌe̝ˀne̝ŋ],usually abbreviated toBrøndby IF(Danish pronunciation:[ˈpʁɶnˌpyˀˌiˀˈef]), is a Danishfootball clubbased in theCopenhagensuburb ofBrøndbyvester.Brøndby IF denotes the professional football section of Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening, which was founded on 3 December 1964 by a merger of the football clubs Brøndbyøster Idrætsforening (founded on 10 October 1928) and Brøndbyvester Idrætsforening (founded on 1 February 1909). The club's first team, which plays in theDanish Superliga,plays its home games atBrøndby Stadium,where its team plays in blue shorts and socks and yellow shirts.

The club has excelled both nationally and internationally, among other things by reaching the quarter-finals of the European Champions Cup in 1986-87 and the semi-finals of theUEFA Cup1990–91. In addition, the club qualified for theUEFA Champions Leaguein 1998 and for theUEFA Cupgroup stage in 2005.

Through the 1980s, Brøndby IF's role in Danish football became more prominent with, among other things, winning theDanish Superligain 1985, 1987, 1988, 1990, and 1991. In 1996–1998, Brøndby IF won three Danish championships in a row. In 1998, the club also won theDanish Cupand thus brought home"The Double".Brøndby IF won the Danish Superliga in 2002 and theDanish Cupin 2005. The team recently won theDanish Cupin 2018 and theDanish Superligain 2021. But in the 23/24 season they lost the last game at home toAGFandFC Midtjyllandwon the league.

Brøndby have a longstanding rivalry with city neighborsFC Copenhagen,against which they contest theCopenhagen Derby.The fixture is also referred to as the "Battle of Copenhagen" or the "New Firm".

History

Formation (1964–1977)

Brøndbyernes Idrætsforening was formed on 3 December 1964 following a merger between two local rivals –Brøndbyøster IFandBrøndbyvester IF.The merger was to be completed as a prerequisite for the construction of a new stadium byBrøndby Municipality.Brøndby IF spent its inaugural season as an amateur club in the 6th tier of the 11 Danish leagues, the Serie 1, where they finished their two first seasons in fourth place. Among the players of the early years was team captainPer Bjerregaard,a doctor who had moved to Copenhagen fromRandersinJutland,and Hans Gregersen, who was the mascot of the team until his death bysyphilisin 1967. In 1967, the club hired coachLeif Andersenwho instantly secured promotion toSjællandsserien(theZealandseries). After a few mediocre years, a new coach, John Sinding, was brought in, and the club won promotion toDanmarksserien(the Denmark series).

In 1973, Per Bjerregaard stopped his active career at 27 years of age and became chairman of Brøndby; his first action was to sack head coach Sinding. In his place, Brøndby hired former professional andDenmark national teamplayerFinn Laudrup,who took over as head coach while he still took actively part in the matches as a player. Laudrup joined his brother-in-lawEbbe Skovdahlin the Brøndby team, and he brought his two young sonsBrianandMichael Laudrupwith him to the club. Under Finn Laudrup's influence, the club's playing style was changed to a more attacking strategy, even though Laudrup decided to fully concentrate his efforts as a player after only a year. After winning promotion in 1974, Laudrup left Brøndby in the 3rd Division in 1976 to play forKBin the Danish top-flight league (then named the 1st Division) and a year later Michael Laudrup, the brightest talent in Danish football, followed.

Professional football (1977–1987)

In 1977, Brøndby moved up into the 2nd Division, and were one of the clubs who quickly adapted to the new times of paid football in the best Danish leagues in 1978. Per Bjerregaard persuaded Finn Laudrup into returning to Brøndby in 1981 on a professional contract, and following a season of 85 goals in 30 matches, Brøndby won promotion to the top-flight 1st Division under coachTom Køhlert.Finn Laudrup subsequently ended his career at age 36, but in his place Michael Laudrup returned for the1982 season,being one of ten players leaving KB that year.

Brøndby won their 1st Division debut match 7–1 over fellowpromotedteamB 1909in a match which featured two goals from Michael Laudrup. He was subsequently called up for the Denmark national team, and on 15 June 1982 he became the first Brøndby player to win acapfor the national team. Brøndby finished their first 1st Division season in fourth place with Laudrup the league's third top goal scorer with 15 goals, earning him theDanish Player of the Yearaward. In 1983, Laudrup was sold toJuventusin the then-biggest transfer deal in Denmark, giving Brøndby the economic foundation to expand further.

After four years in the top division, Brøndby won their first Danish championship in1985and played its first European match when the club beatHungarianchampionsBudapest Honvéd4–1 in the 1986European Cup.In 1986, Brøndby became the first Danish club of fully professionals when ten players were signed full-time, and the club was introduced at theCopenhagen Stock Exchangein 1987.

