AaB Football

:"See also: Aalborg Boldspilklub"Infobox Football club
clubname = AaB


fullname = Aalborg Boldspilklub
nickname =
shortname = AaB
founded = 1885
ground = Energi Nord Arena, Aalborg
capacity = League matches: 16.000 UEFA matches: 10.800
chairman = flagicon|DNK Per Søndergaard
manager = flagicon|SCO Bruce Rioch
league = Danish Superliga
season = 2007-08
position = Superliga, Winners
pattern_la1=_whiteshoulders |pattern_b1=_red_stripes_red_sholders |pattern_ra1=_whiteshoulders |pattern_sh1= |pattern_so1=
leftarm1=FF0000 |body1=FFFFFF |rightarm1=FF0000 |shorts1=FFFFFF |socks1=FFFFFF
pattern_la2=_borderonblack |pattern_b2=_thinsidesonblack |pattern_ra2=_borderonblack |pattern_sh2= |pattern_so2=
leftarm2=FF0000 |body2=C0C0C0 |rightarm2=FF0000 |shorts2=000000 |socks2=000000
pattern_la3=|pattern_b3=|pattern_ra3=|pattern_sh3=|pattern_so3=|pattern_name3=European away
leftarm3=964B00|body3=964B00|rightarm3=000000|shorts3=964B00|socks3=964B00

Aalborg Boldspilklub, commonly just AaB and Aalborg BK is a Danish football team located in Aalborg. They play in the Danish Superliga and have won three Danish Superliga championships and two Danish Cup trophies. They are the first Danish football team to ever have knocked out an Italian team in the European competitions, as they beat U.C. Sampdoria in the 2007-08 edition of the UEFA Cup.

History

AaB was a part of the top-flight Danish leagues from the 1928-29 season, until the relegation of the club in 1947. The club came back to the best league in 1963, and except from the years of 1972, 1978 and 1981-1986, AaB has since been a part of the various editions of the Danish football championship. Despite its many years in the Danish championship, the club never won a championship title, but AaB won the Danish Cup competition in 1966 and 1970. Paid football was introduced in Denmark by the Danish Football Association in 1978. As AaB returned to the best Danish league, the club founded the professional branch of "AaB A/S" in 1987 to run a professional football team. [da icon [http://www.aab.klubfodbold.dk/default.asp?pageid=114 Om Aalborg Boldspilklub af 1885] at "Aalborg Boldspilklub af 1885"]

Through the 1990s, the club won its two first Danish championships. In the Danish Superliga 1994-95 season, 24 goals from league topscorer Erik Bo Andersen secured the championship title for the team of coach Poul Erik Andreasen. The club was initially eliminated by FC Dynamo Kyiv in the qualification matches for the UEFA Champions League 1995-96, but following a bribing scandal Kyiv was banned from the tournament and AaB entered in their place. AaB thus became the first Danish team to compete in the UEFA Champions League. As they managed a 2-1 home win over Panathinaikos FC and a 2-2 draw with FC Porto in the six matches the club played in the initial group stage, AaB was eliminated. Erik Bo Andersen left the club for Scottish club Rangers F.C., but in Søren Frederiksen, the club found its next goal-getter. Though not the league top scorer, Frederiksen scored 17 goals in the Danish Superliga 1998-99 which the club won under guidance of Swedish coach Hans Backe. Once again, AaB faced Dinamo Kyiv in the Champions League qualification, but this time they fell short, losing 1-2 at home and drawing 2-2 in Kyiv after a late AaB goal was disallowed for being behind the goal line.

Since then, the club established itself in the top half of the Superliga and won a bronze medal and qualified for the UEFA Intertoto Cup 2007. AaB beat FC Honka on the away goals rule (2-2 in Finland and 1-1 in Denmark) in the second round, and in the third and final round AaB faced AA Gent and drawed, 1-1, in the away game but beat them 2-1 in the following home match. Thus they "won" a place in the UEFA Cup's second qualification round and met HJK Helsinki, the first match ended 2-1 to Helsinki, but in the last match Aalborg won 3-0 and were thus ready for the UEFA Cup 2007-08. Drawing the Italian team U.C. Sampdoria in the First Round, which have Antonio Cassano and Vincenzo Montella as notable players, made the task seem impossible. AaB made it again on the away goals rule (getting 2-2 in Genoa and managing 0-0 in Aalborg), and qualified for the group stage - being the first Danish team ever, to send an Italian team "out of Europe." In the group stage AaB was seeded in the lowest pot, and drew R.S.C. Anderlecht, Tottenham Hotspur, Getafe CF, Hapoel Tel Aviv. Drawing with Anderlecht at home, and losing 2-3 to Tottenham (after being ahead 2-0 after the first half) forced AaB to win at home against Getafe, a match AaB lost 1-2.

