Kai Lindseth first became a Crystal Palace supporter in the 1970s after finding a football card featuring Dave Swindlehurst in Palace’s red and blue sash. While Liverpool and Manchester United dominated conversations at school, Lindseth had to wait around a decade before meeting another Palace fan.
That meeting helped lay the foundations for Crystal Palace Norway, where Lindseth is now a board member. The supporters’ club has grown to almost 130 members, many of whom regularly travel to London to watch the Eagles.
Its magazine, Ørneblikket, meaning The Eagle Eye, has been published since 1991. The publication became an essential source of Palace information for Norwegian supporters before the internet made international football coverage more accessible. Line-ups, results, photographs and player information were gathered from sources including the Croydon Advertiser and matchday programmes, then translated and shared with readers.
The fanzine also served as a way for supporters across Scandinavia to find one another. Members’ details helped Palace fans discover others living nearby, while later editions developed a broader focus involving personal match-trip accounts, fan culture, non-league football and individual perspectives connected to the club.
Around 20 Norwegian supporters travelled to Croydon and Wembley on 17 May, where they witnessed a landmark Palace occasion. Lindseth remembers standing behind the goal for the penalty save and being overcome with emotion at the final whistle. With Palace now preparing to play Fredrikstad in Norway in their first real European game, he says the visit is a moment that supporters could previously only imagine. Crystal Palace Norway can be followed on Instagram, X and Facebook via @cpfcnorway.
