The following version of the novel was used to create this study guide: Backman, Fredrik. The Winners: A Novel. Atria Books. September 27, 2022. Kindle.

The final installment of the Beartown Series, The Winners: A Novel by Fredrik Backman shows that winning is not always about how many points a team scores during a hockey game. The people of both Hed and Beartown become the winners when they set aside their hate for one another to honor the memory of a brave young man who saved a child during an active shooter situation.

Old wounds are re-opened and violence erupts when a storm hits both Hed and Beartown, destroying the ice rink in Hed. Rumors abound that the politicians plan to close down the hockey club and merge it with Beartown’s club. It appears this will not work when children from Hed are invited to train in the rink in Beartown. Fights break out among the emotional, angry people in each of the villages.

Meanwhile, Matteo, a young man whose sister recently died of a drug overdose overseas, is becoming more and more unhappy with his situation. Matteo’s parents are too deeply religious to spend too much time paying attention to their children. The night of the storm, Matteo is wandering the city, but no one pays any attention to him or offers him shelter.

The reader learns that Matteo holds a particular grudge against hockey players. He read in his sister’s diary how Rodri, a player from Hed raped her, but no one believed her. Another player, known only as Mumble, witnessed the rape, but he did not tell anyone what had really happened. Matteo decides to shoot Rodri, Mumble, and then himself.

Matteo plans his killing spree for the day of the hockey game between Hed and Beartown. He finds Rodri in Hed and kills him first. Matteo confronts Mumble in the locker room of the Beartown ice rink. Benjamin “Benji” Ovich has just brought Alicia, a young hockey player to meet her heroes when Matteo enters the locker room and begins shooting wildly. Benji is shot and killed when he puts himself between Alicia and the gun. Matteo is shot moments later by a hunter outside the room. Mumble is not hurt.

The game between Hed and Beartown is never played. The women who attended the game surround Alicia, protecting her from what is happening. Alicia grows up to become the best hockey player in the world, making the people from her home town feel as if they are winners again.