Grasshopper Club Zürich

"GCZ" redirects here. For the military decoration, see Gold Cross of Zimbabwe.

Grasshopper Club Zürich

Full name	Grasshopper Club Zürich
Nickname(s)	Hoppers
Short name	GC, GCZ, Grasshoppers
Founded	1 September 1886 (1886-09-01)
Ground	Letzigrund
Capacity	26,104
Owner	Los Angeles FC
President	Stacy Johns (interim)
Sporting director	Stephan Schwarz
Coach	Marco Schällibaum
League	Swiss Super League
2022–23	7th of 10
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours

Grasshopper Club Zürich, commonly referred to as simply GC, GCZ, or Grasshoppers, is a professional multisports club based in Zürich, Switzerland. The oldest and best-known department of the club is its football team. With 27 titles, Grasshopper holds the records for winning the most national championships and the Swiss Cups, with 19 trophies in the latter. The club is the oldest football team in Zürich and maintains a substantial rivalry with FC Zürich.

The origin of Grasshopper's name is unknown, although the most common explanation refers to its early players' energetic post-goal celebrations and that their style of play was nimble and energetic.

After a number of appearances in European Cups and the UEFA Champions League, Grasshopper has become one of Switzerland's most recognizable football clubs. Today, in addition to its main football squad, the club has competitive professional and youth teams in rowing, ice hockey, handball, lawn tennis, court tennis, field hockey, curling, basketball, rugby, squash, floorball and beach soccer.

History

Chart of GCZ table positions in the Swiss football league system

Main article: History of Grasshopper Club Zürich

Grasshopper was founded on 1 September 1886 by Tom E. Griffith, an English student. In 1893, Grasshopper became the first Swiss team to play in (what was then) Germany, defeating Strasbourg 1–0. The first Swiss championships (then called "Serie A") were held in 1897–98 and were won by Grasshopper, as was the first championship played using a league system in 1899–1900.

Their biggest European success to date came in the 1977–78 UEFA Cup where they reached the semi-final against French side Bastia. After a 3–2 win at home, they traveled to Corsica for the second leg but lost 0–1 and were eliminated due to the away goal rule.

In 1997, Grasshopper was incorporated and as of May 2005, it is formally organized as Neue Grasshopper Fussball AG. In doing so, Grasshopper became the first Swiss sports club to go public.

Their to date last Swiss championship title was won in 2003. In 2013, Grasshopper ended a ten-year trophy drought with a penalty shoot-out victory over Basel in the Swiss Cup final. It would be the last trophy won for over a decade.

In 2019, Grasshopper were relegated to the second division for the first time in 68 years.

In April 2020, it was revealed that the Hong Kong-based Champion Union HK Holding Limited had acquired 90% of GC shares.

On 17 January 2024, a long-term partnership with MLS side Los Angeles FC was announced, with LAFC acquiring over 90% of the shares from the previous owners, Champion Union.

Stadium and grounds

Main articles: Hardturm, Letzigrund, and Stadion Zürich

Since September 2007, Grasshopper-Club Zürich has played all of its home matches in the Letzigrund stadium which is the regular home ground of FC Zürich. After the completion of the new Stadion Zürich (currently in planning stage), both teams are expected to play there.

From 1929 to 2007, Grasshopper had their own home ground in the Hardturm stadium. Before 1929, home matches were played at various other venues.

Training facilities are located in Niederhasli, where in 2005 the club opened a comprehensive facility including five practice pitches, apartments for youth players and offices.

Rivalries

FC Zürich

Main article: Zürich Derby

FC Zürich was founded ten years after GC in 1896. A year later, the first derby between the two Zurich clubs was held as part of the first Swiss championship, where GC defeated FC Zurich 7–2. As the two teams did not always play in the same league, it would take nearly 70 years until the 100th derby. To date, 251 official derbies have been held, with Grasshopper leading with 121 wins to FC Zurich's 90, leaving 39 draws.

Basel

Basel has long been a rival to GC, owing largely to the rivalry between the two cities. As a result, games between FC Zurich and Basel are also often heated games, often leading to clashes between fans.

