Manchester City didn’t merely lose a UEFA Champions League game on Tuesday — they ran headfirst into Bodø/Glimt and froze.
In one of the biggest upsets the competition has ever seen, the Norwegian champions beat Pep Guardiola’s star-studded side 3–1 in Bodø, sealing their first-ever Champions League win and doing it in front of just 8,000 fans north of the Arctic Circle.
But who exactly are Bodø/Glimt?
A Club From the Edge of the Football Map
Bodø/Glimt come from a fishing town of around 50,000 people, located above the Arctic Circle in northern Norway. Their home ground, Aspmyra Stadium, sits a short walk from the airport and holds fewer people than most City season-ticket waiting lists.
This is the furthest north the Champions League has ever traveled
and it showed.
A Plastic Pitch and Polar Conditions
Aspmyra’s artificial pitch is notorious. The ball skids, bounces and moves differently, and visiting teams hate it. UEFA allows it, but that doesn’t make it any easier — especially when combined with cold winds and limited daylight.
During winter, Bodø gets less than an hour of sunlight a day. Players even take vitamin supplements to cope.
Built on Belief, Not Budget
While City have spent hundreds of millions assembling their squad, Bodø/Glimt have built something smarter. They’ve won four of the last six Norwegian league titles, starting with their first-ever championship in 2020. Last season, they reached the Europa League semifinals.
Bold recruitment, fearless attacking football (and a secret weapon) have fueled their rise.
The Fighter Pilot Mindset
Bodø/Glimt hired Bjørn Mannsverk, a former fighter pilot, as a mental coach. His job? Teach players how to stay calm under pressure — the same techniques used before combat missions. Against City, it showed.
They pressed, countered, and played without fear.
A Night That Changed Everything
City went 3–0 down, lost Rodri to a red card, and were cut open again and again. Two Bodø/Glimt goals were ruled out, another hit the bar — and it still ended 3–1.
From the Arctic Circle to the Champions League headlines, this is a club that refuses to “know its place”, and football is better for it.
