Görel Hanser, the Swedish music manager who spent decades at the heart of ABBA’s world, guiding the group’s affairs and becoming a trusted friend to all four members, has died at the age of 76. She passed away on June 13, 2026, her death announced jointly by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad.
Born Görel Kristina Johnsen on June 21, 1949, near Skövde in Sweden, she began what would become a lifelong career in the music business in September 1969, joining Stig Anderson’s publishing company Sweden Music and his record label Polar Music. She quickly proved indispensable, rising from Anderson’s secretary to become a key figure in the organization and, by the early 1970s, Vice President of Polar Music.
It was during ABBA’s meteoric rise that Hanser became central to the group’s story. She managed the group’s relationships with the many record labels releasing their music around the globe, served as their personal manager, handled the press, and accompanied them on tours and promotional trips across the world. In the process, she grew close to Agnetha, Björn, Benny, and Anni-Frid, becoming not just their manager but a genuine friend.
That affection was immortalized in one of the rarest treasures in all of ABBA lore. In 1979, the group, together with Stig Anderson, wrote and recorded “Sång Till Görel” as a gift for her 30th birthday, a humorous, loving ode to how everyone in the office needed Görel. Pressed on blue vinyl in only a handful of copies and never permitted to be played on radio, the record has become one of the most sought-after ABBA collectibles in existence, fetching thousands of dollars at auction.
After ABBA’s breakup, Hanser continued working with Sweden Music and Polar before founding her own company, Music & Artist Service Görel Hanser, in 1987. From there she managed much of Benny Andersson’s work, including the celebrated Andersson and Ulvaeus musicals, and oversaw ABBA-related business on behalf of Andersson and Ulvaeus for years to come. She remained a beloved ambassador for the group, representing ABBA at fan club anniversaries, and in 2018 her lifetime of contributions to Swedish music was honored with a Grammis.
She is survived by her two children. Her husband, journalist and photographer Anders Hanser, whom she married in 1980 after meeting him while he covered ABBA, predeceased her.
Görel Hanser was 76.