Johan "Sheriffen" Persson (born 20 June 1984) is a Swedish former

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

Career

He began his senior career at the

Scania Scania ( ), also known by its native name of Skåne (), is the southernmost of the historical provinces of Sweden, provinces () of Sweden. Located in the south tip of the geographical region of Götaland, the province is roughly conterminous w ...

n club

IFK Hässleholm IFK Hässleholm is a Swedish football club from Hässleholm that was established in 1905. The team is currently playing in Division 2 Östra Götaland. Several well known players have played at the club including England international strik ...

in the lower divisions, before getting signed by

Mjällby AIF Mjällby Allmänna Idrottsförening, also known simply as Mjällby AIF, Mjällby or (especially locally) MAIF, is a Swedish professional football club based in Hällevik in Sölvesborg Municipality. The club is affiliated to Blekinge Fo ...

in 2006. Two years later he made a switch to

Landskrona BoIS Landskrona Boll och Idrottsällskap (, locally referred to as BoIS) is a Swedish professional football club located in Landskrona, Scania, which currently plays in Superettan, the second league tier of football in Sweden. The club was formed ...

in the Swedish second tier,

Superettan Superettan (; ) is an association football league and the second highest league in the Swedish football league system, league system of Swedish football, Swedish men's football. Contested by 16 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and rel ...

. Acting as a regular starter on the

defensive midfield In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

he made 81 appearances for the side during the following three seasons, managing to score on 10 occasions. In the off season of 2010 he moved abroad for the first time in his career, signing with

Esbjerg fB Esbjerg forenede Boldklubber (; commonly known as Esbjerg fB or EfB in short) is a Danish professional Association football, football club based in Esbjerg, West Jutland, Jylland, that plays in the Danish 1st Division, 1st division, the sec ...

in the

Danish Superliga The Danish Superliga (, ) is a professional association football league in Denmark and the highest level of the Danish football league system. The league is currently contested by 12 teams each year, with 2 teams relegated. It is the current ...

. But Persson failed to make an impact at the team and left by mutual consent a few months later, having played only 6 league games, when his short term-contract ended. He then returned to his native country, signing a long term-deal with

Östers IF Östers Idrottsförening, commonly known as Östers IF or simply Öster, is a Swedish sports club located in Växjö, specializing in Association football, football. For the 2025 Allsvenskan, 2025 season the club is back in the top tier, Allsve ...

on 17 July 2011. Persson would remain at the club for another few years being a part of a promotion campaign to

Allsvenskan Allsvenskan (; ), also known as Fotbollsallsvenskan (, ) is a professional association football league in Sweden and the highest level of the Swedish football league system. Founded in 1924, it operates on a system of promotion and relegatio ...

in 2012. During these successful years he was nicknamed as "Sheriffen" (the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

) by then manager Roar Hansen. When Öster got relegated from the

2013 Allsvenskan The 2013 Allsvenskan, part of the 2013 Swedish football season, was the 89th season of Allsvenskan since its establishment in 1924. The 2013 fixtures were released on 14 December 2012. The season started on 31 March 2013 and ended on 3 November 2 ...

, after a short stint in the highest division, Persson instead moved to the

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

-based club

Hammarby IF Hammarby Idrottsförening ("Hammarby Sports Club"), commonly known as Hammarby IF or simply Hammarby ( or, especially locally, ), is a Swedish sports club located in Stockholm, with a number of member organizations active in a variety of differ ...

in Superettan. Once again he would enjoy an immediate promotion to Allsvenskan, also establishing himself as the vice captain of the club. During the

2015 2015 was designated by the United Nations as: * International Year of Light * International Year of Soil __TOC__ Events January * January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...

and 2016 season he appeared as a regular starter for Hammarby in

. He has also renewed his tie to the club, signing a new contract that will last until the summer of 2018. On 30 June, midway through the 2017 season, Persson and Hammarby chose to part separate ways. Persson opted to live closer to his family and cited "personal reasons" for his departure. In total, Persson made 82 league appearances for Hammarby, scoring 4 goals. Persson signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with

Helsingborgs IF Helsingborgs Idrottsförening, commonly referred to as Helsingborgs IF, Helsingborg or (especially locally) HIF (), is a Swedish professional football club located in Helsingborg. They play in the Swedish second tier, Superettan, following releg ...

on 5 July 2017.

References

External links

* 1984 births Living people Östers IF players Esbjerg fB players Landskrona BoIS players Mjällby AIF players Hammarby Fotboll players Helsingborgs IF players Danish Superliga players Superettan players Swedish men's footballers Allsvenskan players Men's association football midfielders 21st-century Swedish sportsmen {{Sweden-footy-midfielder-stub