Scandinavian players usually adapt quickly to English football and have traditionally performed well in the Premier League.
Over 200 footballers from Denmark, Norway and Sweden have featured in the competition since its inception in 1992 and many of those have been fan favourites.
More than 70 of those hail from Sweden. Here, a look at some of the best and most famous footballers from the Scandinavian nation to feature in England's top flight...
Niclas Alexandersson (Sheffield Wednesday, Everton)
A right winger who won over 100 caps for Sweden in a 15-year international career between 1993 and 2008, Niclas Alexandersson spent seven seasons in English football.
Alexandersson joined Sheffield Wednesday in 1997 and spent three years at Hillsborough. A fan favourite, he was sold to Everton after the Owls' relegation in 2000 and was at Goodison Park for four seasons, including a brief period on loan at second-tier West Ham in 2003/04.
Yasin Ayari (Brighton & Hove Albion)
Born in Sweden to parents from Tunisia and Morocco, Yasin Ayari made his Sweden debut in January 2023 and the midfielder joined Brighton from AIK later that same year.
After spells out on loan at Coventry City and Blackburn Rovers, Ayari went on to feature regularly for the Seagulls in the 2024/25 season.
Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham)
Tottenham beat Barcelona to the signing of Lucas Bergvall in the summer of 2024 and the Swedish midfielder has quickly shown his class at a young age.
Amid an injury crisis at Spurs, Bergvall has had a run in the team and has already produced performances of maturity way beyond his years. He scored his first goal for Tottenham in the League Cup against Liverpool in January 2025 and turned 19 in early February.
Jesper Blomqvist (Manchester United, Everton, Charlton)
Jesper Blomqvist was an important player for Manchester United in the club's treble-winning season in 1998/99, featuring in 38 games and scoring once.
The midfielder even started in the 1999 Champions League final, but would never play again for United after an injury nightmare over the next couple of seasons. He went on to play for Everton and very briefly at Charlton Athletic before returning to Sweden in 2003.
Tomas Brolin (Leeds United, Crystal Palace)
Tomas Brolin was one of the standout players at the 1994 World Cup, but the Sweden midfielder was not a success in English football.
Brolin joined Leeds United from Parma in 1995 and the playmaker ended up featuring sporadically, falling out with manager Howard Wilkinson and twice going out on loan in a tumultuous two-year spell at Elland Road. Later, he had a trial at Crystal Palace and not only ended up playing as a striker due to the Eagles' injury crisis, but linked up with Attilio Lombardo in a bizarre managerial partnership. Palace claimed he was just an interpreter for the Italian, though, and not assistant coach. Either way, it did not go well as the Eagles finished bottom of the Premier League and were relegated.
Anthony Elanga (Manchester United, Nottingham Forest)
Anthony Elanga was born in Sweden but later moved to Manchester with his family and came through the youth ranks at Manchester United.
After making 55 first-team appearances for the Red Devils, the attacker was sold to Nottingham Forest in 2023. Also eligible to represent either England or Cameroon, Elanga has been a Swedish international since 2022. He racked up a hat-trick of assists as Forest thrashed Brighton 7-0 in the Premier League in February 2025.
Zlatan Ibrahimovi (Manchester United)
After playing for some of Europe's biggest clubs, including Juventus, Inter, Barcelona, Ajax and Paris Saint-Germain, Zlatan Ibrahimovi signed for Manchester United in the summer of 2016.
The Swede had a big impact in the 2016/17 season, scoring 28 goals in 46 appearances as United won the League Cup and the Europa League, but his campaign was curtailed by a serious knee injury and he went on to play just seven more matches for the club before moving to L.A. Galaxy in 2018.
Alexander Isak (Newcastle United)
After impressing for several seasons at Real Sociedad, Alexander Isak was signed by Newcastle United in the summer of 2022 and the Swedish striker soon made his mark at St James' Park.
Isak netted 10 times in 27 games in his first season, before adding 25 in 40 appearances in 2023/24. By the end of February 2025, he had hit the 20-goal mark again in all competitions.
Dejan Kulusevski (Tottenham)
Dejan Kulusevski joined Tottenham from Juventus in January 2022, initially on loan, with the move later made permanent.
Born in Sweden to Macedonian parents, the attacking midfielder has gone on to establish himself as one of Spurs' most important players, racking up well over 100 appearances and also chipping in with some important goals along the way.
Henrik Larsson (Manchester United)
Henrik Larsson spent three months on loan at Manchester United late in his career in early 2007 and scored three goals in 13 appearances for the Red Devils.
Larsson earned praise from Sir Alex Ferguson for his performances and United were keen to extend the agreement, but the Swedish striker had committed to Helsingborg and to his family. He made seven Premier League appearances and earned a winners' medal as United went on to claim the title in 2006/07.
Sebastian Larsson (Arsenal, Birmingham City, Sunderland)
Sebastian Larsson joined Arsenal as a 16-year-old, but found first-team opportunities hard to come by at the north London club.
The midfielder went on to spend five seasons at Birmingham City, helping the Blues beat former club Arsenal in the League Cup final in 2011, and then six campaigns at Sunderland. In 2017/18, he played at Hull City and racked up over 250 appearances in English football overall.
Anders Limpar (Arsenal, Everton)
Anders Limpar spent four years at Arsenal between 1990 and 1994 and helped the Gunners win the First Division title in his first season at Highbury.
Limpar featured in two Premier League campaigns for Arsenal before signing for Everton in 1994 and was an FA Cup winner with the Toffees at end of that season. After falling out of favour at Goodison Park, the midfielder had a brief spell at Birmingham City in Division One. He won 58 caps for Sweden.
Victor Lindelf (Manchester United)
A Swedish international who later became captain of his country, Victor Lindelf joined Manchester United from Benfica in 2017.
The centre-back has gone on to play over 250 games for United in all competitions since then and is a League Cup and FA Cup winner with the Red Devils.
Freddie Ljungberg (Arsenal, West Ham)
One of the best Swedish players of his generation, Freddie Ljungberg won 75 international caps and scored 14 goals.
The winger spent nine years at Arsenal, featuring in two Premier League title campaigns (including the Invincible season), three FA Cup wins and a run to the Champions League final in 2006. He played 325 games for the Gunners, scoring 72 times. He also spent a season at West Ham in 2007/08 before moving to MLS side Seattle Sounders.
Olof Mellberg (Aston Villa)
Olof Mellberg won over 100 caps for Sweden in a 12-year international career and the former centre-back spent seven seasons at Aston Villa between 2001 and 2008.
Mellberg played 260 times for Villa, scoring eight goals, before spells at Juventus, Olympiacos, Villarreal and Copenhagen later in his career.
Roland Nilsson (Sheffield Wednesday, Coventry City)
One of the best Swedish defenders of his generation, Roland Nilsson helped IFK Gteborg to three league titles and a UEFA Cup in the 1980s.
Nilsson, who won over 100 caps for his country, later played for Sheffield Wednesday and Coventry City in the Premier League. The right-back was a member of the Wednesday side which won the League Cup in 1991.
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