FC Zürich

The club was founded in summer 1896 by former members of the two local clubs: FC Turicum and FC Excelsior. Later, the official founding date was set at 1 August 1896. One of the founding members was the later Barcelona founder, Joan Gamper, coaching and playing for FC Excelsior and its successor from 1894 to 1897.^[3] The new club played its first game on 30 August 1896 on Velorennbahn Hardau in Zürich against St. Gallen, which resulted in a 3–3 draw.^[4] In 1898, FC Excelsior merged with FC Zürich, and local club FC Victoria joined shortly thereafter.

The debut game was in 1896 with the colours blue and white.^[5] The colours were changed to red and white because rivals Grasshoppers had the same colours. When Grasshoppers temporarily retired from the championship in 1909, FCZ returned to the colors blue and white, which they continue to use.^[6] Zürich won its first title in the Swiss Serie A in 1901–02, but did not win it again until 1923–24.

Until the 1930s, the club's sporting remit included rowing, boxing, athletics and handball, but football would become the focus of the club.

 

Zürich struggled to overcome an unsuccessful record and was described as the "wilderness years" from 1925 to 1960.^[7] They were relegated in 1933–34, playing in the 1. Liga until the 1941 season. In 1940–41, they returned to the Nationalliga, where they stayed until their relegation in 1945–46. They were back in the Nationalliga A in 1947–48 and stayed in the top flight until relegated in 1956–57. They were promoted from the Nationalliga B to contest the 1958–59 Nationalliga A, finishing in third place.

This period was known as the "Golden Years" by the FCZ faithful. At this time, the club was run by the president Edwin Nägeli and had players such as Köbi Kuhn, Fritz Künzli, Ilija Katić, René Botteron and many more. Zürich won seven championships in the years 1963, 1966, 1968, 1974, 1975, 1976 and 1981. They also won the Swiss Cup five times: in 1966, 1970, 1972, 1973 and 1976. FCZ also had much success internationally in reaching the semi-finals of the European Cup 1963–64, before losing to Real Madrid and also reaching the semi-finals in the European Cup 1976–77, where they lost to Liverpool.

Following the club's league title in 1981, the club went into a decline, and in 1988 they were relegated to the Nationalliga B. Zürich returned to the top league in 1990. The club did make it to last 16 of the UEFA Cup 1998–99, but were beaten by Roma. The club won the Swiss Cup in 2000, beating Lausanne in the final. They won it again in 2005, beating Luzern.

On 13 May 2006, FCZ ended their 25-year effort to win Super League with a goal in the 93rd minute by Iulian Filipescu against Basel. The goal gave FCZ a 2–1 victory based on goal difference. They retained the title in 2006–07.

In 2008, the local women's team, FFC Zürich Seebach, was combined with FC Zürich and played in the Swiss national league under the name FC Zürich Frauen.

In the 2007–08 season, FCZ finished in third place. In a 2008–09 season match, they edged pass Young Boys to win the league title. In 2009, they made their debut play in the group stage of the UEFA Champions League. In the 2010–11 season, FCZ finished second. The following seasons, they finished mostly in mid-table positions. FCZ won the Swiss Cup 2014 in extra time against Basel 2–0.

In the 2015–16 season, the club finished last, one point behind Lugano and was relegated to the Swiss Challenge League. Four days after the final game of the season, FCZ won the Swiss Cup 2016 beating Lugano 1–0.

 

In the 2016–17 season, FC Zürich won the Challenge League ahead of Neuchâtel Xamax, and returned after one year to the Super League. In the 2017–2018 season they finished fourth. On 27 May 2018 they won the Swiss Cup for the tenth time, beating Young Boys 2–1.

In the 2021–2022 season, FC Zürich won the Super League again after an interruption of 13 years. The club secured its 13th league title with a 2–0 away win over Basel, who finished second, on 1 May 2022, with five rounds to go. Despite this success, coach André Breitenreiter departed the club to join Bundesliga side TSG Hoffenheim on 24 May 2022.^[11] On 8 June 2022, former Austrian national coach Franco Foda was announced as the coach for the upcoming season.^[12] Despite being able to guide Zürich into the Europa League group stages, the domestic campaign saw the side gain only two points out of a possible 24 in their title defence. The league form, combined with a shock cup defeat to Challenge League side Lausanne on 18 September, proved the final straw and Foda was sacked on 21 September.^[13]