European success (1987–1992)

Throughout the second half of the 1980s, the team dominated the league and did not finish lower than second place until 1992. The team was built around talented Danish players, and from 1987 to 1991 players from Brøndby won the Danish Player of the Year award every year. The recipients formed the backbone of the Denmark national team which later wonUEFA Euro 1992,and was the first goalscorer in the 2–0 Euro 1992 final winJohn "Faxe" Jensen(1987), national team captainLars Olsen(1988), the World's BestGoalkeeper1992 and 1993 award winnerPeter Schmeichel(1989), four-time Danish Player of the Year award winner Brian Laudrup (1990) and the second goalscorer of theEuro 1992 finalKim Vilfort(1991). The club became used to winning the national title and turned its attention towards European success.

In 1990, Brøndby hired former national team captainMorten Olsenas coach, and under his reign, the1990–91 UEFA Cupbecame the high point in the short history of the club. Especially the meriting wins over German sidesEintracht FrankfurtandBayer Leverkusen,and Russian clubTorpedo Moscowsaw the many Danish profiles shine, and the club was minutes from qualifying for the final match of the tournament. In the 88th minute of the semi-final, however, aRudi Völlergoal denied Brøndby a trip to the UEFA Cup final in favour ofRoma.Following the impressive European display by the comparatively small club, important members of the team, including Lars Olsen, top scoringstrikerBent "Turbo" Christensenand star goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, left the club.

The following year, 1992, was the worst year in the club's history as the intended takeover of the Danish bankInterbankwent awry. It was expected that European Cup success would boost the Brøndby stock value in order to finance the buy, but as the club was beaten byDynamo Kyivin the1991–92 European Cupqualification, the stocks never reached the value necessary to finalize the deal. It had been arranged for financial backers Hafnia Insurance Company to step in and take over the buy in case Brøndby could not finance it, but as Hafnia wentbankrupt,Brøndby were forced to buy Interbank and financial collapse was imminent as club debts amassed to 400 millionDKK.A long-term rescue plan was initiated to save the club, but these events influenced the performance of the team and the championship, now called the Danish Superliga, was not won again until1996.

Rebuilding (1992–2002)

The rebuilding of the team was led by head coachEbbe Skovdahl,who deployed the team in a4-4-2 formation.The return to the club of Euro 1992 veterans John Jensen and captain Lars Olsen combined with the emergence of goalkeeperMogens Kroghand strikerEbbe Sandgot the club back on its feet. The rebuilding culminated in the1995–96 UEFA Cupelimination ofLiverpool,though Roma once again knocked Brøndby out. Including that year, Brøndby won three Danish championships in a row, andthe next year's UEFA Cupsaw one of the biggest upsets in Brøndby history, as a 3–1 home defeat toKarlsruher SCwas changed to an aggregate win when Brøndby beat the team ofEuro 1996winnerThomas Häßler5–0 away in Germany. Most importantly for the club's economy, Brøndby qualified for the new format of the European Cup, rebranded as the UEFA Champions League.^[A]

The Champions League qualification meant six guaranteed matches in agroup stagewith three of the biggest teams of Europe, and when they were paired withBarcelonaand later finalistsManchester UnitedandBayern Munich,Brøndby faced very economically attractive matches. Despite winning 2–1 over Bayern in the first match of the group stage, Brøndby conceded 18 goals in 6 matches and were eliminated with a single win to their name.

Skovdahl decided to take a stab at coaching at Scottish clubAberdeenand Brøndby took a moreScandinavianapproach, in search of stable success in the European competitions with Norwegian clubRosenborgthe role model.The club hired Norwegian managerÅge Hareidein 2000, who proclaimed a shift in line-up to a more attacking4–3–3 system.With Hareide came a handful of Scandinavian players of whom especiallySweden national teamplayerMattias Jonsonbecame a fan favourite.

The year 2000 was also the year the club finalized a planned expansion of Brøndby Stadion from a 20,000 to a 29,000 capacity, making it the second largest stadium in Denmark, only trailing theParken StadiumofF.C. Copenhagen.At the cost of 250 million DKK, the vast expenditure was seen as a sign that the club was out of its former financial crisis.The building project was finalized in Autumn 2000, and on 22 October, 28,416 spectators saw Brøndby beatAkademisk Boldklub4–2 in the opening match of the rebuilt stadium.

Hareide's visions of a 4–3–3 system never worked out, and the team soon returned to the well-known 4–4–2 setup. As he slowly lost hold of a ten-point lead to rivals F.C. Copenhagen, gained in a great first half of the2001–02 Superliga season,Hareide took his leave in spring 2002 before the last matches of the season.He was replaced by youth team coach Tom Køhlert, who, though reluctant to take the job, gave first team debuts to the top youth team players, most notablyThomas Kahlenberg,who helped the club narrowly secure the championship win ongoal difference.

The Laudrup years (2002–2006)

In the 2002–03 pre-season, Brøndby announced that Danish iconMichael Laudrupwas taking the manager seat in his old club withJohn Jensen,also a club legend, as his assistant. In their first season, there were massive cuts from the very large squad; ten players were put in the reserves squad or sold and a talent squad was established. The club was to rely even more home grown players as Brøndby was already famous for developing very talented players. In the process, Laudrup told several players to find new clubs as he thought they would not fit in the playing style he wanted to implement.

