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Silkeborg
Full name	Silkeborg Idrætsforening
Short name	SIF
Founded	1917; 108 years ago
Ground	JYSK Park
Capacity	10,000 (6,000 seated)
Chairman	Kent Madsen
Head coach	Kent Nielsen
League	Danish Superliga
2023–24	Superliga, 6th of 12
Website	www.silkeborgif.com
Home colours	Away colours
	Current season

Silkeborg Idrætsforening, (pronounced [ˈse̝lkəˌpɒˀ ˈitʁætsfɒˌe̝ˀne̝ŋ]; commonly known as Silkeborg IF or SIF in short) is a professional football club based in Silkeborg, Denmark. The club was founded in 1917, reached the highest level of Danish football in 1987, and afterwards became one of the most successful football clubs in Denmark. They won the 1993–94 Danish Superliga, finished third in 1994–95, 2000–01, and 2021–22, 2nd in 1997–98, and won the Danish Cup in 2001 and 2024. Silkeborg has participated in Europe several times, winning the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1996.

History

Founded in 1917, the football section of Silkeborg IF played in the top ranks of Jutland until a short visit in the third division in 1962. In 1966, however the team was promoted to the 2nd division of Danish football. In 1982, the club took the decisive step towards the Danish top football, as the company SIF Football Support A / S was founded, a professional company that would be responsible for professional football in Silkeborg. This resulted in a rise in 1987 to the country's top row, the 1st division. This came as a large surprise to most football enthusiasts and a reporter from the Danish newspaper Politiken wrote, "It will be a surprise if Silkeborg will win a corner kick." The team, however, played well and already in the third game of the season Silkeborg IF defeated Denmark's dominant team, Brøndby with a 1–0 win at home.

1994 championship

There were many vital matches in the 1993–94 season, but perhaps the most important game for Silkeborg was the tournament's third round match at home against Brøndby. Just before the game, the team's big name Jakob Kjeldberg had been sold to Chelsea,^[1] and when Brøndby put themselves ahead 2–0 early in the game, it looked difficult for the home team. But Silkeborg totally turned the match upside down and won 4–2 in front of an enthusiastic audience.^[2] During the rest of autumn, SIF delivered one attractive game after another. The team lost only 2 of 18 matches and finished the autumn in 1st place.

The playoffs were a thrilling affair. The superior play in the autumn was followed by a more calculating style. Away from home, SIF ran into a few serious defeats, but, in turn, Silkeborg Stadion was a fortress. Here, SIF won six out of seven games and conceded only one goal. In the second-to-last round, SIF could secure the championship with an away win against the only remaining competitor, Copenhagen. Silkeborg fans flocked to the national arena, Parken Stadium, where the match was witnessed by the largest crowd in history of the Danish Superliga, namely 26,679.^[3] The many visiting SIF fans, however, witnessed SIF scoring the first goal of the match but eventually losing 1–4.

The situation before the final round was that SIF should provide a better result than Copenhagen to become champions. At home, SIF played Aalborg BK and won 2–0 on two goals by leading scorer Heine Fernandez. In Odense, OB obtained a lead over Copenhagen in the 2nd half and won 3–2 on a goal in injury time, securing SIF the championship.

The 11 starters of the final in the 2000–01 Danish Cup

2001 cup winners and relegation

In 2001, Silkeborg won the Danish Cup with a 4–1 victory against league rivals AB. Behind 0–1 at half-time, the team scored 4 times in the second half of the match by Brian Pedersen, Thomas Poulsen and 2 from Henrik Pedersen. Steven Lustü, who later would become a prominent player for Silkeborg, played the entire game for AB. The following years' results were not very impressive. After the cup victory, the club sold Henrik Pedersen to Bolton Wanderers, Peter Kjær to Beşiktaş and Thomas Røll to Copenhagen. At the same time, Morten Bruun, the player with most caps to his name in the club history, retired. In 2003, the team was relegated to the 1st Division, but returned to the Superliga the following year. For two consecutive seasons, the team finished eighth in the league with 12 teams, but in 2007 the team was again relegated. When former player Troels Bech returned to the club as head coach in 2009, however, he transformed the team and helped the club to promotion. Silkeborg finished fifth in the league in 2011, the best result in 15 years.

