Tom Lund

Tom Arne Lund (10 September 1950 – 23 May 2026) was a Norwegian football coach and player. A forward, he played his entire career at Norwegian club Lillestrøm, taking them from the third division to the first and winning the Double. He never played abroad, despite receiving offers from big international clubs. He is widely considered one of the greatest Norwegian football players of all time.

In all official competitions, he played 348 matches and scored 197 goals for Lillestrøm (of which 274 matches and 154 goals were recorded in league competition), helping his club win the Norwegian Cup in 1977, 1978 and 1981, and the Norwegian top division in 1976 and 1977. He retired from football in 1982 while still being regarded as one of the best players in Norwegian football.

Lund won 47 caps with the Norway national team.

Club career As a youth, Lund was talented in every sport he attempted. He played handball, bandy and ice hockey for the Lillestrøm first teams well into his football career. After winning a local track and field tournament in 1971, he briefly considered practicing decathlon, with the goal of qualifying for the 1976 Olympics.

Lund debuted for the Lillestrøm first team on 7 May 1967 at the age of 16. They played in the third division, and were close to relegation. Lund quickly became considered by far the best player on the team, and one of the best in Norway. Lund was close to accepting, but eventually declined the offer, in large part because he thought the contract was too long. In 1978, they placed second in the league, but again won the cup, and reached the second round of the European Cup.

He spent most of 1979 and 1980 struggling with injury. There was real fear that Lillestrøm would face relegation without him, but the club still managed a fifth place finish in 1979. In 1980, he could play more games, primarily in the cup, where they reached the final before losing to Vålerenga 1–4, in addition to placing third in the league. Nonetheless, it was considered a disappointing result for the club.

International career Lund was capped 47 times for the Norway national team, including five games as captain, and scored 12 goals. He made his national debut in 1971, while still in the third division, in a 2–1 victory against Iceland. He is widely thought to have scored the equalizing goal in Norway's 2–1 win over England on 9 September 1981, although the goal was credited to Roger Albertsen. Norway did not qualify for any major tournament while Lund played.

He had a severe fear of flying, which was a problem for international games. In fact, out of his 47 international appearances, 31 were home games, and an additional seven were played in Norway's neighboring countries (Sweden, Denmark, Finland). He had an agreement with the management team that he would be excused from international friendlies outside Scandinavia, and would travel by car to away games if he could, including to matches played in Hungary and Bulgaria, respectively during the 1982 World Cup and 1984 European Championship qualifying campaigns. If he had to fly, he would spend the match dreading the flight home.

He was also renowned for his set-pieces. After manager Joe Hooley joined, Lund took every set-piece for Lillestrøm. When they took the Double in 1977, Lillestrøm scored 50 goals from set-pieces, all set by Lund.