In 2024, Ricardo Moniz was appointed head coach on a two-year contract.^[14]

• Super League/Nationalliga A
  • Champions (13): 1901–02, 1923–24, 1962–63, 1965–66, 1967–68, 1973–74, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1980–81, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2021–22
  • Runners-up (9): 1902–03, 1910–11, 1931–32, 1951–52, 1963–64, 1966–67, 1971–72, 1978–79, 2010–11,
• Challenge League/Nationalliga B:
  • Champions (4): 1940–41, 1946–47, 1957–58, 2016–17
  • Runners-up (2): 1988–89, 1989–90,
• Swiss Cup
  • Winners (10): 1965–66, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1975–76, 1999–2000, 2004–05, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2017–18
  • Runners-up (1): 1980–81,
• Swiss League Cup
  • Winners (1): 1980–81
  • Runners-up (2): 1974–75, 1975–76

• European Cup/UEFA Champions League
  • Semi-finalists: 1963–64, 1976–77

 

Grasshoppers, also from Zürich, and Basel are the main rivals of FCZ. Due to the intense rivalry, these matches are so-called high-risk fixtures, with an increased police presence in and around the stadium.

Since its inception, FCZ has always had a fiery relationship with neighbouring club Grasshopper over sporting supremacy in the city.^{[citation needed]}

To date, 251 official derbies have been held, with Grasshoppers leading with 121 wins to FC Zurich's 90, leaving 39 draws. However, since the reformation of the Swiss Super League in 2003, FCZ has frequently gotten the better of their city rivals, winning 33 out of 68 games (GC won 20 and 15 draws).

The October 2011 derby at Letzigrund was abandoned by the referee after rioting by FC Zürich fans. Earlier in the day, Grasshopper Club Zürich fans stole FC Zürich fan banners and displayed them with a message mocking FC Zürich. ^[15]

Before the last round of the 2005–06 Swiss Super League, Zürich were three points behind Basel in the league table. The last game of the season was contested by these two clubs vying for the league title at St. Jakob Park, Basel. Alhassane Keita scored the match first goal, for Zürich. In the second half, Mladen Petrić equalised. Basel were seconds away from the title when, in the 93rd minute, Florian Stahel passed the ball to Iulian Filipescu, who scored. Zürich's success at 2 – 1 was attributed to their superior goal difference. Following the final whistle, Basel supporters stormed the pitch and attacked players on both teams.

In 2010, the youth and women's teams of the club moved their homebase to the Heerenschürli sport park in the city quarter of Hirzenbach where the academy and women's teams play also their home matches. In June 2022, the club moved with the opening of a newly built "House of FCZ" also their Super League team and offices there in order to have the whole organisation under one roof.^[16]

As of 9 September 2024^[17]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   BIH Živko Kostadinović 2 DF   SUI Lindrit Kamberi 3 DF   SRB Nemanja Tošić 5 DF   ARG Mariano Gómez 6 MF   SUI Cheveyo Tsawa 7 MF   KOS Bledian Krasniqi 8 MF   SUI Samuel Ballet (on loan from Como) 9 FW   COL Juan José Perea (on loan from VfB Stuttgart) 10 MF   SUI Antonio Marchesano 11 FW   COD Jonathan Okita 12 MF   NGA Ifeanyi Mathew 13 MF   GUI Mohamed Bangoura 14 MF   SUI Nevio Di Giusto 16 DF   ISR Doron Leidner (on loan from Olympiacos) 17 MF   GUI Cheick Condé

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 FW   GHA Daniel Afriyie 19 FW   CIV Fernand Gouré (on loan from Westerlo) 20 FW   SUI Calixte Ligue 21 FW   NGA Umeh Emmanuel 22 FW   IRL Armstrong Oko-Flex 23 MF   FRA Mounir Chouiar (on loan from Ludogorets Razgrad) 24 DF   BIH Nikola Katić 25 GK   SUI Yanick Brecher (captain) 26 MF   SUI Miguel Reichmuth 27 DF   POR Rodrigo Conceição 28 GK   SUI Silas Huber 31 DF   KOS Mirlind Kryeziu 32 DF   SUI Selmin Hodža 33 MF   ZAM Joseph Sabobo 36 DF   SUI Daniel Denoon

