Jørgen Juve

Norway’s Unsung Football Legend

On October 10th, 2024, Erling Haaland scored his 34th international goal to become Norway’s all-time leading international goal scorer. While Haaland enjoys widespread global recognition, much less known is the man who held the Norway’s international goal record before Haaland grabbed the title. For more than 90 years, it belonged to one of the greatest unsung heroes of Nordic Football: Jørgen Juve.

It might surprise people to learn that Juve scored more international goals (33) than early legends like Hector Scarone, Dixie Dean, Pedro Petrone, Tarasconi, Alcantara, Bican and Baloncieri. He totalled the same number of international goals (33) as the contemporary Italian striker, Guiseppe Meazza, widely regarded as the greatest goal scorer of his generation, although Juve did it in eight fewer games.

While it remains a mystery as to why the Norwegian selection committee would move such a prolific striker to a defensive position, they must have had their reasons. It was in a defensive position that Juve enjoyed one of the greatest moments in Norwegian football history.

Juve was selected to captain the Norwegian team for the 1936 Olympics in Germany. As most people know, the 1936 Olympic games were politically charged due to the rise of Nazism. Juve, who was also an accomplished writer, was the sports editor of the Tidens Tegn newspaper in Oslo, and he had been publishing a daily diary from the tournament. His articles reflected how his growing scepticism towards the German authorities grew as he complained more and more about the militarism of the Games.

Germany, out to demonstrate their suppority to the world, started the tournament strong with a 7-0 victory over Luxembourg. Adolf Hitler, who despised football, decided attend the next game against Norway, to bask in the glow of “certain” victory.  Juve and the Norwegians were very motivated and blanked the German team 2-0 that included football legends such as Otto Siffling and Paul Janes. That was the first and last football match Adolf Hitler ever watched. The Germany match is one of the most famous in Norwegian sporting history and, its symbolic power would become particularly strong during the Nazi occupation.

The next game Norway would end up losing a hard-fought game to Italy in extra time (2 -1), who would go on to win the gold medal . By most accounts, the game could have gone either way. Norway rebounded by winning the bronze medal match over Poland. Juve for his part, was widely regarded as “the most important contributor to Norway’s only medal in an international football championship for men.“

Unfortunately, there aren’t many football statistics available for Juve outside his international appearances. In Norway, he played striker for Lyn and other clubs in Oslo but there are few descriptions available of his accolades. In 1930, he is recorded as playing 12 games in Basil, Switzerland during a study trip, where he continued to consistently find the back of the net by scoring an impressive 10 goals.

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Jorgen Juve Football Cards

Very few cards exist of Jørgen Juve and I am only aware of a handful. If anyone knows any others that exist from his playing days, I would very much like to hear from you. Most of the cards that do exist come from the Tiedemanns Tobak set that was issued over a number of years (1928 -1935). Tiedemanns was largest producer of cigarettes during this period in Norway.

The Tiedemanns series is a multisport, but is likely multiple series as the backs are different sizes with different descriptions and logos. The cards are also generally considered rare and can be challenging to find specific players and teams. To date, these cards have not been adequately catalogued in an English source so the total number of cards in the set(s) remains unknown. Tiedemanns also released a distinct set of Norwegian Football Champions, in 1935 with the Cromwell brand cigarette featured on the back.

I have attempted to put the cards in which Jørgen Juve appears in chronological order; however, it is recognized that the dates may vary on some cards.

1. Year 1928 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Norway National Team Against Denmark 1928

Card Notes: The card is very unique as it depicts the Norwegian National team which played in 1928 against the Danish National team on June 17, 1928. The game was only Juve’s 3rd internatinonal cap, and Norway lost 3-2. Interestingly, Juve is represented on both the third and fourth segments as he is standing third from the right. The cards overlap and it is Juve who is shown twice.

2. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Jørgen Juve

Card Notes: This is generally considered Juve’s most iconic and arguably his rookie card as it is a close-up featuring only Juve. The back of the card states “Norway’s great center forward, who has played a significant role in Norway’s big victories in international matches this year.”

3. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: International Match Against Sweden.

Card Notes: This card depicts the Norwegian National team playing against Sweden in Stockholm in 1930. The backs states “Our picture is one of the Norwegian glimmers of light, as Jorgen Juve has played his way through the entire Swedish defense and shoots Norway first goal”. Sweden won the game 6-3; however, Juve scored all three goals for Norway.

4. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: The Oslo Team Lyn

5. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Juve against Ramseyer

Card Notes: This card depicts the Norwegian National team playing against Switzerland in Oslo on June 19th in 1930. Juve scored the first two goals in a 3-0 rout of Switzerland. This great image has Juve breaking away from the Swiss captain Rudolf Ramseyer.

6. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Juve I Skuddet (Juve shooting)

Card Notes: This interesting card shows Juve on the Norwegian National team playing against Finland on June 19th in 1930. Juve scored a hat trick in the 6-2 win over Finland. The game was part of the Nordic Football Championship, which consisted of Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland. Interestingly, the tournament

7. Year 1929/30?- Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Oslo Bylag i Bergen (Oslo City team in Bergen)

Card Notes: Its not entirely clear what the team of this cardis based upon the information on the back. Juve can be found on the back row on the far right.

8. Year 1930 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Norges Landslag 1930 Norwegian National Team

Card Notes: Another split card of the Norwegian National Team in 1930. Juve is found second from the right in the back row. .

9. 1933 Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Det Norske Lag Helsignfors 1933 (The Norwegian Team Helsingfors)

10. Year 1934/35 – Manufacturer -Tiedemanns Tobak – Set – Sport Series – Unnumbered -Title: Landskampen i Stockholm 1934 (National team in Stockholm 1934)

Card Notes: This card was taken from the international match against Sweden as part of the second Nordic Football Championship tournament 1933 – 1936. By this time, Juve was playing a defensive position. An interesting aspect of this card is that the back mentions the great Danish keeper Sophus Hansen who was referee for this match.

11. 1935 Manufacturer – Norsk Ukeblad – Set – Norske Idretttstjerner (Norwegian Sports Stars) Number #30.

Card Notes: Thanks to 256 Collector from Discord for bringing this one to my attention. I wasn’t aware it existed. This great image comes from an album that included various Norwegian sports stars including boxing, football and skating and was released just prior to the famous 1936 Olympic games in Germany.