It may sound like a cliché that in order to build a trophy-winning squad, you send a bunch of potentially spoiled athletes into the wilderness, leave them to handle all the much-feared challenges of the Far North and once you pick them up again, they will be groomed into a hard-working bunch motivated to give their right arm to help out their team-mates.
Most European teams will probably be hesitant to adopt such a strategy but the formula has earlier worked wonders for FC Midtjyllands mental coach B.S. Christiansen, a former elite soldier and Denmarks version of Bear Gryllis, not only while he has been employed at the Jutland club but also when he arranged a survival trip into the wilderness for the Team CSC cycling team only for them to win the Tour de France six months later.
In 2015 (Norway) and 2024 (Scotland) B.S. Christiansen came up with the idea to send out the whole squad on teambuilding trips to the Northern wilderness in order to test them physically and mentally to the max., turn boys into men, and create a unique atmosphere within the team where players were ready to “die on the pitch” for their team-mates. In both years FC Midtjylland went on to win the Danish championship.
To repeat the success the Danish club set out for new challenges in the North in the beginning of February this year, as the complete first team squad as well as the staff around the squad travelled 300 km into the Norwegian wilderness around Hovden between Oslo and Bergen for a severe test of teambuilding, willpower and the ability to make the most out of a very challenging situation.
"They were given skis, suits, tents, sleds, stoves, firewood and powdered food, and then we divided them into four teams. What I wanted to see out there was how they work together and lead each other. Anyone who has stayed in arctic regions knows that you have to be at the front foot - just as you also have to be in a football match", says B.S. Christiansen to the club website.
"We have 19 different nationalities in the team. The better they understand each other and know how to help and support each other - and also ask for help amongst themselves - the better they play football. For me, it is logical that when you get out there, you can't hide. You have to be honest and say how you feel. What they learn out there, we can use when we come under pressure in matches."
According to the former elite soldier several teams ended up walking 22 kilometers in the terrain on the previous trip to Scotland, while they were under pressure from not having eaten in 24 hours and having to face the uncertainty of what was next in store for them. The trip turned out to be a huge eye-opener for a number of the players, who learned how to react in a severe scenario.
Danish TV channel TV Midvest documented the trip to Scotland in three episodes, which revealed the growing frustrations among the players along the way. Aral Simsir in particular was strongly dissatisfied with B.S. Christiansen.
"I don't know what the hell he's up to. He thinks we are soldiers. When you do something like this, you just have to know the limit", said the young winger back then.
Players were taught to shoot, skin a deer and enjoyed porridge cooked over a fire. "They shot a couple of deer, some pheasants and some ducks but they didn't know what would happen from hour to hour. They knew that if they didn't shoot anything, they would have no food, so that was the consequence. If they screamed for help, no one would hear them" said B.S. Christiansen in a previous interview with BBC.
However, team building is not only a matter of survival – it is also a matter of creating respect between players and coaches. which was evident during the trip in February to Norway.
"When a young player from Chile (Dario Osorio), who costs hundreds of millions, sees the head coach skiing, he gets a lot more respect for him when he tells him what to do in a game," says B.S. Christiansen.
Goalkeeper Jonas Lössl is among the players who strongly appreciates the unconventional approach.
"I love team building. I feel privileged to have such experiences. I am very happy that we have someone like B.S. who takes us on trips like this," he tells NRK.
Now it remains to be seen whether all the struggles in the wilderness will again make a difference as they prepare for the restart of the Danish season in the upcoming weekend and the Europa League clash against Real Sociedad on Thursday.