MATCH DAY PROGRAMMES
Programmes, or team-sheets as they were mostly back then, were introduced in Norway around WW 1, with the Norwegian FA producing newspaper style programmes for internationals and cupfinals. At club level programmes were issued only on irregular occasions.
EIK produced a single page teamsheet for their first game after the club’s formation in 1919, but after a few more teamsheets throughout the early 1920s, the programme only made a return on a regular basis in 1969. The programme for the ground's re-opening in 1947 being a rare exception.
Even then, the 8-page programme only included a line-up on the front cover and recent results on the back-page. The rest of the programme was made up entirely by small advertisements. The EIK-programme improved considerably from 1976 onwards, with the introduction of a few photos in each issue, and reached a good level by Norwegian standards in the early 80s, when crowds of around the 1000-mark were common.
Later, as crowds declined following relegation, the standard of the programme also declined, with only a single sheet being inserted into a pre printed season programme. However, the standard started to improve again around 2000, and over the next seasons we issued a programme second to none at our level, with the 48-page special souvenir programme produced for the friendly against Birmingham City in July 2005 being amongst the most comprehensive Norwegian club programmes ever produced.
In 2006, our 32 page programme was voted Norway’s 3rd best clubprogramme, and after a few years with programmes of only 8-12 pages, our 20 page square format programme for the 2012-season proved very popular.
However, after a few seasons where the programme cost Nkr 30, we realised the programme didn't sell well enough to justify the effort, so by 2016 we were back to an 8-page programme which was handed out freely to all paying spectators.
Over the next seasons, our programmes varied in size and content, but to commemorate our centenary in 2019, we produced a 16 page full colour programme with a lot of historical content.
When Covid 19 struck in 2020, we were forced into making our programmes digital only. While this is not collecors cup of tea, the level of readership have increased more than 400%, so we decided to continue with digital issues even after the pandemic.
We have a dedicated programme team, eager to continue making our programme an important part of your match day experience.
