Icelandic Champions Vikingur Reykjavik Face First Defeat Before Hosting Hapoel Be'er Sheva in Champions League

Vikingur Reykjavik, the reigning Icelandic champions and upcoming opponents of Hapoel Be'er Sheva in the second qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League, suffered their first league defeat of the season on July 18, 2026. The loss was a 2-1 home defeat against bottom-placed Thor Akureyri, ending Vikingur's 13-match winning streak following an opening day draw in April. This defeat also broke their 21-game unbeaten run stretching back to last August, during which they scored 66 goals and conceded 16.

Coach Solvi Ottsen fielded a largely rotated squad with seven changes to rest key players ahead of the Champions League clash. Vikingur conceded two late goals in the 83rd and 89th minutes, with substitute Dadi Berg Jonsson scoring a consolation goal in the 90th minute. This marked Jonsson's first game in over a year after recovering from a serious injury.

Despite the setback, Vikingur remains comfortably atop the Icelandic league table with a seven-point lead over Fram after 15 rounds. The team recently caused an upset by eliminating Hungarian champions Győr in the first qualifying round of the Champions League, winning 1-0 at home and drawing 2-2 away.

After the loss, Ottsen expressed disappointment, citing technical mistakes and a lack of sharpness. He acknowledged the impact of squad rotation but took full responsibility for the defeat. Ottsen emphasized the challenges of balancing European fixtures with domestic competition and the need for mental resilience to manage emotional transitions between matches.

Vikingur has rescheduled their next league game against Kaplavik to Friday evening and will travel to Hungary for the second leg against Hapoel Be'er Sheva on Tuesday, July 27, at the Haladás Stadium in Szombathely, near the Austrian border. Meanwhile, Hapoel Be'er Sheva has already arrived in Iceland and is preparing for the match at Vikingur's home ground, Vikingsvollur Stadium in Reykjavik, which has a synthetic pitch and a capacity of 2,000 spectators. The Israeli champions flew in on a charter plane accompanied by several dozen fans, with hundreds more expected to attend the return leg in Hungary next week.