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One of the biggest upsets in Champions League history saw Norwegian side Bodo/Glimt reach the Round of 16 in the 2025/26 campaign, toppling 2025 finalists Inter Milan in the process by an astounding 5-2 aggregate scoreline.
The Norwegian club emerged victorious from both legs in their knockout playoff matchup against the Italian giants, with Jens Petter Hauge scoring twice across the two games.
Fans may not be familiar with the interestingly-named club, as they are set to contest their first-ever Champions League Round of 16 matchup, never before having reached the knockout stage prior to this season. They are a rising force in European football, having reached the semifinals of the Europa League last campaign before falling to Premier League side Tottenham.
The Sporting News brings you all you need to know about the Norwegian club, including where their name comes from, where they are from, and how their squad compares to others around Europe.
MORE: All possible opponents for Champions League Round of 16 and beyond
How did Bodo/Glimt get its name?
Bodo/Glimt were founded in 1916, originally named FK Glimt. The word "glimt" translates as "flash", "gleam" or "spark" in Norwegian.
The club progressed for its first few decades of existence with this name before a change in 1948. As the club grew, they became confused with an older club from another city, Trondelag, who were also called Glimt. So, the club added the city Bodo to the name, making it FK Bodo-Glimt.
In the 1980's, the club changed the hyphen to a slash to avoid confusion with newspapers, which routinely printed fixtures using a slash between the participating clubs.
Yet to this day, both the club and fans prefer to be referred to as simply "Glimt," as evident by the club's official website URL which is, simply www.glimt.no.
Where is Bodo/Glimt from?
Bodo/Glimt are from the city of Bodo in Norway, which is located on the Bodo peninsula between the Vestfjorden and the Saltfjorden. Bodo is located just north of the Arctic Circle
The club's ground is Aspmyra Stadium, and is sometimes referred to by its nickname "Hell of Ice" due to its northern location. It seats around 8,300 spectators, and has been the home of Bodo/Glimt since it opened in 1966.
They play in the Norwegian top flight, the Eliteserien. Incredibly, Bodo/Glimt have been contesting their Champions League knockout matches during their offseason, as the Eliteserien plays on a calendar year schedule, with the 2026 season not kicking off until mid-March and running until November.
They have won four league titles, all coming since 2020.
What is the Bodo/Glimt squad worth?
According to Transfermarkt, the combined market value of the Bodo/Glimt squad in the 2025/26 season is around €60 million.
Compare that with their two potential Round of 16 opponents, Sporting CP or Manchester City. Sporting boast a squad valued at €464m by Transfermarkt, while City have the most valuable dressing room on the planet with an estimated €1.29 billion worth of playing talent.
The club's two most valuable players are 25-year-old forward Kasper Hogh and 22-year-old full-back Frederik Sjovold, who both sport an estimated transfer value of €8m, followed closely by the €7m valuation of captain Patrick Berg.
Like many of Norway's top clubs in recent years, the club has built its reputation on developing Nordic talent and exporting it abroad. In the past four seasons, they have broken their outgoing record transfer sale five times, most recently being the €15m they earned for sending playmaker Albert Gronbaek to French side Stade Rennes.
A perfect encapsulation of their transfer strategy is their record purchase, also being Gronbaek two years prior, as they snatched him up from Danish club Aarhus GF for just under €5m.
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