Ole Bjur

Ole Bjur
Bjur in 2020
Personal information
Date of birth (1968-09-13)13 September 1968
Place of birth Rødovre, Denmark
Date of death 24 August 2026(2026-08-24) (aged 57)
Place of death Herlev, Denmark
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Position Midfielder
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1986–1991 Vanløse
1991–2000 Brøndby 284 (40)
International career
1996–1997 Denmark 3 (1)
Managerial career
2011–2013 Brøndby (sporting director)
2013–2015 Fremad Amager (sporting director)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Ole Bjur (13 September 1968 – 24 August 2026) was a Danish footballer and sporting director. He played 384 matches for Brøndby, with whom he won three Danish Superliga championships and two Danish Cups, and appeared three times for the Denmark national team, scoring on his debut. An attacking midfielder or right midfielder, he was known for his technique and dribbling. After retiring he returned to Brøndby as sporting director from 2011 to 2013, held the same role at Fremad Amager and later at the Divisionsforeningen, where he became a leading figure in the reform of Danish youth development.

Bjur was the younger brother of Danish footballer Jan Bjur,[2] and father of Peter Bjur.[3]

Club career

Born in Rødovre, Bjur started playing football with Vanløse IF in the second-tier Danish 2nd Division. When the structure of Danish football was altered in 1991, Vanløse was placed in the second-tier Danish 1st Division. At Vanløse, Bjur showed himself as a forward with good finishing and eye for the game, and was named 1991 Danish 1st Division Player of the Year.[4] This attracted the attention of defending Danish champions Brøndby IF, and Bjur moved to the top-flight Danish Superliga club in July 1991.

Under Brøndby manager Morten Olsen, Bjur saw a lot of playing time, but had a hard time scoring goals. When Brøndby hired new manager Ebbe Skovdahl in 1992, he went on to deploy Bjur in a right wingback position, where Bjur was immediately praised for his performance.[5] From his wingback position, he would both engage in elegant, dribbling runs as well as hit precise crosses.[6] In the opening of the 1993–94 Superliga season, Bjur saw a slump in form. He got his only red card while at Brøndby in September 1993,[7] and was eventually left out of the Brøndby first team and played a number of games in the reserve team. He returned to form in October 1993,[8] and became one of Brøndby's leading men for set pieces. With Skovdahls change of tactics, to a 3–4–3 formation in March 1994, Bjur was moved up to a forward position, behind the lone striker Mark Strudal, where he reproduced the attacking play of his Vanløse days.[9]

For the 1994–95 Superliga season, Skovdahl changed the formation to a 4–4–2 system, and Bjur settled into the right-sided midfielder spot. He found a good understanding with right back Søren Colding,[10] and the two formed a dangerous pairing on Brøndby's right flank.[11] Bjur was a part of the Brøndby which won the 1994 Danish Cup,[12] his first trophy in his Brøndby career, and was named 1994 Brøndby IF Player of the Year.[13] In the 1995–96 Superliga season, Bjur played all 32 games as Brøndby won their first Danish championship in five years. He also scored the winning goal in the 2–1 defeat of Roma in the 1995–96 UEFA Cup tournament, though Brøndby were eventually eliminated on the away goals rule.

With Brøndby, Bjur went on to win the 1996–97 Superliga and 1997–98 Superliga championships, as well as the 1998 Danish Cup trophy. He was a part of Brøndby's campaign in the 1998–99 UEFA Champions League tournament, and played a total of 54 games for Brøndby in the European competitions. After more and more games of not feeling satisfied with his own performances, he decided to end his career in November 2000, 32 years old.[14] He went on to concentrate on his studies at the University of Copenhagen.

International career

Following his Brøndby breakthrough in the 1992–93 Superliga season, Bjur was touted as a coming man for the Danish national team.[6] However, after his slump in form for Brøndby in fall 1993, he was not chosen for the Danish national team by national manager Richard Møller Nielsen.[15]

Bjur was eventually included in the national team squad of newly appointed national manager Bo Johansson in the summer 1996. Bjur was called up for Johansson's first game in August 1996. He scored the winning goal in their debut match, as Denmark beat Sweden 1–0 in a friendly match. Bjur started the next national team match, but after 22 minutes, he suffered a minor concussion from a swung elbow, and had to be substituted off. Bjur was then displaced by midfielder Peter Nielsen for the next national team games, before playing his last international game in August 1997.

