Two goals in two minutes against ÍA. Three in nine against KA. When Keflavík get going at home in Reykjanesbær, they do it in sudden bursts — the opponent barely has time to breathe before the game has slipped away from them. Sunday brings ÍBV Vestmannaeyjar, a side that has conceded twelve goals in its last six matches and is scrapping to stay clear of the relegation places. The question is a simple one: can ÍBV survive the spells when the hosts find their rhythm?
The market
No clean market read is available.
Keflavík are a promoted side, and their aim is to settle into mid-table rather than get dragged down. The form is mixed — two wins, one draw and three defeats in the last six — but the pattern is clear. At home they have real bite: five goals against ÍA, three against KA. Both away trips in that window, though, ended in heavy defeats, including a 1-5 at champions Víkingur. The worry is that they have failed to score in each of their last two games.
Then there's the disruption from late July. According to reports, a training-ground incident saw Alpha Conteh strike Muhamed Alghoul, and both Alghoul brothers — Muhamed and Halid — were left out of the squad for the KA match. Their availability for Sunday is unconfirmed. Eiður Orri Ragnarsson was also sent off against KA, though his suspension should be served by now.
ÍBV are in a more precarious spot. One win in six, a leaky back line, and ninth place with the drop not far below. But last time out they produced their best result of the summer — a 2-2 draw away at Víkingur — proof the side has fight in it when it matters. The catch is that before that game they had taken just one point from four.
LAST 6 MATCHES
This game likely turns on the danger periods. Keflavík have shown they can punish quickly at home — Þorlákur Breki Baxter is a threat from range, Conteh set up a goal against ÍA, and Stefan Alexander Ljubicic has chipped in from close range and from the spot. ÍBV's problem is precisely that they have conceded in clusters on their travels. Give the hosts two or three clear sights of goal in a short spell, and it can happen again.
The key for ÍBV is the midfield, where Arnór Ingvi Traustason is the reference point. If he can slow the game, keep the ball and kill the tempo when the hosts want to speed it up, ÍBV can ride out the bursts. If he can't — and Keflavík get to play at their own pace in front of their own crowd — the ÍBV back line is in trouble. Further forward, Omar Sowe and Vicentor Valor can keep the hosts honest, but the question comes back to whether ÍBV can get through the right minutes intact.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
No reliable head-to-head record is available. As Keflavík are newly promoted, this is the sides' first Besta deild meeting of the 2026 season.
THE PICK
Both teams to score: Yes
With no market line to lean on, the pick rests on the game itself. Keflavík are sharper at home than their overall results suggest, and they meet a defence that has been leaking all summer long. When two sides who have both hit both-teams-to-score in four of their last six meet, and one of them has recently put five and three past opponents at home, everything points to an open game with goals at both ends.
The risk is that Keflavík haven't scored in their last two, and if the unrest in the group still lingers, they could turn up flat. Should the game drift into an early 0-0 and stay there, with Arnór Ingvi controlling the midfield, there's a real chance of a low-scoring draw — the exact opposite of the pick.
ÍBV face a long trip: from the Vestmannaeyjar (the Westman Islands, off the south coast) across to the Reykjanes peninsula by ferry or plane, both at the mercy of the weather. In their squad is Arnór Ingvi Traustason, a vastly experienced former Iceland international who still anchors the midfield — and it will be worth watching how he handles the hosts' quick attacking play.