2018–19 1st Division Title

In the 2018–19 Danish 1st Division Silkeborg IF were crowned champions of the First Division for a third time, ensuring a return to the Danish Superliga for the 2019–20 season following a one-year absence.

Danish Striker Ronnie Schwartz was the league's top scorer for Silkeborg with 17 league goals registered; sharing the golden boot with Roskilde's Emil Nielsen.

They secured the league title with 61 points, only 1 point clear of nearest rivals Viborg FF ensuring an automatic return to the Superliga.

From promotion to Europe

As Silkeborg IF won promotion to the Danish Superliga in 2021, many experts expected the club to continue its status as a yo-yo club and be in a relegation battle,^[4] but head coach Kent Nielsen managed to impress this time in the top division. His attacking style of play with focus on possession and short passing game meant that the club qualified for the championship play-offs for the first time in the club's recent history.^[5] Especially the attacking trio, Nicolai Vallys, Sebastian Jørgensen and Nicklas Helenius – often referred to as "VHS" – impressed with many goals and assists.^[6]^[7]

One of the reasons for Silkeborg's success was seen as their ability to hold on to key players during the 2021–22 winter break, despite interest for Tobias Salquist and Rasmus Carstensen.^[8] In the play-offs, Silkeborg managed to beat both FC Copenhagen and Brøndby in historic fashion during the same week.^[9] Brøndby were defeated 3–0 and Copenhagen, who had not lost the previous eight games, were beaten 3–1. Ultimately, the season finished in third place and their first bronze medals since 2000–01,^[10] as Silkeborg were considered the most "entertaining" and "well-playing" team in the Superliga.^[11]

Due to the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, all Russian teams were excluded from European tournaments by UEFA.^[12] This meant that the Danish Cup winners entered the final qualifying round for the UEFA Europa League. When FC Midtjylland won the 2021–22 Danish Cup, and at the same time finished in second place in the Superliga, which now gave access to UEFA Champions League qualification, Silkeborg secured Europa League qualification by virtue of their third-place Superliga finish.^[13]

On 9 May 2024, Silkeborg won their second Danish Cup, having previously won it in 2001, with Oliver Sonne scoring the only goal in the final against AGF at Parken Stadium in Copenhagen.^[14]

Honours

League

Superliga
- Champions: 1993–94
- Runners-up: 1997–98
- Third: 1994–95, 2000–01, 2021–22
1st Division
- Champions: 1987, 2003–04, 2013–14, 2018–19

Cups

Danish Cup
- Winners: 2000–01, 2023–24
- Runners-up: 2017–18

International

Intertoto Cup
- Winners: 1996
The Atlantic Cup
- Winners: 2024

Players

Current squad

As of 2 January 2025^[15]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	DEN	Nicolai Larsen
2	DF	DEN	Andreas Poulsen
3	DF	NOR	Robin Østrøm
4	DF	POR	Pedro Ganchas
6	MF	DEN	Pelle Mattsson
7	MF	KAZ	Ramazan Orazov
8	MF	DEN	Jeppe Andersen
9	FW	DEN	Alexander Simmelhack
10	FW	DEN	Younes Bakiz
11	MF	DEN	Fredrik Carlsen
17	FW	NZL	Callum McCowatt


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
19	DF	DEN	Jens Martin Gammelby
20	MF	DEN	Mads Larsen
21	MF	DEN	Anders Klynge
23	FW	DEN	Tonni Adamsen
24	DF	DEN	Alexander Madsen
25	DF	SWE	Pontus Rödin
30	GK	DEN	Aske Andrésen
33	MF	DEN	Mads Freundlich
40	DF	DEN	Alexander Busch
41	MF	DEN	Oskar Boesen
—	MF	DEN	Anders Dahl