Laudrup as Brøndby manager

During the Laudrup era, Brøndby won theDoublein 2005. The club was relatively successful in the European competitions asSchalke 04was beaten 2–1in the2003–04 UEFA Cupbut was later beaten by Laudrup's former club Barcelona, 0–1.

In May 2006, it was announced that Laudrup and Jensen could not agree with the board of Brøndby regarding an extension of their contracts, and the duo left the club.

Years of crisis (2006–2013)

The two were replaced by Dutch coachRené Meulensteen,who had a rough start in charge of the first team.Together with newly appointed Anders Bjerregaard – son of directorPer Bjerregaard– Meulensteen bought a number of questionable players in the final days of the summer transfer window. In the first matches, the new coach struggled with injuries among the key players and the team had problems living up to the expectations.

Meulensteen resigned after six months, leaving Brøndby in seventh position halfway through the2006–07 Superliga.The official explanation for his departure was that his family could not settle in Denmark,but soon after, the former coach revealed major infrastructural problems in the club's organization, calling the club "a very sick patient requiring immediate attention",as well as cliques inside the first team. In order to solve the clique problems, he had gone to director Per Bjerregaard to fire three key players –Marcus Lantz,Thomas Rytterand one club manPer Nielsen– in order to reestablish the balance in the first team squad, a demand Danish football experts later described as the quickest way of getting sacked.

Tom Køhlert took the managerial reins once more, this time as a permanent solution on a two-and-a-half-year contract.

After losing 2–4 toHorsenson 26 August, their 23rd consecutive away match without a victory, the team was met by approximately 200 furious fans and cries like "die mercenaries" and "we are Brøndby, who are you?" on their return to Brøndby.

On 31 August 2007, Per Bjerregaard announced that he resigned from the position as director of Brøndby IF, and instead took over as chairman of the board. Shortly after his resignation, Peter Schmeichel announced that he was ready to purchase Brøndby and become a director. The announcement divided the fans. Some praised the former player for trying to save the club, while others criticized him for bringing investor Aldo Petersen along, a keen supporter and former stockholder of rivals F.C. Copenhagen. Schmeichel's offer, however, was rejected. On 1 April 2008, Hermann Haraldsson was appointed to the vacant position.

Following a disappointing beginning of the2007–08 Superliga seasonwith only five points gained from seven matches, manager Tom Køhlert made it clear in August 2007 that theDanish Cupnow had a higher priority for the club.The change of priorities was successful, and Brøndby won their first domestic title in almost three years on 1 May 2008 whenEsbjergwere defeated 3–2 in the final of the2007–08 Danish Cup.Soon after, manager Køhlert declared his job complete, prompting club chairman Bjerregaard to search for his replacement. On 16 June 2008, the club announced the appointment of former player and head coach of Horsens,Kent Nielsen.Nielsen took charge of the first team on 1 January 2009. Former legendary coach Køhlert in the meantime led Brøndby to the first place, where they stayed until Nielsen arrived.

On 1 July 2008, KasiGroup replaced Codan as the main sponsor of the club. The partnership involved a cooperation withUNICEF,making Brøndby the third club in Europe next to Barcelona and Swedish sideHammarbyto wear the UNICEF logo on their shirts. Furthermore, KasiGroup entered a sponsorship for the stadium and promised substantial funds for strengthening the first-team squad. During the 2008 summer transfer window, this contributed to Brøndby signing five new players with national team experience in order to strengthen the team.

On 30 December 2009, KasiGroup owner Jesper Nielsen got in trouble with Brøndby and refused to pay the remainder of the pledged money. On 31 August 2012, Brøndby told the Danish media B.T. that KasiGroup owed the club more than DKK 45 million (€6,000,000 / £5,000,000).Nielsen told B.T. that he could recognize the amount but that his lawyer thought they could make a settlement at a much lower figure than the 45 million. Nielsen was the owner ofAG København,which went bankrupt on 31 July 2012. He was thus chased both by Brøndby and the Danish tax authorities, and a lawsuit followed.The case came to a close years later, in 2018, when Brøndby IF and Nielsen reached a multi-million Danish kroner settlement depending on Nielsen's active arbitration case against jewellery manufacturerPandora.

The Jan Bech era

Thomas Frank and "Oscar-gate" (2013–2016)

Brøndby fans atParken Stadiumahead of theirDanish Cupwin overSilkeborg IFin 2018.

In May 2013, the club was again close to bankruptcy, but was taken over and saved by a small group of investors led by Ole Abildgaard and Aldo Pedersen.On 10 April 2014, the new main investor, Jan Bech Andersen, took over as chairman and replaced the board with his own team.On 14 July 2014, the club announced they had signed a one-year contract with Danish betting company Bet25 as their main sponsor, with the option to extend the contract for an additional two years.The deal was said to be worth "a significant amount in the million Danish kroner range".The deal includes a strategic partnership between Brøndby and Bet25. As part of the contract, Danish telecommunications companyTDC A/S(which owns 51% of Bet25), installedWi-Fiin Brøndby Stadion in December 2014. On 15 January 2015, it was announced Brøndby and Bet25 extended their contract until summer 2017.

