Meet Terje Mollestad, the man who has trekked from the Faroes to deepest Finland and beyond
Almost certainly the only man in the world to have visited and photographed 100 football grounds around Iceland, Terje Mollestad has done his Norwegian heritage proud with his epic voyaging across great swathes of Scandinavia and beyond.
The result is the wonderful site Nordic Stadiums (‘1000+ Nordic Stadiums’ as the succinct motto says), broken down into leagues, country by country. This doesn’t mean to say, Faroes, Iceland, Norway and so on – but all three tiers that constitute league football in the Faroes, all four in Iceland and four in Norway, not to mention Finland, Denmark and Sweden.
This is obviously bonkers. It’s also admirably Amundsenesque in its endeavour. As fellow travellers in this kooky business, Libero sat down with Terje to talk turkey.
Libero: Please tell us about yourself and when you started going to football.
Terje: I come from Grimstad in Norway and have always been interested in football. I used to play youth football and did some coaching at my childhood club FK Jerv. Now I am a supporter and season-ticket holder. I now live in Oslo and started groundhopping in 2017. I realised there are so many amazing places you can visit and watch football!
Libero: What gave you the idea for the website, when and where did you start and how many stadiums have you been to?
Terje: I started my website Nordic Stadiums in 2017. In the beginning, it was mostly about visiting grounds and taking photos of them. In the summer of 2017, I spent two weeks in Iceland, travelling the whole island and taking photos of most of the more than 100 grounds.
Little by little, I also started to go to more and more matches. On the website, there are now photos of around 1,100 grounds. And I do have a lot more not yet published. When it comes to seeing actual matches, I am now at 617 grounds in 36 countries in total.
Libero: Which have been the most memorable visits – either in terms of the stadium, location, fans…?
Terje: Argentina is probably the best place I have been to when it comes to atmosphere. I have visited a lot of great matches there, Estudiantes, Boca, Rosario, River and the Avellaneda derby. Highly recommended!
In the Nordics, I love Iceland and the Faroe Islands, and have been to both several times. There you can get the stunning combination of an old-school football atmosphere and breathtaking nature. Vestmannaeyjar and Ólafsvík are the bucket-list places on Iceland and on the Faroe Islands, you should visit Fuglafjørður, Vikingur and Suðuroy.
Libero: Where else would you still like to go to?
Terje: Eriskay in Scotland is high on my list. This weekend I will go to Goodison, to see it before it is knocked down. In the Nordics, I will see more matches in northern and western Norway. I have been to a lot of derbies in Europe, but still need to see the ones in Milan and Belgrade derby. They are high on the list.
For 2024, my goal is 300 matches and 200 new grounds, which will be a new PB and probably the highest I will ever reach. For 2025 and onwards, I will focus on more countries and more special grounds.
Libero: I’ve got a weekend in Norway this summer – I’d like to go to a game. Where would you recommend?
Terje: Only the three highest leagues play during July. It depends very much where you are in Norway, but tickets are easy accessible. And don’t hesitate to ask me for recommendations for specific weekends.
Libero: Next week, Bodø/Glimt host Ajax in the Conference League. Judging from your site, you seemed to have enjoyed your visit there. What can Ajax fans expect? Can you provide a few tips?
Terje: I actually lived for two years in Bodø while I was doing my Master’s in Economics. It’s windy! Ajax fans can expect great nature, a friendly city and passionate local fans. Bodø/Glimt are enjoying their best period in the history of the club and there is much optimism.
They are an organised team who play an attacking style of football in a traditional Dutch 4-3-3 system. The stadium will be sold out and the atmosphere will be good. But remember, it can be windy and extremely cold!
And the final word from Terje before he sets off on another football saga:
“If anyone wants to follow me and my adventures in the world of football, I am active on Instagram and YouTube in English, and on Twitter and TikTok in Norwegian. And if anyone has any questions or suggestions, they should not hesitate to contact me. And then there’s the Nordic Stadiums website, of course, which is the heart of my small football universe!”