Youth players in use 2024–25

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
35	FW	DEN	Sebastian Biller


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
36	MF	DEN	Julius Nielsen

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
13	DF	DEN	Oscar Fuglsang (at Fredericia until 30 June 2025)


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	FW	DEN	Asbjørn Bøndergaard (at Fredericia until 30 June 2025)

Staff

Current technical staff

Position	Staff
Manager	Kent Nielsen
Assistant manager	Peder Knudsen
Goalkeeping coach	Thomas Nørgaard
Fitness coach	Rasmus Hansen
Fitness assistant	Mikkel Cramer
Physiotherapist	Michael Larsen
Sporting director	Jesper Stücker

Last updated: 14 July 2019
Source: Silkeborg IF

Managerial history

Viggo Jensen (1987–92)
Bo Johansson (1992–94)
Bo Nielsson (1994)
Frank Petersen (1995)
Preben Elkjær (1995–96)
Sepp Piontek (1997–99)
Benny Johansen (1999–01)
Morten Bruun (2001–02)
Viggo Jensen (July 2002–Oct 2006)
Peder Knudsen (Oct 2006–Dec 2008)
Preben Lundbye (2007)
Troels Bech (Jan 2009–June 2012)
Keld Bordinggaard (July 2012–Nov 2012)
Viggo Jensen (Nov 2012–June 2013)
Jesper Sørensen (July 2013–December 2014)
Kim Poulsen (December 2014–September 2015)
Peter Sørensen (September 2015–August 2018)
Michael Hansen (August 2018–May 2019)
Kent Nielsen (June 2019–present)

European cups record

Season	Cup	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Aggregate
1991	Intertoto Cup	Group 4	Hammarby IF	4–1	3–1	2nd
			Energie Cottbus	4–1	1–0
			Dukla Banksá Bystrica	1–3	0–2
1993	Intertoto Cup	Group 6	Zürich	N/A	0–2	5th
			VfL Bochum	2–2	N/A
			Tirol	1–1	N/A
			Slovan Bratislava	N/A	1–2
1994	Intertoto Cup	Group 1	Halmstads BK	N/A	0–2	5th
			Maccabi Netanya	0–0	N/A
			Sparta Prague	N/A	1–4
			Lokomotiv Sofia	7–2	N/A
1994–95	Champions League	1Q	Dynamo Kyiv	0–0	1–3	1–3
1995–96	UEFA Cup	1Q	Crusaders	4–0	1–2	5–2
1995–96	UEFA Cup	2Q	Sparta Prague	1–2	0–1	1–3
1996	Intertoto Cup	Group 4	Sporting Charleroi	N/A	4–2	1st
			Zagłębie Lubin	0–0	N/A
			SV Ried	N/A	3–0
			Conwy United	3–0	N/A
		SF	Uralmash	0–1	2–1	2–2 (a)
		F	Segesta Sisak	0–1	2–1	2–2 (a)
1996–97	UEFA Cup	Q	Spartak Moscow	1–2	2–3	3–5
1997	Intertoto Cup	Group 2	Grazer AK	N/A	0–2	3rd
			Hrvatski Dragovoljac	5–0	N/A
			Bastia	N/A	0–1
			Ebbw Vale	6–1	N/A
1998–99	UEFA Cup	1Q	Mura	2–0	0–0	2–0
1998–99	UEFA Cup	R1	Roma	0–2	0–1	0–3
2000	Intertoto Cup	R1	Dnepr Mogilev	1–2	1–2	2–4
2001–02	UEFA Cup	1R	Real Zaragoza	1–2	0–3	1–5
2022–23	UEFA Europa League	PO	HJK	1–1	0–1	1–2
2022–23	UEFA Europa Conference League	Group B	Anderlecht	0–2	0–1	3rd
			West Ham United	2–3	0–1
			FCSB	5–0	5–0
2024–25	UEFA Europa League	2Q	Molde	3–2	1–3	4–5
2024–25	UEFA Conference League	3Q	Gent	2–2	2–3	4–5

Former notable players

Top goalscorers

Competitive matches only. To matches played 22 March 2017.^[16]