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF   CUB Fabian Gloor (at Bellinzona until 30 June 2025) — DF   SUI Ramon Guzzo (at Wil until 30 June 2025)

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW   SUI Labinot Bajrami (at Winterthur until 30 June 2025)

As of 6 October 2024^[18]
The Zürich II/U21 team plays in the Swiss Promotion League.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   UKR Yevhen Morozov 4 DF   SUI Daniel Denoon 5 MF   GUI Mohamed Bangoura 6 DF   SUI Mile Vukelic 7 FW   LUX Selim Turping 8 MF   SUI Miguel Reichmuth 9 FW   SUI Mario Greco 10 FW   SUI Pirosch Fischer 11 MF   SUI Sajawal Mahar 13 MF   BIH Emrah Isic 14 MF   SUI Nevio Di Giusto 15 MF   SUI Mihael Cavar 16 MF   SUI Leon Grando 17 MF   SUI Isaiah Okafor 19 MF   SUI Sebastian Walker 20 MF   SUI Patrice Kissling

No. Pos. Nation Player 21 MF   SUI Mathis Holcbecher 22 DF   SUI Selmin Hodža 23 DF   SUI Tobias Okafor 24 DF   SUI Yanik Kunz 26 DF   TUR Emirhan Eraslan 27 DF   SUI Yuro Bohon Diet 28 GK   SUI Silas Huber 34 MF   ITA Cosimo Fiorini — GK   SUI Sasha Blaser — GK   SUI Micha Ziegler — DF   SUI Noah Leao Muata — DF   SUI Ivan Kovacevic — DF   SUI Neil Volken — FW   SUI Dylan Munroe — FW   NED Jahnoah Markelo

As of 15 March 2016^[19]

See also: Category:FC Zürich players

Players and managers admitted to the FC Zurich Hall of Fame

Players for the Swiss national football team

Players with World Cup appearances for their national teams

Players in bold are still part of the club.

Most appearances[20] (Swiss League since 1955) # Nat. Player Apps 1   Karl Grob 513 2   Jakob Kuhn 398 3   Rudolf Landolt 353 4   Rosario Martinelli 344 5   Werner Leimgruber 314 6   Urs Fischer 303 7   Marco Schönbächler 292 8   Alain Nef 277 9   Pirmin Stierli 248 10   Heinz Lüdi 244

Top scorers[21] (Swiss League since 1955) # Nat. Player Goals 1   Fritz Künzli 158 2   Rosario Martinelli 126 3   Jakob Kuhn 79 4   Peter Risi 76 5   Bruno Brizzi 74 5   Werner Leimgruber 74 7   Walter Seiler 62 8   Ercument Sahin 60 9   Alhassane Keita 58 9   Klaus Stürmer 58

As of 18 August 2022.

