In my (somewhat unbiased) opinion the greatest summer league is underway on Easter Monday – April 18th. The league is set for a new format akin to Denmark and Scotland where after 22 rounds, the league is split into two in a top-6/bottom-6 playoff in an incentive by the Football Association to make the league more competitive and exciting after a declining performance by clubs on a continental level. The clubs’ association has simultaneously undergone a rebrand on the top tier leagues (men’s and women’s), and following the decision to cut sponsors name from the league to create a brand, the top divisions will be contested under the moniker of Besta Deildin (The Best League).
There’s 12 teams contesting the first ever Besta Deildin Winners’ Shield and despite the playoff not being a completely uncontroversial decision, we’ll see 27 matches opposed to 22 played last season. Kicking off the league will see reigning champs Víkingur host FH at Víkin (passionately known to loyal fans as the Theater of Happiness) and the first round finishes in the week following.
Defending an unexpected title
Víkingur Reykjavík (est. 1908)
Top league since 2013
Home ground: Víkin (1149 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Arnar Gunnlaugsson
Key player – Ingvar Jónsson (GK)
Last season: 1st, 48 points from 14 wins, 6 draws and 2 losses, 38:21 GD. Top goalscorer: Nicolaj Hansen (21 matches, 16 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 6
After scenes that can best be described as absolute, Víkingur managed to knock late-season favorites Breiðablik off the top in the penultimate round. Coming into the season as somewhat of an outside shout, the defensively solid outfit caught the eye for their performances owing much to the Klopp-esque cult-like mentality Arnar Gunnlaugsson has managed to brew at the club. Favoring to build strong foundations at the back with rapid breaks, Gunnlaugsson seems to be a master of man management and their young starlets and veterans alike celebrate his football ideology and this fantastic harmony has shown on the pitch. Their preseason form has been the case of picking up where they left off, losing the League cup final with 7 absences to international callups yet still managing to give FH a match until the 92nd minute. Ultimately Víkingur added a Super Cup trophy to their cabinet last weekend where they defeated Breiðablik 1-0 despite being a man down for most of the second half.
Víkingur have the best goalkeeper in the league in Ingvar Jónsson, an experienced shot stopper with a commanding presence. Having seen their two veteran anchor CBs retire following last season, Kári Árnason and Sölvi Ottesen aren’t easily replaced but new signings Kyle McLagan and Oliver Ekroth seem ready to take the defensive lead with Halldór Smári Sigurðsson. Famous among Football Manager fanatics, Viktor Örlygur Andrason leads the midfield with Salvadoran Pablo Punyed. Last season’s top scorer Nikolaj Hansen flourished in the Gunnlaugsson-ball and has never scored as many and perhaps the only question mark in the side is whether or not he can follow up last season.
The original three are finally reunited!
If you look at any given online bookie offering markets on Icelandic football you’ll seem to notice every other club being labeled as something “-Reykjavik” (five in Besta Deildin). This might be a confusing aspect as to why there are so many Reykjavík clubs (22 over the FA sanctioned divisions) the “original three” Reykjavík clubs are finally back in the league since Fram secured a promotion from Inkassodeildin via an invincibles achievement, setting a new second tier record meanwhile. KR, Valur and Fram are three of the most triumphant sides in the history of competitive top football in Iceland and. KR is the sole side with five stars above their badge (27 titles), Valur are second with four stars (23 titles) while Fram is tied with ÍA on 18 titles and three stars. While Fram hasn’t won a domestic championship since 1990 and have faded into being a sleeping giant of Icelandic football at best, KR and Valur have been battling it out on the football pitch since then and the two are the only who can boast of contesting a Reykjavík derby, even though the fabric of Iceland’s capital city makes it hard to split the city into two when it comes to rivalries akin to the big ones we know around the globe, but there’s certainly competitive animosity between the two sides and whether or not we’ll see them locked in a title race remains to be seen.
