Faroe Islands make history with amateur footballers

Torshavn is the largest city and capital of the Faroe Islands, named after the Norse god of thunder (Thor). Last night, "Thor" showed his power for the first time. And the victim of the thunder hammer was Montenegro.

In Group L of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, Montenegro think they still have a chance to qualify. They just need to beat the Faroe Islands. Coincidentally, this is also the debut match of new coach Mirko Vucinic. And there is no more suitable opponent than the Faroe Islands for him to get his first win.

The Faroe Islands are ranked 136th in the world and have only won 38 times in their history, most of them against underdogs like them. Montenegro, meanwhile, are ranked 80th and beat the Faroe Islands in their first meeting in March (1-0).

Montenegro suffered an embarrassing defeat against the Faroe Islands.

No Montenegrin could have imagined that tragedy awaited them in Torshavn. Hanus Sorensen's goal shook their net in the 16th minute. 20 minutes later, Meinhard Olsen's header doubled the lead.

The second half was a repeat of the first, with the visitors Montenegro dominating possession but failing to create chances, while the hosts Faroe Islands were always eager to get forward on the counter-attack. Sorensen completed his double in the 55th minute, before Arni Frederiksberg sealed a 4-0 win in the 72nd.

For Montenegro, this was the heaviest defeat in history against a much weaker opponent. The Faroe Islands had their most resounding victory since their founding, not only because of the score but also because the losing team was 56 places higher than them in the FIFA rankings. Previously, they had only scored 4 goals in a match twice, both against the weak Liechtenstein.

Many Faroe Islands players are playing amateur football.

If there was one regret for the Faroe Islands, it was that only 1,000 spectators, who danced and sang Boney M throughout the match, were present at the 6,000-capacity Torsvollur Stadium to witness it. Who would have thought that Eydun Klakstein's team would be so good?

For many years, the Faroe Islands did not play for victory because it was rare. They also played for passion and pride as islanders, not for a living. For many players, football was just a second job. Arni Frederiksberg, for example, worked for a frozen pizza company. Others were students, carpenters, or accountants.

The 4-0 win over Montenegro did not help the Faroe Islands in their quest for a place at the 2026 World Cup, as they will face the Czech Republic and Croatia in their next two matches. However, nothing can stop Frederiksberg and his teammates from celebrating. They have written history and who knows, when Thor awakens, a new chapter of Faroe Islands football will be written.