In 2016,Thomas Frankannounced his resignation as Brøndby IF manager after chairman Jan Bech Andersen had discredited him on an online chat-forum under the name of "Oscar", the case being referred to as "Oscar-gate" by the media. Bech Andersen stepped down as chairman after the incident but continued as board member.

Zorniger and the German years (2016–2019)

In April 2016, the board of directors presentedStrategi 6.4(Strategy 6.4), a plan for the future course of the club. The main value presented was "community" (Danish:"fællesskab"), and a vision for Brøndby IF was also laid out. Between 2016 and 2019, the club was to make theSuperliga championship playoffevery year, become more transparent and reach economic viability by the end of the period.Finally, between 2020 and 2023, Brøndby was to reachEuropean footballevery season and continue to improve in areas of community, transparency and economy.In addition, the team should strive for a tactic with strong pressing and return to having one of the best youth academies in Denmark again.

On 17 May 2016, Brøndby named German coachAlexander Zornigeras their new head coach.His first two seasons as head coach resulted in two second-place league finishes and aDanish Cupwin. The focal point of Brøndby under Zorniger was an extreme form of the GermanGegenpressingtactic, popularly translated tooverfaldsfodbold(assault football) in Denmark; a style which proved to be a success.During the2017–18 season,Brøndby mounted an eventful title charge to eventually finish second behindFC Midtjyllandafter being top of the table in the penultimate round.Zorniger was sacked in February 2019, following a poor start to the new campaign.His position had earlier been called into question after a match againstHobro IKin December 2018, where Brøndby's starting lineup featured no Danes. After the match, Zorniger criticised the Brøndby youth department for lacking quality and the Danish mentality for being poor.Martin RetovandMatthias Jaissle,former assistants under Zorniger, were appointed as caretaker managers the next day.

Frederiksen, "CV" and Superliga Champions (2019–2022)

In June 2019, formerDenmark national U21coach,Niels Frederiksen,was presented as the new head coach of Brøndby IF.A month later,Carsten "CV" Jensenwas appointed asDirector of Footballin Brøndby, and became the person responsible for meeting the requirements of implementingStrategi 6.4.In Frederiksen'sfirst season,Brøndby ended in fourth place of the league table, as the team failed to reach qualification to theEuropa League.However, the team was largely seen to be in a rebuilding phase, with the departures of important first-team player such asKamil Wilczek,Dominik KaiserandHany Mukhtarin the January transfer window, and the emergence of younger players such asMorten Frendrup,Jesper LindstrømandAnis Ben Slimanein the starting lineup.

On 24 May 2021, Brøndby won its first Danish league title in 16 years with a 2–0 win overNordsjælland.Brøndby finished the season ahead ofMidtjyllandand arch-rivalFC Copenhagen.

Global Football Holdings ownership (2022–present)

In August 2022, chairman of the club Jan Bech Andersen sold over half of his shares to Global Football Holdings (GFH), an American sports investment company owned byDavid Blitzer.Andersen continued as chairman of the board.On 14 November, Frederiksen was dismissed from his position after Brøndby ended 2022 in 10th place in the league table.In January 2023, Brøndby announcedJesper Sørensen,formerly Frederiksen's assistant coach, as their new head coach.On the final matchday of the championship round in the2023–24 season,Brøndby lost 3–2 at home againstAGF,which resulted in them losing the title to Midtjylland by just one point.

Stadium

Main article:Brøndby Stadion

Panorama view of Brøndby Stadion at the 3–0 win againstHorsenson 5 August 2006

2005: The facade of the rebuilt Brøndby Stadion.

Brøndby have always played their matches at Brøndby Stadion. A part of the merging of Brøndbyvester IF and Brøndbyøster IF was a promise by the Brøndby municipality mayor to build a ground, and in 1965 it was ready for the club to play in. Through the first years in the secondary Danish leagues, the stadium was little more than a grass field with anathleticstrack circling the field of play. It was not until 1978 that the main stand was built, sporting a capacity of 1,200 seated spectators. As newly promoted to the top Danish league in 1982, concrete terraces opposite the main stand were constructed, allowing for a crowd of 5,000 additional people. Following the first years of success in the top-flight, the athletic track was discarded and a further 2,000 seats were installed on top of the concrete stands from 1989 to 1990.

When Brøndby played matches against other successful European teams in the 1990–91 UEFA Cup, the then capacity of up to 10,000 spectators was quickly dwarfed by the ticket interest. As the Denmark national stadiumIdrætsparkenin Copenhagen was being rebuilt, the club found no other way to host the matches but to get a dispensation to usescaffoldingstands, which boosted the stadium capacity to 18,000 in the semi-final leg of the tournament, a 0–0 draw with Roma. Following the European adventure, the club inaugurated its end stands in 1992, allowing for a total of 22,000 spectators.

