Aalesund under the leadership of Kjetil Rekdal, who has his own battle with cancer, is ready for the Eliteserien, while Bryne is relegated to the OBOS League together with Strømsgodset and Haugesund.
Aalesund, who ended up in 4th place in the OBOS-Liga, first won the qualifying round internally in the league and then won over Bryne who were third last. Lillestrøm and Start are both back on direct promotion.
Read: Mainly Norwegian Leo Dorsin, son of Mikael Dorsin packs his bags
On December 11th, Bryne had an impossible task, they had to make up for 0 – 4 results from the first qualifying round, it was not enough with a 0 – 1 win at Colorline Arena. The fact that Bryne went out in qualification meant that head coach Kevin Knappen got a few extra weeks in the job, but when it finally became clear that it will be the OBOS-League next season, it was fired.
Bryne coach finished after relegation season
Kevin Knappen has had to end his time as Bryne coach, even though he actually had a contract for one more year.
The club confirmed the decision on Tuesday morning. Knappen coached Bryne from the 2022 season and led the club to promotion to the Eliteserien in the autumn of 2024. However, the team failed to keep their place in 2025. Bryne avoided direct relegation, but eventually had to leave the top division after a clear loss to Kjetil Rekdal and Aalesund in the qualifiers.
– We have made an overall assessment of what is best for both the club and Kevin going forward, and have agreed to end the collaboration now, says general manager Hans-Øyvind Sagen in Bryne.
Relegation was not the only challenge Knappen faced this season. Several media reported unrest in the squad over the coach’s methods around the middle of the season.
Read: Mason Greenwood is unstoppable!
The conflict ended with Knappen retaining the position and receiving full support from the club, while some of the players left the club during the summer transfer window.
