With the UEFA Euro football tournament kicking off next week, and with our very own Zara Larsson fronting the official theme song, we’re casting our eyes (and ears) back to some of our favourite instances where Scandipopstars have been tasked with providing football anthems.
When commissioning an artist to produce a football theme, there aren’t many countries who would put forward their national equivalent of Shirley Clamp or Lili & Susie. But predictably, Sweden did. And the results were far more fabulous than anything associated with sport ever had any right to be.
Here are six of the best soccer songs that the Scandi lands have ever given us;
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Shirley Clamp – Champions
(2004 Olympics)
HOT off the back of her new-found notoriety as a Melodifestivalen runner-up, Lady Clamp contributed the official song to accompany the Swedish women’s football team at the 2004 Olympic Games. Legendary schlager composers Bobby Ljunggren, Henrik Wikström and Ingela “Pling” Forsman came up with a camp-as-tits, balls-out banger that may well be the most ludicrous thing that Shirl’ has ever come out with. And that’s saying something.
Eric Saade – Winning Ground
(2013 UEFA Women’s Euro tournament)
He didn’t just record the official song for a team, but for the entire tournament. And the accompanying music video saw Saade head out onto the football pitch himself.
Adelén – Ole
(2014 FIFA World Cup)
The summer after her debut single ‘Bombo’ had become a hit in a few territories, Adelén was flown over to Rio ahead of that year’s World Cup, to film the video for her single from the tournament’s album. And it wasn’t just the vid that got the authentic Brazilian treatment – the song itself is sambasational meets scandisational. Drums, whistles, and a classic pop chorus sample being turned into a football chant.
Pandora – Kom Igen
(2012 UEFA Euro tournament)
Pandora hooked up with one of Sweden’s most prolific dance producers, Niclas Kings, to release this song – an unofficial accompaniment to the Swedish football’s participation in the 2012 Euros. The bpm is high, and the chanting is loud, and no cliche is left unused. But above all, the melody is strong enough for it to have unwittingly turned itself into a sports theme classic.
Lili & Susie – Kom Och Ta Oss
(2010 AIK album)
A defiant come-and-have-a-go-if-you-think-you’re-hard-enough lyric is thrown out there by two Swedish sisters who made it big in the eighties, and were both approaching their fifties when this song came out. Joined by what we assume is some of the AIK football team, their presence only succeeds in making the song sound even more camp and…..well….gay!….
David Guetta feat. Zara Larsson – This One’s For You
(2016 UEFA Euro tournament)
The official theme for this year’s UEFA Euro tournament, this David Guetta produced tribal belter is an uplifting slice of classic and infectious team-player pop. It deserves to be HUGE all over Europe this summer. And it’s already getting off to a good start, with 16 million plays on Spotify and 8 million streams on YouTube.