Knattspyrnufélag Reykjavíkur (KR) (est. 1899)
Top league since 1979
Home ground: KR-völlur (1541 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Rúnar Kristinsson
Key player – Kristinn Jónsson (LB)
Last season: 3rd, 41 points from 12 wins, 5 draws and 5 losses, 35:19 GD. Top goalscorer: Kjartan Henry Finnbogason (17 matches, 7 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 27
KR have been trying their darndest to shake off their criticisms about being “The Retirement Home” due to their high squad average age and even though this rowdy bunch of senior citizens won the league in 2019 father time has taken its toll since. KR snuck into third spot last season and secured Conference League qualification in the dying moments of last season. Gearing up for the higher intensity this season, KR has made signings aimed to boost squad depth but one of those axed from the retirement home is Óskar Örn Hauksson, their best player for many seasons in a row and despite being 38 he still found a Besta Deildin club to play for, highlighting his quality. Óskar Örn has been backed by left back Kristinn Jónsson for the last four seasons and the former Breiðablik player partnered well with him, providing assists aplenty while still remaining a key threat stopper at the back – 16 assists from a left back ain’t bad! KR made a somewhat out-of-character high profile signing in Hallur Hansson from Vejle. The Faroese int’l captain is still in his prime and rumored to be making a monthly wage of 8000 euros here, so no doubt KR want to see something from him. Unlike many Danes who venture to Iceland, Hallur is a Superliga player in his prime. Forward duo of the two Finnbogasons’ (albeit no relation) took a hit when Kristján Flóki Finnbogason suffered ACL in the preseason and veteran Kjartan Henry – 36 years old – is under pressure to show what the retirement home can deliver up front.
Valur (est. 1911)
Top league since 2004
Home ground: Origo-völlurinn (1201 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Heimir Guðjónsson
Key player – Patrick Pedersen (ST)
Last season: 5th, 39 points from 12 wins, 3 draws and 7 losses, 37:26 GD. Top goalscorer: Patrick Pedersen (21 matches, 9 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 23
In recent years, Valur’s financial capabilities have been increased due to the board members’ lucrative real-estate and land-selling endeavors surrounding Hlíðarendi, the club’s headquarters. Sparing no expenses – relative to Iceland – bringing in domestic players from professional teams abroad in the past seasons and there’s no doubt about their ambitions – 1st place and qualifying for European competitions. 2021 saw them vastly underperform and despite boasting a great squad (both in terms of quality and depth), finishing outside of continental qualification placement. Their defensive options have been boosted with the arrivals of two-time Danish international Jesper Juelsgard from AGF and Hólmar Eyjólfsson from Rosenborg, as well as loaning Iceland U21 starter Ágúst Hlynsson from Horsens and US international Aron Jóhansson on free transfer from Lech Poznan. As per last couple of seasons, making signings is one thing, having them function together is something else and that what the title-mad Heimir Guðjónsson needs to do. Can’t emphasise that enough, since Valur were bad last season and the impatient board kept their trust in him. Their area of doubt remains between the goalposts, as they notoriously terminated longtime Iceland National goalkeeper Hannes Halldórsson (claiming he’d been fired on social media before retracting it instantly, handling the PR of it with no trace of professionalism) and bringing in Dutch Guy Smit from Leiknir after a great first season. His preseason appearances haven’t left pundits convinced of his quality of bringing the club to a new level, but one key to Valur’s potential successes domestically can be their absence from Europe – meaning they can focus completely on the league as opposed to fellow rivals KR.
Fram (est. 1908)
Top league since 2022
Home ground: Framvöllur Úlfarsdárdal (TBD)
Head coach: Jón Þórir Sveinsson
Key player – Fred (LW)
Last season: 1st in Inkassodeild, 58 points from 18 wins, 4 draws and 0 losses, 58:17 GD. Top goalscorer: Albert Hafsteinsson (19 matches, 9 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 18
Being a side that went on to thrash the second tier of Icelandic football – Inkassodeildin – Fram seemed to have a decent swagger to their side as they celebrated promotion to the top tier after an absence of 8 years. Being unbeaten after many unspectacular years and finally seeing their new sporting complex rising in Reykjavík’s newest suburban Úlfarsárdalur, hopes were high. It’s not detrimental to the club that their new headquarters after many years of being quasi-homeless are finally set to be ready in the newest Reykjavík suburb of Úlfarsárdalur. But while spirits and confidence is high, we need to ground ourselves in reality too. Fram has lost two defenders (Kyle McLagan and Haraldur Einar Ásgrímsson) that played a key role in their 2021 resurgence and haven’t been replaced properly. Hosine Bility from Midtjylland will play for Fram this season but this will be his baptism of fire as he’s not one to boast a glorious senior career. During the preseason competition Fram has failed to hit the ground running and show the other Besta Deild teams they mean business. Additions to their team haven’t been of the caliber expected but head coach Jón Sveinsson is adamant they can deliver results and keep their spot in the league. Not many are buying into that note of confidence however and predictions have them either finishing last or dead-last. As of now, the Fram faithful are hoping that Hörður Björgvin Magnússon might make an unexpected appearance in the team due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. A Fram legend, the CSKA Moscow player is expecting a child this summer, and some talks are rumored to be had between the two. Unlikely, but weirder things have happened?