In the 2007-2008 season AaB won their third Danish Championship. League top scorer was Jeppe Curth from AaB. AaB qualified for the qualification to the UEFA Champions League and in the first round AaB easily eliminated FK Modriča 7-1. In the final round before the group stage, AaB defeated Kaunas 2-0 both at home and away and reached the group stage of the Champions League for second time, the first time a Danish team has acheived this.

tadium

Since 1920, AaB has played its games at Aalborg Stadion. The stadium was opened on July 18, 1920 with a north-south aligned playing field. The first spectator seats was built in 1927, and in 1937 a wooden terrace for 3,000 standing spectators was built. In 1960, the stadium burned down and a new east-western aligned concrete stadium was opened in 1962. In recent years the stadium have been enlarged and rebuilt so that it now has modern facilities and roof over all spectator stands. [da icon [http://www.aalborg.dk/Borgerportal/Serviceomraader/Kultur+og+Fritid/Fritid/Aalborg+Stadion/Stadion+Historie.htm Aalborg Stadion 1920-2001] , "Aalborg.dk", February 8, 2006] The stadium currently has the capacity of 13,800 people (7,700 seats) or 10,500 people (all seats).

Players

Current squad

:"Up to date as of 2008-07-18."

Players out on loan

Noted players

*1930s: Egon Johansen (1936)
*1960s: Kaj Paulsen (1960), Kjeld Thorst (1961), Børge Bach (1963), Henning Munk Jensen (1965), Ove Flindt Bjerg (1967), Lynge Jakobsen (1969)
*1980s: Søren Thorst (1983), Torben Boye (1984), Ib Simonsen (1985), Jes Høgh (1987)
*1990s: Jens Jessen (1991), Erik Bo Andersen (1993), Jesper Grønkjær (1995), Peter Rasmussen (1995), Jimmy Nielsen (1996), Søren Frederiksen (1997), Ståle Solbakken (1998), Frank Strandli (1999), Brian Priske (1999)
*2000s: Michael Silberbauer (2001), Thomas Augustinussen (2001), Rasmus Würtz (2003), Trond Andersen (2004), Martin Ericsson (2004), Rade Prica (2006), Siyabonga Nomvethe (2006), Danny Califf (2007), Benedict Vilakazi (2007), Andreas Johansson (2007), Lasse Nilsson (2008)

Managers

*Peter Rudbæk (1983)
*Poul Erik Andreasen (1990)
*Sepp Piontek (1995)
*Per Westergaard (1996)
*Lars Søndergaard (1997)
*Hans Backe (1998)
*Peter Rudbæk (2000)
*Poul Erik Andreasen (2002)
*Søren Kusk (2003)
*Erik Hamrén (2003-2008)
*Bruce Rioch (2008-)

Honours

*Danish Superliga
**Winners: 1994-95, 1998-99, 2007-08
**3rd place: 1935-36, 1969, 2006-07
*Danish Cup
**Winners: 1966, 1970
**Runners-up (7): 1967, 1987, 1991, 1993, 1999, 2000, 2004
*UEFA Champions League
**3rd qualification round: 1999-2000
**Group stage: 1995-96, 2008-09
*UEFA Cup
**Group stage: 2007-08
**1st round: 2004-05
**1st round: 1999-2000
**1st round: 1993-94
*UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
**1st round: 1966-67, 1970-71, 1987-88
*UEFA Intertoto Cup
**Winners: 2007
**Group final: 1997
**Group winners: 1993

*49 "seasons" in the "Highest Danish League"
*19 "seasons" in the "Second Highest Danish League"
*5 "seasons" in the "Third Highest Danish League"

Recent history

:

References

External links

*da icon [http://www.aabsport.dk/forsiden Official website]
*da icon [http://www.aab.klubfodbold.dk/default.asp?pageid=107 Aalborg Boldspilklub af 1885] (amateur foundation)
* [http://www.uefa.com/footballEurope/Club=54186/domestic.html UEFA profile]
*da icon [http://www.aab-support-club.dk Aalborg Support Club] (Official fanclub of AaB)