FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – The New England Revolution has signed Swedish forward Bjorn Runstrom on a free transfer. He will be formally added to the team’s roster upon receipt of his U.S. P-1 Visa and International Transfer Certificate and he will occupy an international slot on the team’s roster. Per league and club policies, further contract details were not released.
Runstrom, 28, trained with the Revolution in Tucson, Ariz., during the club’s preseason preparations and scored one goal against Real Salt Lake in a 2-1 win at the FC Tucson Desert Diamond Cup on Feb. 29.
“Bjorn’s signing provides us another attacking option and some flexibility on the field,” Revolution General Manager Michael Burns said. “He has extensive experience in Europe and he fit in well with our group in Arizona when he was training with us. As soon as all his Visa documents are in order, we look forward to his arrival and integrating him into the team.”
A product of the Hammarby IF youth system, Runstrom began his professional career with Italy’s Bologna, where he was a member of the club’s youth team. After one year with Bologna, he then played successive Serie A seasons with Chievo Verona and Fiorentina, but made limited appearances with each club as a teenager.
Following two-and-a-half years in Italy, Runstrom returned to his hometown club, Hammarby, where he played the next two-and-a-half seasons, making 57 appearances and scoring 18 goals. He transferred to English Premier League club Fulham in July 2006 and played the fall half of the EPL season with Fulham before going to Championship side Luton Town on loan through the end of the year. Fulham then loaned Runstrom to Germany’s Kaiserslautern for the 2007-08 season, where he scored four goals and added one assist in 28 appearances.
After his stay in Germany, Runstrom returned to Sweden and he signed with Odense Boldklub (OB). Runstrom scored seven goals and added two assists in 30 appearances spanning 18 months before OB loaned him to Molde in the Danish SuperLiga. He played with Molde in the spring of 2010 and made 17 appearances while scoring one goal and adding one assist.
Runstrom returned to Hammarby in February 2011 and made 24 appearances. He scored three goals and added three assists during the 2011 season before parting with the team upon the hire of former U.S. international Gregg Berhalter as manager.
The Revolution returns to action on Saturday, March 31, when the team travels to face the LA Galaxy at The Home Depot Center. Kickoff is set for 11 p.m. ET. The match will be televised nationally by NBC Sports Network, and broadcast on the radio by 98.5 The Sports Hub.
For up-to-the-minute information on the Revolution, visit the team’s official web site at revolutionsoccer.net, or follow the team on Twitter at @NERevolution, or on Facebook at facebook.com/NERevolution.
The Revolution offers a variety of ticket options. Four- and six-game mini-game plans are on sale now and start at $84 for Category 3 tickets, while 2012 Pro-rated Season tickets are available through April 14, and start at $238 for 17-game packages. Individual game tickets are also now on sale. Call 1-877-GET-REVS or visit revolutionsoccer.net for more information about these plans or any other ticket option.
TRANSACTION: New England Revolution (MLS) – Signed F Bjorn Runstrom