Outsiders on the outskirts?
Three teams are located outside Reykjavík but in the greater Reykjavík area in the adjacent towns of Kópavogur, Garðabær and Hafnarfjörður. While no team from said areas boasted great football clubs at the turn of the century, all three (Breiðablik, Stjarnan and FH) did manage to break into the Icelandic hall of Fame, none more than FH, who last won the title in 2016 but have been in decline.
Breiðablik (est. 1950)
Top league since 2006
Home ground: Kópavogsvöllur (1340 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Óskar Hrafn Þorvaldsson
Key player – Kristinn Steindórsson (FW)
Last season: 2nd, 47 points from 15 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses, 55:21 GD. Top goalscorer: Árni Vilhjálmsson (21 matches, 11 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 1
There’s been a tangible hype about Breiðablik in the past couple of years as they’ve always been billed ready to mount a title challenge but somehow never fail to live up to their hype but could this be the year? Their bottle-job season of 2021 surely stings since they had the title in sight until round 21. The team in managed by the ideological Óskar Hrafn Þorvaldsson who likes to drill his teams into a high pressing attacking game, penetrating the midfield and playing from the back – which sometimes leaves them vulnerable at the back too (think Atalanta). Breiðablik’s domestic preseason was a bit of a bottle job but they managed to test themselves in the Atlantic Cup friendly tournament versus the likes of Brentford B, Midtjylland and FC Copenhagen where they definitely showed what they’re made of. Last season saw them reaching the farthest of Icelandic clubs in Europe (by their own merit) as they knocked out Austria Wien surprisingly and gave Aberdeen a run for their money too (but not without slagging them off immensely) and their players have now joined the prestigious Scott Brown hate club. Breiðablik have, however done really well to beef their squad up both in terms of depth and quality for the upcoming season, absolutely gearing their vehicle in revenge mode. Losing their top scorer namely, Kristinn Steindórsson seems to have taken his place and has been delivering despite not being a natural striker. As mentioned, being vulnerable at the back is a big achilles heel for Breiðablik and they’ve lost a decent amount of won matches in that fashion but they’ve been working towards that end so who knows, will they finally get their comeuppance and shut their (many) critics up?
Fimleikafélag Hafnarfjarðar (FH) (est. 1929)
Top league since 2001
Home ground: Kaplakriki (3000 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Ólafur Jóhannesson
Key player – Steven Lennon (FW)
Last season: 6th, 33 points from 9 wins, 6 draws and 7 losses, 39:26 GD. Top goalscorer: Steven Lennon (17 matches, 9 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 8
Hafnarfjörður did not have many footballing triumphs to celebrate as the 21st century dawned on Iceland but FH managed to become a major competitive force since celebrating their first win in 2004. Building up both prestige and facilities, FH boasts three indoor pitches (two training, one match fit) aside from one of the best home grounds in Iceland. Despite this major investment, their results have been lacking in the past years and putting a stop to their competitive limbo is expected by the Hafnarfjörður faithful. An architect to their success, captain-turned-assistant-turned-coach Heimir Guðjónsson was let go in 2017 and after being involved in all their 8 Premier division titles and FH haven’t found his replacement. Going back in time, they hired Ólafur Jóhannesson who initially masterminded their first ever title and while they won’t expect a title again, they can always dream. FH sold two young players in Jónatan Ingi Jónsson and Hörður Ingi Gunnarsson, but have been strengthening their squad decently in return, snatching up young full backs Ástbjörn Þórðarson and Haraldur Einar Ásgrímsson to replace Hörður Ingi at the back. Their most consistent player is the Scotsman Steven Lennon who’s made a great career in Iceland since initially joining Fram in 2011. Having scored 84 goals for FH, having his boots firing up front is an invaluable asset as he’s in his later stages of his career at 34 years of age.
