AFC Eskilstuna

Did You Know?

• The club moved about 110 kilometers west of Stockholm from Solna to Eskilstuna before the 2017 season.
• Under Michael Jolley, the team took 15 points from 16 games after starting the 2017 Allsvenskan season with only 4 points from 12 matches.

Background

AFC United was founded when FC Väsby United increased their cooperation with Division 3 club Athletic FC in late 2012. Athletic FC, founded in 2007, played in Swedish football Division 3 Norra Svealand (the fifth tier) in 2012 and was affiliated to Stockholms Fotbollförbund. AFC United played home matches at Skytteholms IP in Solna until the end of the 2016 season. During the 2016 season, the club management decided to uproot and leave Solna, moving to Eskilstuna and Tunavallen before the 2017 season, and changed their name to AFC Eskilstuna.

The team were winless, having only acquired 4 points from the opening 12 matches and were firmly rooted to the bottom of the league table. Michael Jolley was announced as new manager on 13 June 2017. Under Jolley's coaching they took 15 points from the next 16 games. A 3–1 victory over Malmö FF on 19 August 2017 in particular provided the biggest shock of the season in Allsvenskan.

However, they were eventually relegated to Superettan on 23 October 2017 following a spirited fight when Jönköpings Södra IF defeated Kalmar FF 2–0, meaning AFC Eskilstuna could no longer reach the qualifying position. Jolley departed ways with AFC Eskilstuna on 9 January 2018 by mutual consent, after being unable to agree on the future direction of the club. On 15 January 2018, Nemanja Miljanović became the manager, after their relegation to the Superettan.

AFC Eskilstuna Academy was founded in 2017 and aims to develop young football talents from Eskilstuna and the surrounding regions. The academy is certified by Swedish Elite Football (Svensk Elitfotboll) with one star, indicating that it meets high standards in player development, coaching, and organizational structure. Under the leadership of acting academy director Faisal Hassan, player development is conducted in close collaboration with the club’s first team.

Home matches for the academy teams are mainly played at Skogsängens IP. The academy has also achieved international success in the Gothia Cup, winning in the following years: 2022: Victory in the B17 category after defeating Dalkurd FF 1–0 in the final. 2024: Victory in the P17 category after defeating Swindon Town FITC 2–0 in the final at Ullevi. These achievements shows the academy’s success in their academy's staff for developing the youth players.