ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Sweden’s Kurdish club Dalkurd FF qualified for the group stages of the Svenska Cupen (Sweden Cup) after a 4-2 win against opponents FC Gute on Wednesday.
The Kurdish side began brightly and took the lead through Malkolm Moenza in the 16th minute. However, the FC Gute responded three minutes later through Villiam Dahlstroem.
Dalkurd continued to push forward and regained its advantage in the 27th minute when Ahmed Awad scored to put his team ahead 2-1 at half time.
A resilient FC Gute found another equalizer shortly after the start of the second half through Mikael Rynell in the 52nd minute.
Dalkurd responded immediately when Awad scored his second of the match to make it 3-2 in the 62nd minute before Emil Berger scored an 89th-minute penalty to seal the 4-2 victory.
The Sweden Cup is a knockout competition where teams across Sweden’s lower and top divisions compete for the Gustaf VI Adolf Cup. The winner also gets a spot in the 2019/20 UEFA Europa League qualifying stages.
Dalkurd failed to progress from the group stage during the 2018/19 season.
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Based in the Swedish city of Borlänge, Dalkurd was founded on Sept. 26, 2004, by nine Kurdish immigrants as a social project. The club has since built academies in both Sweden and the Kurdistan Region.
The team’s colors are symbolic of Kurdistan, with the Kurdish flag included in the crest on their shirts.
Dalkurd had bull-dozed its way up the ranks of Swedish football since its 2005 introduction in Tier Seven, winning five promotions in its first five seasons.
After a string of poor results in Sweden’s top division, Dalkurd were relegated on the last day of the 2018 season, finishing in 15th place with 24 points (6-6-18).
The club currently competes in Sweden’s second-tier league, the Superettan. They sit in seventh place with 30 points (9-3-8).