Stjarnan (est. 1960)
Top league since 2009
Home ground: Samsungvöllurinn (990 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Agúst Gylfason
Key player – TBD
Last season: 7th, 22 points from 6 wins, 4 draws and 12 losses, 24:36 GD. Top goalscorer: Hilmar Árni Halldórsson (22 matches, 6 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 1
Stjarnan were never considered to be a title winning team until an absolutely epic season in 2014 culminated in an absolutely epic showdown versus FH in the last round of the season where Stjarnan celebrated their first ever title on enemy turf in Hafnarfjörður following absolute scenes as they were given a last minute penalty down to 10 men. Previously Stjarnan were known for their goal celebrations which were seen around the globe. Last season saw Stjarnan waiting to take off but they never really did find form and eventually slumped to an unspectacular 7th place finish. Backroom turmoil was prevalent at Stjarnan too last season but big hopes remain on the dust being settled with the appointment of Ágúst Gylfason. While not being one of the most successful Icelandic coaches in terms of title winning, he’s managed to make great competitive sides out of nothing, mostly and Stjarnan run in the preseason showed decent promise… until their absolute VIP suffered a season ending injury. For those following Icelandic football, Hilmar Árni Halldórsson became synonymous with Stjarnan since joining the club in 2016 and losing him is a huge blow. Their squad additions have been far from superstar level ones but they’re an exciting team in the sense they’ll utilize some home grown talent that’ll hopefully lead the charge for them in years to come – something that Ágúst Gylfason is an excellent architect in. Eggert Kári Guðmundsson, Ísak Andri Sigurgeirsson and Óli Valur Ómarsson – remember the names!
They’re a little bit country…
Looking at a map of the country, there’s been an overwhelming majority of clubs located around the capital area, so in a rather rate occasion, a third of the league is contested outside the Great Reykjavík area. However, any prediction for the league pegs them to be struggling to keep their place in the league, let alone make it into the top six. But can it happen?
Keflavík (est. 1929)
Top league since 2021
Home ground: Nettóvöllurinn (1160 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Sigurður Ragnar Eyjólfsson
Key player – Sindri Kristinn Ólafsson (GK)
Last season: 10th, 21 points from 6 wins, 3 draws and 13 losses, 23:38 GD. Top goalscorer: Joey Gibbs (21 matches, 10 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 4
Hailing from a mostly basketball-loving area there’s been a less emphasis on football for Keflavík in recent years and their big stories since the turn of the century come in 2008 where they fumbled the trophy unbelievably in the dying moments of the season and in 2018 when they were relegated with a record worst performance in the top tier, 4 points from 0 wins. With a slight help from covid and antipodean goal machine Joey Gibbs they returned to the top division and maintained their spot last season despite a rocky start. Joey Gibbs scored 10 goals for them last season and keeper Sindri Kristinn Ólafsson made a string of saves to beautify their xGa statistic, being linked with Oldham in the winter but opting to stay put. Keflavík have added Faroese striker Patrik Jóhannesson to their midst and he’s been showing good promise in the preseason. However, Keflavík have a thin squad and the added stress of five more matches could be a massive curse if injuries will prevail. Ástbjörn Þórðarson had a breakout season in 2021 and was signed by FH, and young talent Davíð Snær Jóhansson left for Lecce after being their great white hope for a few seasons, and replacements for them at the back and midfield are to be found.
Íþróttabandalag Vestmannaeyja (ÍBV) (est. 1945)
Top league since 2022
Home ground: Hásteinsvöllur (1000 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Hermann Hreiðarsson
Key player – Eiður Aron Sigurbjörnsson (FW)
Last season: 2nd in Inkassodeildin, 47 points from 15 wins, 2 draws and 5 losses, 43:22 GD. Top goalscorer: Sito (20 matches, 13 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 3
Local and Premier League legend Hermann Hreiðarsson is back with a vengeance to the Westman Islands as ÍBV return to Besta Deildin. Having led Þróttur Vogum to their first ever promotion to the second tier last season, the madman who bleeds for his club signs on for his second stint at ÍBV. His previous one saw a tangible excitement in 2013 when he convinced David James to play for the club (and was rumored to bring Benjani and Benni McCarthy too) but the season was rather unremarkable for ÍBV and they saw a steady decline until being relegated in 2019. Hermann has since gained experience coaching at Southend and Kerala Blasters and seems more mature. There’s no doubt that ÍBV has a squad decently fit for this league. Eiður Aron Sigurbjörnsson is one of the league’s most solid CBs and young pacey full back Felix Örn Friðriksson can surely have a breakout season. Despite only being 23 he’s one of the teams most experienced players. ÍBV opted to boost their attacking capabilities with bringing Esbjerg striker Andri Rúnar Bjarnason but he’s suffered a setback since joining in the form of long-term covid symptoms, and whether or not he’ll be fit remains a question. Being only one of few who’ve scored 19 goals in the top flight ÍBV hung high hopes on replicating that and while solid defense takes teams far in the league, a lack of attacking option might prove a big hindrance.