Season	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Aggregate
1963–64	European Cup	PR	Dundalk	1–2	3–0	4–2
		1R	Galatasaray	2–0	0–2	2–2
		QF	PSV Eindhoven	3–1	0–1	3–2
		SF	Real Madrid	1–2	0–6	1–8
1966–67	European Cup	1R	Celtic	0–3	0–2	0–5
1967–68	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	1R	Barcelona	3–1	0–1	3–2
		2R	Nottingham Forest	1–0	1–2	2–2(a)
		3R	Sporting CP	3–0	0–1	3–1
		QF	Dundee	0–1	0–1	0–2
1968–69	European Cup	1R	AB	1–3	1–2	2–5
1969–70	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	1R	Kilmarnock	3–2	1–3	4–5
1970–71	European Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Knattspyrnufélag Akureyrar	7–0	7–1	14–1
		2R	Club Brugge	3–2	0–2	3–4
1972–73	European Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Wrexham	1–1	1–2	2–3
1973–74	European Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Anderlecht	1–0	2–3	3–3(a)
		2R	Malmö	0–0	1–1	1–1(a)
		QF	Sporting CP	1–1	0–3	1–4
1974–75	European Cup	1R	Leeds United	2–1	1–4	3–5
1975–76	European Cup	1R	Újpest	5–1	0–4	5–5(a)
1976–77	European Cup	1R	Rangers	1–0	1–1	2–1
		2R	Turun Palloseura	2–0	1–0	3–0
		QF	Dynamo Dresden	2–1	2–3	4–4(a)
		SF	Liverpool	1–3	0–3	1–6
1977–78	UEFA Cup	1R	CSKA Sofia	1–0	1–1	2–1
		2R	Eintracht Frankfurt	3–4	0–3	3–7
1979–80	UEFA Cup	1R	Kaiserslautern	1–3	1–5	2–8
1981–82	European Cup	1R	Dynamo Berlin	3–1	0–2	3–3(a)
1982–83	UEFA Cup	1R	Pezoporikos Larnaca	1–0	2–2	3–2
		2R	Ferencváros	1–0	1–1	2–1
		3R	Benfica	1–1	0–4	1–5
1983–84	UEFA Cup	1R	Antwerp	2–4	1–4	3–8
1998–99	UEFA Cup	2QR	Shakhtar Donetsk	4–0	2–3	6–3
		1R	Anorthosis Famagusta	4–0	3–2	7–2
		2R	Celtic	4–2	1–1	5–3
		3R	Roma	2–2	0–1	2–3
1999–00	UEFA Cup	QR	Sliema Wanderers	1–0	3–0	4–0
		1R	Lierse	4–3	1–0	5–3
		2R	Newcastle United	1–2	1–3	2–5
2000–01	UEFA Cup	1R	Genk	1–2	0–2	1–4
2005–06	UEFA Cup	2QR	Legia Warsaw	4–1	1–0	5–1
		1R	Brøndby	2–1	0–2	2–3
2006–07	UEFA Champions League	2QR	Red Bull Salzburg	2–1	0–2	2–3
2007–08	UEFA Champions League	3QR	Beşiktaş	1–1	0–2	1–3
	UEFA Cup	1R	Empoli	3–0	1–2	4–2
		Group E	Sparta Prague	—	2–1	3rd
			Toulouse	2–0	—
			Spartak Moscow	—	0–1
			Bayer Leverkusen	0–5	—
		R32	Hamburger SV	1–3	0–0	1–3
2008–09	UEFA Cup	2QR	Sturm Graz	1–1	1–1 (a.e.t.)	2–2 (4–2 p)
		1R	Milan	0–1	1–3	1–4
2009–10	UEFA Champions League	3QR	Maribor	2–3	3–0	5–3
		PO	Ventspils	2–1	3–0	5–1
		Group C	Real Madrid	2–5	0–1	4th
			Milan	1–1	1–0
			Marseille	0–1	1–6
2011–12	UEFA Champions League	3QR	Standard Liège	1–0	1–1	2–1
		PO	Bayern Munich	0–1	0–2	0–3
	UEFA Europa League	Group D	Sporting CP	0–2	0–2	4th
			Vaslui	2–0	2–2
			Lazio	1–1	0–1
2013–14	UEFA Europa League	3QR	Slovan Liberec	1–2	1–2	2–4
2014–15	UEFA Europa League	PO	Spartak Trnava	1–1	3–1	4–2
		Group A	Apollon Limassol	3–1	2–3	3rd
			Borussia Mönchengladbach	1–1	0–3
			Villarreal	3–2	1–4
2015–16	UEFA Europa League	3QR	Dinamo Minsk	0–1	1–1	1–2
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	Group L	Villarreal	1–1	1–2	3rd
			FCSB	0–0	1–1
			Osmanlıspor	2–1	0–2
2018–19	UEFA Europa League	Group A	Bayer Leverkusen	3–2	0–1	2nd
			Ludogorets Razgrad	1–0	1–1
			AEK Larnaca	1–2	1–0
		R32	Napoli	1–3	0–2	1–5
2022–23	UEFA Champions League	2QR	Qarabağ	2–2 (a.e.t.)	2–3	4−5
	UEFA Europa League	3QR	Linfield	3–0	2–0	5–0
		PO	Heart of Midlothian	2–1	1–0	3–1
		Group A	Arsenal	1–2	0–1	4th
			Bodø/Glimt	2–1	1–2
			PSV Eindhoven	1–5	0–5
2024–25	UEFA Conference League	2QR	Shelbourne	3–0	0–0	3–0
		3QR	Vitória de Guimarães	0–3	0–2	0–5

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to FC Zürich.

• FC Zürich stats (in German)
• Archive FC Zürich (in German)
• Copa90: Zurich On Fire! – FC Zürich vs Grasshoppers on YouTube