In May 1998, the club bought Brøndby Stadion from the Brøndby municipality for 23.5 million DKKand immediately spent double that amount to modernize the stadium. When the club qualified for the1998–99 UEFA Champions League,the stadium was still under construction and the matches were moved to archrival F.C. Copenhagen'sParken Stadium.In 2000, all stands were standardized and built to the same height, allowing for crowds of 29,000 at domestic matches and 22,000 in the European matches, which allow onlyall-seatedcrowds. Since then, the stadium has seen a number of lesser or larger infrastructural and technical enhancements, and the February 2004 European match against Barcelona was played in front of a 26,031-spectator crowd.

Support

Brøndby are the most widely popular football club in Denmark, with a 2015 study having showed that Brøndby matches have by far the most viewers, both in terms of attendance and TV ratings, with Brøndby's rivalsFC Copenhagencoming in second.Copenhagen have in recent years surpassed Brøndby in terms of attendance by several thousands.

Brøndby Support is the official fanclub of Brøndby IF.It was founded in 1993 and has approximately 12,000 members.

Fanafdelingenis in some ways the spiritual successor to Brøndby Supporters Trust, which was a supporters trust with the dedicated goal of gaining influence in the club. Brøndby Supporters Trust managed to gain a board seat in the professional club in 2013. In 2018 BST was given the task of organising the groups of Brøndby Supporters Trust, Alpha Brøndby, Brøndby Support and Svinget under a common umbrella organisation. As a result of this, Fanafdelingen was born. Fanafdelingen, among other things, organises a yearly election for the board seat for the fan representative in the club.

Brøndby is also renowned for itsultrafanscene. The most prominent group isAlpha.Founded in 2006, the group is placed in the centre of theSouthside Standand are the main organizers of songs, flags, banners andtifo.Other prominent groups areSuburban Casuals,Southside United,Svinget,Deling 43andFri Sport.

Honours

• Danish Football Championship
  • Winners (11):1985,1987,1988,1990,1991,1995–96,1996–97,1997–98,2001–02,2004–05,2020–21
  • Runner–up (12):1986,1989,1994–95,1998–99,1999–2000,2000–01,2002–03,2003–04,2005–06,2016–17,2017–18,2023–24
• Danish Cup
  • Winners (7):1988–89,1993–94,1997–98,2002–03,2004–05,2007–08,2017–18
  • Runner–up (4): 1987–88,1995–96,2016–17,2018–19
• Danish League Cup
  • Winners (2):2005, 2006
• Danish Super Cup
  • Winners (4):1994, 1996, 1997, 2002
• Royal League(3 participations)
  • Winners:2006–07
• Denmark Series(fourth tier)
  • Group winners:1974(g1)
• Zealand Series(fifth tier)
  • Winners:1971

Players

See alsoBrøndby IF players

More than 500 players have represented Brøndby in the Danish leagues, cups and the European competitions since 1964.

Current squad

As of 17 July 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules.Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	AUT	Patrick Pentz
2	DF	NOR	Sebastian Sebulonsen
3	DF	NOR	Henrik Heggheim
4	DF	DEN	Jacob Rasmussen
5	DF	DEN	Rasmus Lauritsen
7	FW	DEN	Nicolai Vallys
8	MF	DEN	Mathias Greve
9	FW	NOR	Ohi Omoijuanfo(Vice-captain)
10	MF	DEN	Daniel Wass(2nd Vice-captain)
11	FW	DEN	Filip Bundgaard
14	DF	DEN	Kevin Mensah(Captain)
16	GK	DEN	Thomas Mikkelsen
18	DF	DEN	Kevin Tshiembe
19	MF	DEN	Bertram Kvist
22	MF	CRO	Josip Radošević

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
23	MF	USA	Christian Cappis
24	DF	CRO	Marko Divković
28	FW	JPN	Yuito Suzuki
30	DF	BEL	Jordi Vanlerberghe
31	DF	SUR	Sean Klaiber
32	DF	DEN	Frederik Alves
34	DF	DEN	Ludwig Vraa-Jensen
35	MF	DEN	Noah Nartey
36	FW	DEN	Mathias Kvistgaarden
37	MF	DEN	Clement Bischoff
40	GK	DEN	Jonathan Ægidius
41	FW	DEN	Oscar Schwartau
46	DF	USA	Justin Che
99	FW	GHA	Emmanuel Yeboah

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules.Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	FW	SWE	Carl Björk(atIFK Norrköpinguntil 31 December 2024)
—	MF	POL	Mateusz Kowalczyk(atGKS Katowiceuntil 30 June 2025)

Player of the year

Starting from 1980, the club has annually named its player of the year.Players still playing for the club are marked inbold:

• 1980:Brian Chrøis
• 1981:Ole Østergaard
• 1982:Michael Laudrup
• 1983:John Widell
• 1984:Bjarne Jensen
• 1985:Claus Nielsen
• 1986:Ole Madsen
• 1987:Lars Olsen
• 1988:Bjarne Jensen(2)
• 1989:Henrik Jensen
• 1990:Peter Schmeichel
• 1991:Kim Vilfort
• 1992:Uche Okechukwu
• 1993:Jes Høgh
• 1994:Ole Bjur
• 1995:Allan Nielsen
• 1996:Søren Colding
• 1997:Ebbe Sand
• 1998:Kim Daugaard
• 1999:Mogens Krogh
• 2000:Dan Anton Johansen
• 2001:Krister Nordin
• 2002:Aurelijus Skarbalius
• 2003:Per Nielsen
• 2004:Martin Retov
• 2005:Johan Elmander
• 2006:Per Nielsen(2)
• 2007:Mark Howard
• 2008:Thomas Rasmussen
• 2009:Stephan Andersen
• 2010:Michael Krohn-Dehli
• 2011:Michael Krohn-Dehli(2)
• 2012:Mike Jensen
• 2013:Simon Makienok
• 2014:Lukas Hradecky
• 2015:Riza Durmisi
• 2016:Frederik Rønnow
• 2017:Christian Nørgaard
• 2018:Kamil Wilczek
• 2019:Kamil Wilczek(2)
• 2020:Andreas Maxsø
• 2021:Mikael Uhre
• 2022:Mads Hermansen
• 2023:Nicolai Vallys

Wall of Honour

Since Michael Laudrup became the first player to represent Brøndby on the Denmark national team in June 1982, more than 80 players have donned the national team jersey of their respective countries. Apart from Denmark, players fromNigeria,Norway,Lithuania,Burkina Faso,Sweden,Faroe Islands,Morocco,Iceland,Zambia,Australia,Gambia,United States,Finland,North Macedonia,South Africa,Costa Rica,Poland,Hungary,Czech Republic,Kosovo,South Korea,TunisiaandParaguayhave represented their countries. The players are displayed on the "Wall of Honour", according to their year of national team debut.Players still playing for the club are marked inbold:

1980s

• Michael Laudrup(1982)
• Ole Madsen(1983)
• Brian Chrøis(1983)
• Ole Østergaard(1983)
• Lars Lunde(1983)
• Kim Christofte(1984)
• John Helt(1985)
• Lars Olsen(1986)
• John "Faxe" Jensen(1986)
• Claus Nielsen(1986)
• Kim Vilfort(1987)
• Per Steffensen(1987)
• Brian Laudrup(1987)
• Kent Nielsen(1987)
• Peter Schmeichel(1987)
• Bjarne Jensen(1988)
• Jan Bartram(1988)
• Bent "Turbo" Christensen(1989)
• Per Frimann(1989)

1990s

• Erik Rasmussen(1990)
• Uche Okechukwu(1990)
• Friday Elahor(1990)
• Brian Jensen(1991)
• Frank Pingel(1991)
• Mogens Krogh(1992)
• Marc Rieper(1992)
• Mark Strudal(1993)
• Jes Høgh(1993)
• Dan Eggen(1993)
• Jesper Kristensen(1994)
• Jens Risager(1994)
• Bo Hansen(1995)
• Allan Nielsen(1995)
• Peter Møller(1996)
• Ole Bjur(1996)
• Søren Colding(1996)
• Aurelijus Skarbalius(1996)
• Ebbe Sand(1998)
• Oumar Barro(1999)

2000s

• Magnus Svensson(2000)
• Mattias Jonson(2000)
• Peter Madsen(2001)
• Mads Jørgensen(2001)
• Morten Wieghorst(2002)
• Per Nielsen(2002)
• Jón Rói Jacobsen(2003)
• Thomas Kahlenberg(2003)
• Andreas Jakobsson(2003)
• Karim Zaza(2004)
• Asbjørn Sennels(2004)
• Martin Retov(2004)
• Morten Skoubo(2004)
• Johan Elmander(2004)
• Daniel Agger(2005)
• Hannes Sigurðsson(2006)
• Martin Ericsson(2006)
• Chris Katongo(2007)
• Stefán Gíslason(2007)
• Samuel Holmén(2008)
• Thomas Rasmussen(2008)
• Anders Randrup(2008)
• David Williams(2008)
• Max von Schlebrügge(2008)
• Stephan Andersen(2008)
• Ousman Jallow(2008)
• Michael Krohn-Dehli(2008)
• Morten "Duncan" Rasmussen(2008)
• Mikael Nilsson(2009)
• Martin Bernburg(2009)