#	Name	Career	Goals
1	Henrik Pedersen	1995–2001 and 2008–2012	96
2	Heine Fernandez	1990–1998	96
3	Rajko Lekić	2003–2004 and 2008–2011	76
4	Christian Holst	2008–2014	47
5	Jesper Thygesen	1994–1998 and 2000–2003	45
6	Iddi Alkhag	2001–2007	41
7	Michael Hansen	1991–1996 and 2006–2007	39
8	Morten Bruun	1988–2001	35
9	Ole Skov	1988–1992	35
10	Nocko Joković	1996–1999	33
11	Peter Lassen	1999–2000	33
12	Allan Reese	1991–1997	32
13	Hans Erfurt	1987–1994	31
14	Marvin Pourie	2011–2013	29
15	Jesper Bech	2004–2014	28

Top appearances

Competitive matches only. To matches played 22 March 2017.^[17]

#	Name	Career	Appearances
1	Morten Bruun	1988–2001	424
2	Bjarne Jensen		348
3	Dennis Flinta	2005–2007 and 2009–present	329
4	Ingvar Johansen	1979–1993	325
5	Arne Skovbo		308
6	Kurt Nielsen		307
7	Peter Kjær	1993–2001	291
8	Christian Duus	1991–2005	283
9	Henrik Pedersen	1995–2001 and 2008–2012	270
10	Michael Larsen	1992–2003	269
11	Thomas Poulsen	1997–2006	255
12	Brian Skaarup	−1991	254
13	Heine Fernandez	1990–1998	246
14	Jørgen Hansen		245
15	Jesper Thygesen	1994–1998 and 2000–2003	245

References

^ 1993–1994 season Archived 27 December 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Silkeborg IF by year, accessed on 4 December 2013.
^ Superstats SIF-BIF 15.08.1993 Archived 29 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine, SIF-BIF: 4–2, accessed on 4 December 2013.
^ Superstats FCK-SIF 05.06.1994 Archived 29 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine, FCK-SIF: 4–1, accessed on 4 December 2013.
^ "Tipsbladet forudsiger SL: De bliver overraskelsen". Tipsbladet (in Danish). 16 July 2021. Archived from the original on 16 July 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ "Mesterskabsspillet tilrettelagt". Silkeborg IF (in Danish). 20 March 2022. Archived from the original on 19 August 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Porse, Kristian (14 April 2022). "Silkeborgs 'VHS' ødelagde FCK's flotte stime". bold.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ "KEP udnævner ny trio og sammenligner med verdensstjerner – Kent Nielsen langt fra imponeret". TV3 SPORT (in Danish). 2 November 2021. Archived from the original on 1 December 2021. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ "Manglende profilsalg i januar viser Silkeborgs styrke". B.T. (in Danish). 20 February 2022. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Porse, Kristian (14 April 2022). "Silkeborg slog FCK: Tilbage i top 3-kampen nu". bold.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Margren, Sara (15 May 2022). "Silkeborg snupper bronze i Superligaen". bold.dk (in Danish). Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Jensen, Kenneth (7 February 2022). "Alt om SIF: Stjernes lillebror er et større talent". Tipsbladet (in Danish). Archived from the original on 8 February 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ "Russia World Cup ban appeal rejected by CAS". ESPN. 18 March 2022. Archived from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Jensen, Kenneth (27 May 2022). "Her er SIF's mulige modstandere i EL-playoff". Tipsbladet (in Danish). Archived from the original on 28 June 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
^ Mignon, Jacob (9 May 2024). "Kæmpe rød jubel i Parken: Silkeborg vinder pokalfinalen". DR (in Danish). Archived from the original on 9 May 2024. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
^ "Nordicbet Liga-trup | Silkeborg IF". silkeborgif.com (in Danish). Archived from the original on 20 December 2019. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
^ Silkeborg IF: Most goals Archived 28 October 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Most Goals, accessed on 22 March 2017.
^ Silkeborg IF: Most matches Archived 26 May 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Most matches, accessed on 22 March 2017.