Luleå Hockey
Since its founding in 1977, Luleå Hockey has cemented itself as a factor to be reckoned with in Swedish hockey. The men's team is one of the three teams that have played the longest in the SHL (the Swedish Men’s Hockey League) without ever dropping off to the lower divisions, and in 1996 they won the division for the first time. On the women's side, the association has won a total of five golds, which is the most of all teams in the SDHL (Swedish Women’s Hockey League).
Thanks to its sporting successes, loyal supporters and sponsors, the association was able to invest in a state-of-the-art sound and lighting system for the 2018 season. This has given completely new conditions for creating magical arena experiences.
Since the fall of the 21/22, Samuraj has been given the honour by Luleå Hockey to enhance the club's arena experience through, among other things, game intros for the association's men's and women's teams. As heartfelt Luleå Hockey supporters it was an important mission for us, to say the least.
Our collaboration began with achieving deeper understanding. Even though many of us were already hardcore fans, we wanted to know even more about Luleå Hockey's history, culture and values, and ensure that we got all the nuances of the organisation right. Partly from those who work daily within Luleå Hockey, but also from those outside of the organisation itself who support the team game after game, year after year, both live in the arena and on various digital platforms.
The goal: Sweden's best hockey arena intro
We set the direction early on, as we knew we had the conditions, both technically and in our own ability, to position ourselves as number one in the country. It turned out not only to be our own benchmark, but something that has been a part of Luleå Hockey since the 90s.
At that time, Swedish hockey took a lot of inspiration from the NHL, and several clubs changed both their names and logos to match the North American, more commercial, style. For Luleå Hockey, the path was somewhat different, and they instead put their resources into the arena experience. It is what we know today as the “bear’s jaw”, a great big head of a bear dropping down from the roof which the players then skate onto the ice from, and which created big headlines around Sweden as it was unveiled for the first time.
In the ranks of the dedicated Luleå fans, the North American style of a hockey team has never been an ideal. Here, hockey is instead rooted in nonprofit organisation ideals, community, local connection and history. For Lulefans, the heart lies with a fighting spirit and deep pride for Luleå, and a clenched fist in the pocket for all the times that the northern Swedish region has been casually disregarded in any number of contexts by the big city people of the south.
We wanted our game intro to be able to provide something for everyone. Those who cherish history and tradition, young and old, and first-time visitors who have come for a show. But it must always have a deep core of Luleå Hockey and Norrbotten, and evoke all the positive feelings, memories and values that exist around the organisation. A balance between nostalgia and the present, of hardcore fans and open arms for the fans who just bought their first team jersey, of fighting spirit and good ideals, and more. In short: It must be just right, and impressive and powerful to boot.
Vårat Gäng – Our Gang
According to history, the term Vårat Gäng (meaning Our Gang) comes from the initial formation of Luleå Hockey when the teams IFK Luleå and Luleå Sportklubb merged. The teams had long held a grudge against each other and it is said that their respective sympathizers stayed on opposite sides of the main street in Luleå to keep the distance and avoid disturbing the peace too much. Upon formation, Vårat Gäng became the term that bridged the gap and erased the us versus them feeling within the city.
The hammer blow
Luleå has always been a working town with steel men and steel women both on and off the ice. The steel industry is deeply ingrained within the history and identity of the city, with many well known businesses and related events inseparable from the city itself. The hammer blows projected onto the ice pay homage to all of this and symbolises hard work and power. By the way, do you recognize the song in the intro? It's very much Hammerrfall’s famous anthem, Templars of Steel...
The municipal coat of arms
The crossed keys are Luleå's municipal coat of arms and can be seen adorning both sweaters and scarves in the H stand of the arena. Together with "NORRBOTTEN", it conveys both city and county.
The old harbour crane
The city of Luleå bears many classic building symbols. Bergnäs Bridge, Norrbottensteatern's grid, the BAD sign and the always debatable rust ball. We chose to end the intro with a silhouette of the most iconic – the harbour crane at the old Southern harbour.
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