2010s

• Mike Jensen(2010)
• Daniel Wass(2011)
• Brent McGrath(2011)
• Clarence Goodson(2011)
• Dennis Rommedahl(2011)
• René Joensen(2012)
• Simon Makienok(2013)
• Lukáš Hrádecký(2013)
• Ferhan Hasani(2014)
• José Ariel Núñez(2014)
• Teemu Pukki(2014)
• Hólmbert Friðjónsson(2015)
• Lebogang Phiri(2015)
• Riza Durmisi(2015)
• Frederik Rønnow(2016)
• Marco Ureña(2016)
• Kamil Wilczek(2016)
• Yun Suk-young(2017)
• Paulus Arajuuri(2017)
• Zsolt Kalmár(2017)
• Jan Kliment(2017)
• Besar Halimi(2017)
• Hjörtur Hermannsson(2017)
• Johan Larsson(2018)
• Simon Tibbling(2019)

2020s

• Simon Hedlund(2020)
• Anis Ben Slimane(2020)
• Blás Riveros(2020)
• Jesper Lindstrøm(2020)
• Andreas Maxsø(2020)
• Mikael Uhre(2021)
• Joe Bell(2022)
• Ohikhuaeme Omoijuanfo(2022)
• Nicolai Vallys(2023)
• Patrick Pentz(2024)
• Yuito Suzuki(2024)

The "Wall of Honour" chronicling Brøndby's national team players, of varying nationalities, since 1982.

Coaching staff

As of 4 June 2024

First team

Name	Role
Jesper Sørensen	Head coach
Frederik Birk Christensen	Assistant coach and Chief analyst
Henrik Hansen	Assistant coach
Casper Ankergren	Goalkeeper coach
Anders Storskov	Fitness coach

Senior management

Updated 23 September 2019

Name	Role
Jan Bech Andersen	Chairman of Board
Ole Palmå	CEO
Carsten V. Jensen	Executive Football Director

Managerial history

The person responsible for direction of the first senior team has traditionally been given the title ofhead coach/trainer.

Name	Nationality	From	To	Refs
Egon Knudsen	Denmark	1964	1967
Leif Andersen	Denmark	1967	1969
Ib Jensen	Denmark	1969	1970
John Sinding	Denmark	1970 ~1975	1972 ~1975
Finn Laudrup‡	Denmark	~1973	~1973
Mogens Johansen	Denmark	~1973	~1973
Kaj Møller	Denmark	~1974	~1974
Jørgen Hvidemose	Denmark	1975	1980
Tom Køhlert	Denmark	1 January 1981 1 January 1999† 15 April 2002† 21 January 2007†	30 June 1985 30 June 1999† 30 June 2002† 31 December 2008†
Ebbe Skovdahl	Denmark	1 January 1986 1 July 1988 1 January 1992	30 June 1987 31 December 1989 30 June 1999
Birger Peitersen	Denmark	1987	1988
Morten Olsen	Denmark	1 January 1990	10 May 1992
Åge Hareide	Norway	1 January 2000	15 April 2002
Michael Laudrup	Denmark	1 July 2002	30 June 2006
René Meulensteen	Netherlands	1 July 2006	17 January 2007
Kent Nielsen	Denmark	1 January 2009	26 March 2010
Henrik Jensen	Denmark	26 March 2010	24 October 2011
Aurelijus "Auri" Skarbalius	Lithuania	25 October 2011 9 March 2016†	10 June 2013 30 June 2016†
Thomas Frank	Denmark	11 June 2013	9 March 2016
Alexander Zorniger	Germany	1 July 2016	18 February 2019
Martin Retov†	Denmark	18 February 2019	1 June 2019
Niels Frederiksen	Denmark	1 June 2019	14 November 2022
Jesper Sørensen	Denmark	2 January 2023	Present

• † Managers with this symbol in the "Name" column are italicised to denotecaretakerappointments.
• ‡ Persons with this symbol in the "Name" column denote status as a playinghead coach/trainer.

Records

• Home victory, Danish Superliga: 7–0 vs.Herfølge,11 July 2005
• Away victory, Danish Superliga: 7–0 vs.Esbjerg,26 August 2001; 7–0 vs.AGF,21 August 2016
• Home loss, Danish Superliga: 1–6 vs.Esbjerg,14 March 2004
• Away Loss, Danish Superliga: 0–5 vs.Midtjylland,29 July 2007
• Biggest win, European match 9–0 vs.Juvenes/Dogana,2 July 2015
• Biggest Loss, European match 0–5 vs.PAOK,20 August 2015; 0–5 vs.Manchester United,4 November 1998
• Highest attendance,Brøndby Stadion:31,508 vs.Copenhagen,18 June 2003
• Highest average home attendance, season: 18,204,2004–05
• Most appearances, European matches: 70,Per Nielsen
• Most appearances, total: 556,Bjarne Jensen
• Most goals scored, season, Danish Superliga: 28,Ebbe Sand1997–98
• Most goals scored, Danish Superliga: 71,Kamil Wilczek
• Most goals scored, European matches: 12,Ruben Bagger
• Most goals scored, total: 121,Kim Vilfort

