On 3 December 2013 Swedish manager Rikard Norling signed a contract with Brann lasting until the end of the 2016 season, after the club decided not to renew their contract with former manager Rune Skarsfjord. With him, he brought optimism to the club as Norling had recently won the league gold with Malmø FF in Sweden. The 2014 season ended disastrously, however, with relegation for the first time in 29 years. Brann had a difficult year throughout and was on a direct relegation spot for most of the season. A crucial win over Sogndal in the penultimate round lifted them to 14th place (third to last, qualification spot), and a last round win over Haugesund ensured it, allowing Brann a chance of salvaging a berth in next year's Tippeligaen through a qualifying match against the challenger Mjøndalen IF who had finished third in Adeccoligaen. However Brann lost the qualifier after the first leg at home in Bergen on 23 November ended in a 1–1 draw, while the second leg away ended in a 3–0 victory for Mjøndalen. This result meant that Mjøndalen was promoted to the Tippeligaen at the expense of Brann who faced relegation. The following season the team continued to struggle, and after immense pressure from fans, Norling was sacked on 27 May 2015.