Damallsvenskan Preview

History

The Swedish league, sponsored by OBOS (a large Swedish Housing Developer) is one of the oldest women’s soccer leagues in the World. Originating in 1973 and professionalized in 1988, the Swedish Championship has been home to some of the world’s best players like Marta (who arrived at age 18), Christen Press, Lotta Schelin, and Nadine Angerer. Though the appeal and pay of the Swedish league has not been able to keep up with some of the investment in other top European leagues, it is still a great destination for footballers. The Swedish league was at its peak from 2000-2010, but dropped out of Europe’s top three leagues in 2014, when the FAWSL replaced it. Currently, the league sits in seventh spot in Europe, recently surpassed by leagues like Serie A (Italy) and Liga BPI (Portugal). Nevertheless, Sweden has long been one of the most stable safe-havens for women’s footballers, especially at the beginning of pro woso when no one else had invested. It’s been a good landing spot for Canadians too, players like Viens, Carle, D’Angelo, Labbe, Chapman, and Stratigakis calling Sweden home in recent years. The league has also been a major reason behind the Swedish National Team’s consistently strong results in major tournaments and world rankings. 

Marta and Christen Press celebrate a goal for Tyreso FF in 2013

Format

The 14-team format of the competition is based on promotion-relegation of two teams to/from the Elitettan at the end of each season. Related to the climate, the league follows a summer schedule from late March to early November. Perennial winners Rosenborg/Malmo, Gothenburg/BK Hacken, and Linkoping have split most of the league titles over the past decade. The 2024 season is set to kick off on April 13th with 8 Canadians involved (see Graphic), most notably CanWNT players Larisey and Yekka.

Canadians in Sweden

Canadians should definitely keep an eye on goalscorer Clarissa Larisey this season. She joined from Celtic in 2023, scored 6 goals and earned 1 assist in 18 games played, despite some time off due to injury. Larisey (9 caps, 1 goal) has worked her way into Bev Priestman’s expanded squad, recently being called into the She Believes Cup, although she didn’t feature. A prolific start to the season will help her push for an Olympic spot. 

Sura Yekka (18 caps), on the other hand, is on the outside looking in. Her last call came in April 2023, and her last appearance was in November 2022. Her move from Vittsjo to Djurgarden comes at a good time considering she didn’t play as consistently as she would have liked. Hopefully a strong campaign puts her back on the long list, although the fullback position is quite stacked at the moment.

Other Canadians include CanWNT alumni Shannon Woeller (21 caps) at Vittsjo, who has played in Sweden since 2018. Two exciting young prospects include striker Tanya Boychuk and defender Maya Antoine, both are former YNT players. Boychuk signed with Vittsjo and enters her second year as a pro after impressing at Memphis and then heading to Iceland for her first pro contract. She’ll look to build on 5 goals and 3 assists in 2023. Maya Antoine is a Vanderbilt alumni and spent time trialing with Washington Spirit before signing with IFK Norrkoping. The former Vaughan standout made 22 appearances for CanW15-20s primarily as a CB.

Dual-nationals Carley Wickenheiser, DB Pridham (both born in the US), and Ottawa’s own Kayla Adamek (represents Polish NT) round out the Canadian content. Wickenheiser in particular may be an interesting midfield candidate for the WNT post Olympics. The sixth year pro is a dynamic defensive midfielder with solid distribution and excellent anticipation. Formerly a Texas Tech player, she’ll captain Kristianstads once again this season. Plus, she has the most Canadian last name ever.

Maya Antoine signed her first professional contract with IFK Norrkoping

How to Watch

The best way to watch the Swedish league in Canada is through a streaming platform called fanseat.com, which shows all games live and on demand. Games are typically played on Saturday and Sunday mornings starting at 9am EST / 6am PT, with some Monday mid-day games as well. The streams are of high quality, but they do not have a commentator. The cost is 14 Euros, roughly $20 CAD/month x 6 months ($120/szn).