Molde FK

Molde Fotballklubb is a football club from Molde, Norway, that currently plays in the Tippeligaen, the Norwegian top division. Founded on 19 June 1911, Molde was originally known as International. Molde are three-time league champions (2011, 2012, 2014) and four-time Norwegian Cup winners (1994, 2005, 2013, 2014), and have finished 2nd in the league a further seven times. Molde is one of only two Norwegian clubs to have participated in the UEFA Champions League.

Its home matches are played at Aker Stadion, which has a maximum capacity of 11,800. The stadium was inaugurated in 1998, and was a gift from the local businessmen Kjell Inge Røkke and Bjørn Rune Gjelsten. The club was formerly based at Molde stadion, which hosted the club's record attendance of 14,615. Molde's supporter club is called Tornekrattet ("Thorn bush", a reference to the city's nickname "The Town of Roses") and were started after the 1994 Cup Final victory.

Until the beginning of the 1970s, the club mainly played in local lower division leagues, except for a short visit in the Hovedserien in the 1957–58 season. In 1974 Molde was back in the top division and finished second in the league, and have since then become one of Norway's leading clubs and generally stayed in the top division. Molde also finished second in the league in 1987, when the club lost the championship to Moss in the decisive match of the season.

Reserve teams in Norwegian football

Reserve teams in Norwegian association football play in the ordinary league system. They are always attached to their first teams with a "2" suffix, must play in a lower league than the first team, and cannot play in the Premier League or First Division. Furthermore, if a club's first team plays in the First Division, the reserves team cannot play in the Second Division either.

Controversy

Reserve teams have in general been criticized for fielding uneven teams from week to week, with many first-team players one week and more youth players the next. They have also been criticized for keeping smaller clubs out of the Second Division, meaning a more centralized football culture. In 2009 manager Ivar Morten Normark proposed to throw the reserve teams out of the ordinary league pyramid, and other managers like Dag Eilev Fagermo agreed. In a survey, 19 of 31 responding Second Division clubs wanted the reserve teams out, as did 30 of the 49 responding Third Division clubs.

Molde

Molde (Norwegian pronunciation: [ˈmɔlˈdɛ]  ( listen)) is a city and municipality in Romsdal in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The municipality is located on the Romsdal Peninsula, surrounding the Fannefjord and Moldefjord. The city is located on the northern shore of the Romsdalsfjord.

The city of Molde is the administrative center of Møre og Romsdal county, the administrative center of Municipality of Molde, the commercial hub of the Romsdal region, and the seat of the Diocese of Møre. Other main population centers in the municipality include Hjelset, Kleive, and Nesjestranda.

Molde has a maritime, temperate climate, with cool-to-warm summers, and relatively mild winters. The city is nicknamed The Town of Roses.

It is an old settlement which emerged as a trading post in the late Middle Ages. Formal trading rights were introduced in 1614, and the city was incorporated through a royal charter in 1742. Molde was established as a municipality on 1 January 1838 (see formannskapsdistrikt)

Molde (river)

The Molde River (Norwegian: Moldeelva) runs through Moldemarka and through the city of Molde in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. Its origins are found at Lake Molde (Norwegian: Moldevatnet). It follows the Molde Valley (Norwegian: Moldedalen) on its way to the Molde Fjord (Norwegian: Moldefjord). The approximately 5-kilometre (3.1 mi) river is crossed by several bridges.

Although the river is minor and seasonal, there were several sawmills along its course in the 17th and 18th centuries. This gave rise to the city itself through a combination of a good harbour, proximity to the sea routes, vast timber resources, and a river capable of supporting mills.

In 1909, the river also housed the first hydroelectric power plant capable of providing sufficient electricity to the city. Much of the drinking water for the city comes from the upper part of the river. During the reconstruction after the fire of 1916, the lower part of the river and the estuary is controlled by a dam, built just north of the city, which also serves as a reservoir and water supply reserve.