Later career

Bjur returned to Brøndby IF in 2010 as a consultant to the coaching staff, working as assistant to manager Henrik Jensen for eight matches. He was appointed the club's sporting director the following year and held the post until the summer of 2013.[16] He then filled a similar role at Fremad Amager from 2013 to 2015.[17]

He later joined the Divisionsforeningen, the association of Danish professional clubs, as its sporting director.[18] In its obituary the organisation described him as the central figure in establishing the modern era of Danish talent development, which it called one of the greatest successes in the country's football and the backbone of most of its clubs.[19]

Death

Bjur died on 24 August 2026, at the age of 57, following a ten-year battle with cancer.[20] He had been admitted to Herlev Hospital about two and a half weeks earlier. His death was announced by his family, and tributes were paid by Brøndby IF and the Divisionsforeningen, the latter's director Claus Thomsen praising his knowledge of the game and his warmth towards others.[20][19]

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition[21][22]
Club Season League Danish Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Vanløse 1987 Danish 2nd Division ——
1988 Danish 2nd Division ——
1989 Danish 2nd Division ——
1990 Danish 2nd Division ——
1991 Danish 1st Division ——
Total 0000
Brøndby 1991–92 Danish Superliga 203105[a]0—263
1992–93 Danish Superliga 301105[b]1—362
1993–94 Danish Superliga 292409[c]1—423
1994–95 Danish Superliga 326207[d]11[e]0427
1995–96 Danish Superliga 326408[f]33[g]24711
1996–97 Danish Superliga 304419[h]3—438
1997–98 Danish Superliga 326314[i]01[e]1408
1998–99 Danish Superliga 326418[a]0—447
1999–2000 Danish Superliga 293306[j]1—384
2000–01 Danish Superliga 183106[k]0—253
Total 2844027367105338356
Career total 284+40+27+3+671053383+56+
  1. 1 2 Appearances in European Cup/UEFA Champions League
  2. ↑ Appearances in Intertoto Cup
  3. ↑ Four appearances and one goal in Intertoto Cup, five appearances in UEFA Cup
  4. ↑ Three appearances and one goal in Intertoto Cup, four appearances in UEFA Cup
  5. 1 2 Appearance in Danish Super Cup
  6. ↑ Appearances in UEFA Cup
  7. ↑ Appearances in Danish League Cup
  8. ↑ Two appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances and one goal in UEFA Cup
  9. ↑ Two appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Cup
  10. ↑ Four appearances and one goal in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Cup
  11. ↑ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Cup

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year[23]
National teamYearAppsGoals
Denmark 199621
199710
Total31
Score and result list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after Bjur goal.
International goal scored by Ole Bjur[23]
No. Date Venue Cap Opponent Score Result Competition Ref.
114 August 1996Ullevi, Stockholm, Sweden1 Sweden1–01–0Friendly[24]

Honours

Brøndby

Individual

References

  1. ↑ Ole Bjur at WorldFootball.net
  2. ↑ Larsen, René (10 June 2011). "Jan Bjur ny cheftræner i Allerød FK". sn.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  3. ↑ Michael Ehrhorn (1 July 2017). "Brøndby IF henter Ole Bjurs søn". tipsbladet.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 9 June 2019.
  4. ↑ "Årets spiller vil snart til udlandet", Berlingske Tidende, 18 June 1991
  5. ↑ Vagn Nielsen, "Skål for os", Ekstra Bladet, 22 March 1993
  6. 1 2 Kurt Thybo, "Charme Chok Champagne gok", Ekstra Bladet, 14 June 1993
  7. ↑ "DBU's Officielle Statistikere". danskfodbold.com. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  8. ↑ Jan Løfberg, "Verdens bedste publikum", Berlingske Tidende, 24 October 1993
  9. ↑ Niels Abildtrup, "Bjur bedre bedst", Ekstra Bladet, 28 March 1994
  10. ↑ Søren Olsen, "De unge i hovedrollerne", Politiken, 15 September 1994
  11. ↑ Steen Ankerdal & Peter Brüchmann, "Bjur bare bedst", Ekstra Bladet, 28 November 1994
  12. ↑ "www.haslund.info - Pokalturneringen 1993/1994 - Finale". www.haslund.info. Archived from the original on 23 October 2007.
  13. ↑ "Brondby.com | Årets Spiller". Archived from the original on 9 July 2010. Retrieved 19 May 2010.
  14. ↑ Andreas H. Kraul, "Farvel: Sidespringet blev en lang affære", Aktuelt, 27 November 2000
  15. ↑ Søren Olsen, "Genvalg til alle", Politiken, 27 August 1993
  16. ↑ "Ole Bjur 1968-2026" (in Danish). Brøndby IF. 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  17. ↑ "Ole Bjur er død" [Ole Bjur is dead]. bold.dk (in Danish). 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  18. ↑ "Brøndby-koryfæet Ole Bjur er død" [Brøndby luminary Ole Bjur is dead]. TV 2 (in Danish). 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  19. 1 2 "Sportschef Ole Bjur er gået bort" [Sporting director Ole Bjur has passed away] (in Danish). Divisionsforeningen. 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  20. 1 2 Welch, Nadia Guldbæk (25 August 2026). "Ole Bjur er død" [Ole Bjur is dead]. Tipsbladet (in Danish). Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  21. ↑ "Ole Bjur – BrondbyStats". brondbystats.dk. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  22. ↑ "Ole Bjur, statistik fra superligaen, all-time". SuperStats. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
  23. 1 2 Ole Bjur national team profile at the Danish Football Association (in Danish)
  24. ↑ "Sverige – Danmark 0–1". DBU (in Danish). Archived from the original on 25 August 2026. Retrieved 25 August 2026.
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