Íþróttabandalag Akraness (ÍA) (est. 1946)
Top league since 2015
Home ground: Norðurálsvöllurinn (1050 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Jón Þór Hauksson
Key player – Kaj Leo í Bartalsstovu (LW/RW)
Last season: 9th, 58 points from 6 wins, 3 draws and 13 losses, 29:44 GD. Top goalscorer: Gísli Laxdal Unnarsson & Steinar Þorsteinsson (22 and 20 matches, both 4 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 18
The second sleeping giant of domestic football is ÍA. Hailing from the home of football in Iceland, Akranes, there are always major demands for the side to be triumphant and with a loyal backing from their ever faithful supporters the players are always raring to go despite the lack of results in last years. ÍA was destined to go down in glorious flames last season, being dead last for most of the season but somehow managed to light the flame underneath their collective asses and pull off one of the greatest escapes in modern football, culminating in a 3-2 win in Keflavík where they were down 2-0 after 65 minutes. Furthermore, they tried to end the season on a high as they played the Cup final versus Víkingur but it proved too big of a challenge. Destined not to have this happening again, ÍA has bolstered their squad with three players hailing from Valur – full back Johannes Vall, midfielder Christian Köhler and winger Kaj Leo í Bartalsstovu, who absolutely needs to help ÍA score goals. The Faroese is well suited being a big fish in a small pond as he has done with ÍBV before and despite not being a key player for Valur, he still was a quality squad player when he got going. ÍA also puts great emphasis on their youth and as a selling club, we’ll see lot of locals feature for them with more experience from last season, but whether or not they’ll apply themselves properly remains to be seen.
Knattspyrnufélag Akureyrar (KA) (est. 1928)
Top league since 2017
Home ground: Greifavöllurinn (715 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Arnar Grétarsson
Key player – Hallgrímur Mar Steingrímsson (LW)
Last season: 4th, 58 points from 12 wins, 4 draws and 6 losses, 36:20 GD. Top goalscorer: Hallgrímur Mar Steingrímsson (22 matches, 11 goals)
No. of Premier Division titles: 1
Only one team in Iceland can be called a long-distance journey for most teams, Northern Iceland’s KA. An ambitious club, KA just narrowly missed out on top three to KR in the dying moments of last season but season-by-season the team is making progress towards this goal of being a top contender, especially under head coach Arnar Grétarsson. The long distance angle has played a significant part in their strong home form over the last few seasons but due to harsh winter leading up to the 2021 season their pitch wasn’t ready when the season kicked off and they had to play their first few home matches at Dalvík, the adjacent municipality – so the aforementioned home advantage wasn’t replicated. This enraged the KA board that went into heated arguments about the Akureyri local government indifference about their dedication to providing top sporting facilities in the municipality and with the issue being unresolved, KA will need to play few of their early matches at Dalvík again. The team has managed to remain mostly similar in strength with departures and arrivals but will feel the absence of CB Dusan Brkovic in the first three matches due to suspensions. KA are lucky to have one of the league’s consistently best creative wingers in Hallgrímur Mar Steingrímsson and striker Elfar Árni Aðalsteinsson is fit again after injuries last season, and them two combined with right winger Ásgeir Sigurgeirsson is a lethal one. KA’s big question mark is the 2021 cinderella story of keeper Steinþór Auðunsson. Affectionately called Stubbur (e. Shorty) due to his prime Neville Southall-esque physique he had a baptism of fire as KA’s first choice keeper after many lower league stints and was praised by football fans in Iceland for his goalkeeping abilities. Can he do it again?
The 11 champions – and Leiknir
The inaugural season of Besta Deildin will feature every team that has lifted the domestic trophy – and Leiknir, who are heading into their third season of top flight football in Iceland. Defying all expectations to finish in a relatively safe position 2021 – 8th – they’re confident of doing better this time around. Last season top scorer Sævar Atli Magnússon became their first ever internationally transferred player as he left for Lyngby mid-season 2021, and the U21 international still remained their top scorer, despite missing out on the final quarter of the season – 10 goals from 13 appearances by their starlet. Following his departure, Leiknir were left with the task of surviving without their star player and they only managed 4 points from the remaining seven matches without him.
