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Football

Soccer On Iceland's Volcanic Island Of Heimaey

It's easy to see why David James was sold on the idea of coming to finish his career on this picturesque island.

This article originally appeared on VICE Sports.

This article was originally published by The Football Pink. You can purchase their latest issue in print or digitally via their website.

There are not too many stadiums in the world that hold the same appeal as Hasteinsvollur, which is literally in a volcano. The former Liverpool and England international David James knows—he found himself in goal there for a season after Hermann Hreidarsson persuaded the Englishman to come and play in the Icelandic Premier Division.

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Scenery of Heimaey. All photos by Marc Boal.

The Vestmannaeyjar archipelago is made up of 15 islands in the southern Icelandic volcanic system, which consists of between 70 and 80 volcanoes both above and below the sea. Heimaey is the only inhabited island and is home to the tongue-twisting IBV Vestmannaeyjar. The town's population is just over 4,000.

The island came to international attention in 1973 with the eruption of the Eldfell volcano, which destroyed many houses and forced the evacuation of the entire population. Only a few firemen remained, battling to save the harbour by re-directing the lava flow.

The club have been in existence since 1903, originally calling themselves KV before adopting the name IBV (Ithrottabandalag Vestmannaeyjar). They have won the Icelandic title on three occasions – 1979, 1997 and 1998 – and the Icelandic Cup four times, the last success coming in 1998 during the club's glory days.

IBV, in the blue shirts, during a game

The women's and men's teams suffered double heart break in 2016 as both reached their respective cup finals, which were played within 24 hours of each other. The women went down 3-1 to a strong Breidablik team, while the men's side suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Valur at the national stadium in Reykjavik. That game was played in front of a crowd of 3,511, with many fans travelling from Heimaey hoping to see the team lift their first piece of silverware in 18 years. It was a long, disappointed journey back home for the islanders.

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There is a large foreign contingent representing the team, with players from as far afield as El Salvador and Kosovo making up the squad; understandably, it's very difficult for the club to develop homegrown talent due to the island having such a small population. Nevertheless, IBV have produced some of the biggest names in Icelandic football, including the likes of Asgeir Sigurvinsson – who played with VfB Stuttgart in Germany – and Gudmundur Torfason, who had a decent career in Scotland.

Icelandic football's all-time leading scorer, Tryggvi Gudmundsson, started his career at IBV and returned twice to play for his hometown club. Hermann Hreidarsson picked up the FA Cup with Portsmouth, and has also been part of the excellent youth system on the island. Current Iceland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson played and managed at IBV and was the island's dentist before taking on the national team job full-time. He still helps out at his local dental surgery and, incidentally, had to put his dental expertise into practice last season when he was watching a women's match between IBV and Fylkir – one of the players had to receive treatment after a challenge left her with a cracked tooth.

IBV Vestmannaeyjar home base

How can this small and remote island produce so many great players? I don't know the answer, but maybe it's because there isn't much to do around town, meaning the youngsters just play football all day.

These days the club has plenty of qualified coaches and training is well structured. IBV now have excellent indoor facilities; all the names mentioned above are from a generation who just had the school to train in during the harsh winter storms that lay siege to the island.

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The club's form has been very erratic over the past few seasons, going on unbeaten runs but then struggling to get any points on the board at all. With the top four or five teams having relatively large budgets to spend on players, IBV may have to play second fiddle for a few years yet. Their aim should be to target a Europa League berth, which would bring in extra revenue for the club. Indeed, they are no strangers to the European scene, having played 44 games in all competitions, winning on seven occasions and drawing nine times.

The appetite for football in the community is plain to see in the summer months as the youngsters train on the pitches outside the stadium. The players from the first-team squad will usually take the kids' sessions, as many of them have a UEFA B coaching licence.

On match days the whole community pulls together to help with stewarding and selling refreshments. It really feels a million miles away from the glitz and glamour of the English Premier League or Europe's other top competitions. The town is a bustling little fishing hub as well as a major tourist destination these days, with people coming from all over the world to visit this magical little island and see what it has to offer.

Scenery of Heimaey

The stadium is built into a huge valley with massive columns of lava formations that dominate two sides of the ground. At this outpost, what you get is honest football with breathtaking scenery at one of the most enchanting grounds in the world. It's easy to see why David James was sold on the idea of coming to finish his career on this picturesque island.

@MarcBoal for  @TheFootballPink

You can find more of Marc's Icelandic football adventures  on Facebook.