Recent history

Season		Pos.	Pl.	W	D	L	GS	GA	P	Cup	Europe
1995–96	SL	1	33	20	7	6	71	32	67	Runner-Up	Third Round UEFA Cup
1996–97	SL	1	33	20	8	5	57	38	68	Semi-Finals	Quarter-Finals UEFA Cup
1997–98	SL	1	33	24	4	5	81	33	76	Winners	First Round UEFA Cup
1998–99	SL	2	33	19	4	10	73	37	61	Semi-Finals	Group Stage UEFA Champions League
1999–00	SL	2	33	15	9	9	56	37	54	Semi-Finals	Third Qualifying Round UEFA Champions League/First Round UEFA Cup
2000–01	SL	2	33	17	7	9	71	42	58	Quarter-Finals	First Round UEFA Cup
2001–02	SL	1	33	20	9	4	74	28	58	5th Round	Third Round UEFA Cup
2002–03	SL	2	33	17	11	7	51	32	56	Winners	First Round UEFA Cup
2003–04	SL	2	33	20	7	6	55	29	67	Semi-Finals	Third Round UEFA Cup
2004–05	SL	1	33	20	9	4	61	23	69	Winners	Second Qualifying Round UEFA Cup
2005–06	SL	2	33	21	4	8	60	32	67	Semi-Finals	Third Qualifying Round UEFA Champions League/Group Stage UEFA Cup
2006–07	SL	6	33	13	10	10	50	38	49	Fourth Round	First Round UEFA Cup
2007–08	SL	8	33	11	10	12	44	44	43	Winners	First Round UEFA Cup
2008–09	SL	3	33	21	5	7	55	31	68	Semi-Finals	First Round UEFA Cup
2009–10	SL	3	33	15	7	11	57	50	52	Fourth Round	Playoff Round UEFA Europa League
2010–11	SL	3	33	9	9	15	35	46	36	Third Round	Playoff Round UEFA Europa League
2011–12	SL	9	33	13	12	8	52	39	51	Fourth Round	Third Qualifying Round UEFA Europa League
2012–13	SL	9	33	9	12	12	39	45	39	Semi-Finals
2013–14	SL	4	33	13	13	7	47	38	52	Second Round	Third Qualifying Round Europa League
2014–15	SL	3	33	16	7	10	43	29	55	Quarter-Finals	Playoff Round Europa League
2015–16	SL	4	33	16	6	11	43	37	54	Semi-Finals	Playoff Round Europa League
2016–17	SL	2	36	18	8	10	62	40	62	Runner-Up	Second Qualifying Round Europa League
2017–18	SL	2	36	24	9	3	82	37	81	Winners	Third Qualifying Round Europa League
2018–19	SL	4	36	15	7	14	60	52	52	Runner-Up	Playoff Round Europa League
2019–20	SL	4	36	16	8	12	56	42	56	Quarter-Finals	Third Qualifying Round Europa League
2020–21	SL	1	32	19	4	9	58	38	61	Fourth Round
2021–22	SL	4	32	13	9	10	40	41	48	Quarter-Finals	Europa League Group Stage
2022–23	SL	5	32	12	8	12	48	52	44	Third Round	Third Qualifying Round, UEFA Europa Conference League
2023–24	SL	2	32	18	8	6	60	35	62	Quarter-Finals

Brøndby in European competitions

Main article:Brøndby IF in European football

Brøndby's first competitive European match was on 17 September 1986 in the1986–87 European Cup,defeatingBudapest Honvéd4–1 and later onDynamo Berlinen routeto a spot in the quarter-finals, where they lost toPorto.Since then, the club has been a regular fixture in European competitions, and reached the group stages of theUEFA Champions Leagueand theUEFA Europa Leagueseveral times. They also achieved one European semi-final in1991,as well as another European quarter-final in1997.

UEFA club coefficient ranking

As of 26 July 2023

Rank	Team	Points
162	AEK Athens	7.000
163	FC U Craiova 1948	7.000
164	Brøndby IF	7.000
165	Mura	7.000
166	Kairat Almaty	7.000

Footnotes

A.^Danish clubAalborg BKplayed in the1995–96 Champions Leaguetournament as a result of the bribing scandal of Dynamo Kyiv, thus they did not qualify through the qualification rounds.

References

Bibliography

• Madsen, Henrik (1993).Brøndbys bagmænd: Per Bjerregaard og Leif Jensens spil om penge, fodbold og magt(1. udgave, 1. oplag ed.). Børsen Bøger.ISBN87-7553-403-7.
• Thyboe, Kurt (1997).Brøndby forever: et fodboldeventyr – om en drøm, der blev født, mellem to motorveje!(1. udgave, 1. oplag ed.). Valby: Borgen.ISBN87-21-00678-4.
• Kvist, Jakob (2001).Ambassadøren: en bog om Michael Laudrup(4. udgave ed.). Viby J: Centrum.ISBN87-583-1285-4.
• Jam Rasmussen, Jens; Rachlin, Michael (2005).Slaget om København: Den store bog om Brøndby-FCK.København V: People'sPress.ISBN87-91693-55-1.

External links

• Official website(in Danish)
• Brøndby IFatSuperliga(in Danish)
• Brøndby IFatUEFA(in English)