In the spring of 2019, Hammarby’s handball was a sinking ship that left the Handball League and stood without players, an elite license and a table, but with a debt of 3.4 million.
Three years later, they played in the playoffs for the first time in seven years, doubled their turnover and reported positive equity for the first time in the 2000s.
This is the story of how the Troika transformed Hammarby financially and athletically with an unknown hero in the background.
The club was in a free fall – then the key people turned it all around: ‘A lot of people wanted Hammarby to go bankrupt’
He was forced to take a cold, icy shower and had mice in the dressing room: “Just shit in that would make sense.”
The crucial meeting at Central Station: “Only a fool would do such a thing – but there was something worth saving”
Players who became loyal to the club – despite misery and unpaid wages: “We lied to everyone and said we do it because we love playing handball and we love each other”
The Unsung Hero Behind the Great Transformation: “As an economist and ‘raw boy’ you have a destiny…”
Wahlgren fully cleaned up in the dressing room and a fresh start on the pitch: “He cleaned up everything we did before”
The club now feels even better than when they faced Kiel in the Champions League in front of 8,000 singing fans in Hooft: “We’ll do it again – it’s only a matter of time”
Visit the Sportbladet Hammarby Handball site – read all four parts of the Inside with Plus!