He went from having one TV station and dreaming of McDonald’s to complete access of 1980s American culture.

An immigrant from Norway, Baard “Johan” Bergseth said moving to the United States was surreal.

“Now we know a lot more about the U.S. in Norway,” Bergseth said. “Coming to the U.S. back then was like going to a movie.”

Before he became the first Norwegian to play soccer for NIU in 1982, Bergseth was an exchange student at Arlington Heights Forest View High School.

A huge fan of basketball, Bergseth was excited to learn about “American football,” but had difficulties adjusting to the English language.

“It was really hard trying to do everything in English,” Bergseth said. “I’d be so tired at the end of the day, I’d have to go home and lie down for an hour to gather myself. But then I started thinking and dreaming in English and I began to adjust.”

Forest View’s boy’s soccer team was No. 2 in the state and Bergseth was told by the high school faculty that NIU would be a good school to attend.

“Our team was really good and the coach at NIU at the time, Jerry Collins, began recruiting me,” Bergseth said. “There were a few teachers at the school from NIU and they were telling me a lot of great things about the school.”

Simultaneously, another Norwegian exchange student, Atle Sundland, resided in NIU’s backyard at DeKalb High School.

Though Sundland went home for one year after graduating, both players ended up going to NIU.

“I came to visit the school and I really liked it,” Bergseth said. “The football and basketball team were really big at the time.”

The men’s soccer team played their games on the old astro turf of Huskie Stadium.

After a 4-9-2 1981 campaign, Bergseth came in his freshman year and helped the Huskies score the fourth most goals (43) in NIU men’s history and finish with a 7-9-1 mark.

Before his second season, Bergseth was tabbed in “The NCAA,” a newsletter of the NCAA, as a player to watch in the Midwest region.

The team went 8-7-2 in Bergseth’s sophomore season as he was named First Team All-Midwest.

And while things were on their way up for the soccer team, NIU’s football team went on to win the California Bowl.

“A lot of students went home on the weekends at the time,” Bergseth said. “But as soon as the football team began winning, everyone started staying for football games and tailgating.”

The following fall NIU went on to a 13-5-1 record, but fell apart at the end of the season, losing three of its last four.

“We really messed up at the end after being ranked among the nation’s top 20 teams for most of the season,” said Bergseth, who repeated as an All-Illinois, All-Midwest First Team pick. “Had we not lost those last few games we would’ve made the NCAA Tournament.”

A Third-Team All-American pick in his junior year, Bergseth thought his senior year was surely going to be one to remember.

However, the Huskies dipped to 8-10-2. The 1985 Senior Bowl All-Star Classic selection finished his NIU career with 34 goals and 23 assists, placing him on NIU’s all-time list at fourth and third, respectively.

“We had a lot of potential with most of the team returning from the previous season,” Bergseth said. “But we lost those first two games and had a mediocre season.”

After graduating from NIU, Bergseth returned to Norway to serve in the Army for one year.

He then attempted to re-enter the U.S. for a tryout with the Chicago Power, a former professional soccer team of the U.S., but was turned down by the U.S. Government.

“I needed to get married and have a green card to come and play, but it never happened,” Bergseth said.

In the meantime, Bergseth took a job in the waste industry while playing for numerous club teams in Norway.

After eight shoulder surgeries and a 13-year absence from soccer, Bergseth has found a new job and rekindled his love for futbol.

“I’m playing for a veteran club team and working for an event company,” Bergseth said. “We take people on trips to things like the Olympics.”

Since Bergseth’s arrival in Huskie country, a steady flow of Norwegian players have donned an NIU uniform. The most recent was Oslo, Norway native Bernhard Hagevik, who played his final season for the Huskies last fall.

“I’ve helped recruit four or five players to NIU like Eirik Frederiksen, who played in 1997 and 1998,” Bergseth said. “It’s good for NIU to beat powerhouse teams like St. Louis because I’ll hear kids in Norway talking about the States and tell them about NIU.”