Leiknir (est. 1973)
Top league since 2021
Home ground: Domusnova-völlurinn (1215 in seated capacity)
Head coach: Sigurður Heiðar Höskuldsson
Key player – Mikkel Dahl (ST)
Last season: 8th, 6 points from 6 wins, 4 draws and 12 losses, 18:32 GD. Top goalscorer: Sævar Atli Magnússon (13 matches, 10 goals)
Best finish in a top division: 8th, 2021
To avoid second season syndrome Leiknir knew they had to dip into the transfer market. That is precisely what they have done; taking precedent from literally every other club in Iceland as two Danes arrived. Mikkel Dahl and Mikkel Jakobsen put pen to paper, arriving from HB and NSÍ in the Faroe Islands respectively. Leiknir hold high hopes that Mikkel Dahl can keep up his absolutely bonkers goalscoring form he displayed for HB – 41 goals in 37 appearances and Leiknir surely hopes to see somewhat replicated – not hope but they need it! His appearances in the preseason cups in Iceland and friendlies have shown some promise. His namesake Jakobsen is only 22 and was one of NSÍ better players last season, with 5 goals and 10 assists from 26 appearances in an otherwise disappointing season for the club. With 5 U16 appearances for Denmark it remains to be seen whether moving to Iceland is a stepping stone for the former Midtjylland academy player. Speaking of international prowess, Leiknir also brought in former Poland international Maciej Makuszewski. Having been in contention for Poland’s World Cup squad in 2018 and featured five times for his national side he’d been without a club since last summer. Leiknir expects Makuszewski to be instrumental in their attacking build up. For a nation with a relatively big Polish diaspora – around 20.000 people live in Iceland that were born in Poland – footballers from Poland have not been high profile in Iceland, so the signing of Makuszewski might prove interest boosting for the Polish community. But why is that significant, you ask? Leiknir comes from the suburban Efra-Breiðholt where a large number of inhabitants are Polish or of Polish descent. While there is tangible excitement for the Leiknir side to show what they’re made of there are some questions that remain unanswered, and namely their goalkeeping has been the subject of many questions as 20 year old Viktor Freyr Sigurðsson will be trusted after Guy Smit departed for Valur. While Leiknir have been seriously potent up front in the warmup to the season, they’ve been leaking in goals – so no doubt they’ll be a BTTS punters dream!
First round
18th April – Víkingur vs. FH – 20:15 GMT
19th April – Valur vs. ÍBV – 19:00 GMT
19th April – Stjarnan vs. ÍA – 20:15 GMT
19th April – Breiðablik vs. Keflavík – 20:45 GMT
20th April – KA vs. Leiknir – 19:00 GMT
20th April – Fram vs. KR – 20:15 GMT
An exciting first round will commence at Víkin where the reigning champions take on FH. It’s hard to see anything less than a home win here. Above I did mention that Víkingur lost in the League Cup to FH but Víkingur were missing a decent chunk of players for that one and with them back – namely goalkeeper Ingvar Jónsson – there’s ample reason to see their best squad back in action, with the absence of Pablo Punyed sent off in the Super Cup versus Breiðablik. Stjarnan and ÍA might prove to be a very exciting match where both sides have something to prove from the get-go. They faced off twice in the preseason where Stjarnan ran out 6-0 and 3-0 winners – marking the only two competitive preaseason matches where ÍA didn’t score. Stjarnan found a great form for early goals and both sides have seen an early goal in all their warmup matches. Breiðablik should be ready for Keflavík to visit them, and can hope for a repeat of their first preseason match where Keflavík visited and the match finished 5-2. Keflavík were a bogeyman for Breiðablik on the road last season but had little problems landing wins against them at home. There’s nothing like making your mark early and Breiðablik has been in hot form for goals and scored in all but their Super Cup loss versus Víkingur – a defeat that has definitely not helped the Breiðablik players’ eardrums!
TeamCBK bets for the first round
Víkingur vs. FH – Víkingur -0.5 Asian Handicap – 2.04 @ William Hill
Stjarnan vs. ÍA – Over 0.5 first half goals, over 2.5 match goals and both teams to score – 1.86 @ Bet365
Breiðablik vs. Keflavík – Breiðablik half time/full time & over 2.5 goals – 1.95 @ Bet365
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