Arsenal fans feel the joy of European soccer's season of wild and historic title winners
GENEVA (AP) — The joy that flowed across north London for Arsenal clinching a Premier League title capped a European soccer trend this season that started in a Swedish fishing village. From stunning first-time champions to teams ending their decades-long run without a league title. It was a season like no other in modern European soccer, sparking euphoric celebrations by fans who hardly believed their success would ever happen or feared it never would again.
Arsenal fans' wait through 22 years of mostly underachievement for another Premier League title ended late Tuesday when second-place Manchester City drew a must-win game at Bournemouth. It had been 40 years in Denmark for AGF from Aarhus to regain the title this month and 61 years in Austria for LASK from Linz. First-time champions included 128-year-old club Thun in Switzerland and 87-year-old Mjällby in Sweden , who set the ball rolling in October.
Why has this happened for unheralded teams that could now play in the elite and lucrative Champions League next season? A more democratic and low-cost access to knowledge and data about running clubs and scouting players has helped, Olivier Jarosz told The Associated Press on Wednesday. He advises potential investors and teams across Europe.
If so, there could be more unheralded teams lifting trophies in small provincial towns next season. Scandinavia sets trend First it was Mjällby, then weeks later Viking sealed its first Norwegian title for 34 years. That was in November, when Nordic soccer seasons end to avoid the midwinter weather.
If Mjällby was a Cinderella team that played in the third tier nine years earlier, Viking’s story was the revival of a past champion from decline. Viking had to topple the new power in Norway, Bodø/Glimt, the Arctic Circle team that itself wrote Champions League lore this year by beating Manchester City, Atletico Madrid and Inter Milan. Denmark made it a hat trick this month when AGF was guided to success by coach Jakob Poulsen, like Mauro Lustrinelli at Thun, a former star player who came back to his old club.
Continue to the original source for the full article.