From the late 60s to the early 80s, both GC and Basel had numerous Swiss championship victories. However, in 1988, Basel was relegated to the Nationalliga B. The rivalry flared up at the beginning of the 21st century, when FCB's improved performance has made them a mainstay at the top the Swiss league. However, with FCB's rise came GC's downfall and the rivalry has become largely one-sided. The most recent notable meeting between the two teams was the Swiss Cup Final in 2013, where Grasshoppers were able to beat Basel in penalties, with a score of 1–1 after extra time.

Honours

League

• Swiss Championship
  • Champions (27): 1897–98, 1899–1900, 1900–01, 1904–05, 1920–21, 1926–27, 1927–28, 1930–31, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1941–42, 1942–43, 1944–45, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1970–71, 1977–78, 1981–82, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1997–98, 2000–01, 2002–03 (record)
  • Runner-up (21): 1925–16, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1937–38, 1953–54, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1967–68, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1986–87, 1988–89, 1993–94, 1998–99, 2001–02, 2012–13, 2013–14
• Nationalliga B/Challenge League
  • Winners (2): 1950–51, 2020–21

Cups

• Swiss Cup
  • Winners (19): 1925–26, 1926–27, 1931–32, 1933–34, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1939–40, 1940–41, 1941–42, 1942–43, 1945–46, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1982–83, 1987–88, 1988–89, 1989–90, 1993–94, 2012–13 (record)
  • Runner-up (13): 1927–28, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1948–49, 1952–53, 1957–58, 1962–63, 1977–78, 1992–93, 1994–95, 1998–99, 2001–02, 2003–04
• Swiss League Cup
  • Winners: 1973, 1975
  • Runner-up: 1977–78, 1979–80
• Swiss Super Cup
  • Winners: 1989
  • Runner-up: 1988, 1990

European Competitions

Main article: Grasshopper Club Zürich in European football

• Champions League/European Cup
  • Quarter-finalist: 1978–79
• Europa League/UEFA Cup
  • Semi-finalist: 1977–78
• European Cup Winners' Cup
  • Quarter-finalist: 1989–90

Players

Current squad

As of 15 April 2024

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
2	DF	NED	Dirk Abels
4	DF	LVA	Kristers Tobers
5	DF	AUS	Joshua Laws
6	MF	ALB	Amir Abrashi (captain)
7	MF	GER	Tsiy-William Ndenge
8	MF	SUI	Giotto Morandi
9	FW	SUI	Bradley Fink (on loan from Basel)
10	MF	GER	Meritan Shabani
11	MF	SUI	Pascal Schürpf
14	DF	FRA	Théo Ndicka
15	DF	JPN	Ayumu Seko
19	MF	AUT	Dijon Kameri (on loan from RB Salzburg)
20	MF	SUI	Noah Blasucci
21	FW	AUS	Awer Mabil
22	FW	NGA	Francis Momoh
23	GK	SUI	Nicolas Glaus

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
24	DF	PHI	Michael Kempter
27	FW	POR	Asumah Abubakar
29	GK	AUT	Manuel Kuttin
40	MF	GER	Robin Kalem
48	DF	EST	Maksim Paskotši
52	MF	SUI	Samuel Marques
53	DF	SUI	Tim Meyer
54	DF	SUI	Liam Bollati (on loan from Kriens)
55	MF	SUI	Damian Nigg
57	DF	ALB	Elvir Zukaj
70	MF	GER	Oliver Batista Meier (on loan from Dynamo Dresden)
71	GK	SUI	Justin Hammel
73	DF	KOS	Florian Hoxha
77	FW	SUI	Filipe de Carvalho
90	GK	SUI	Steven Deana
99	FW	MKD	Dorian Babunski

Academy players with first-team contracts

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	SUI	Mark Mihaljevic
—	DF	KOS	Sead Ahmeti
—	DF	SUI	Diego Poloni
—	MF	SUI	Tariq Blake
—	MF	KOS	Dior Gerbovci
—	MF	SUI	Eliano Guido

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	MF	SUI	Leart Kabashi
—	FW	SUI	Tugra Turhan
—	DF	KOS	Davud Sylaj
—	DF	SUI	Loris Giandomenico
—	FW	POR	Miguel Martins

Other players under contract

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	FW	CHN	Jia Boyan

Out on loan

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
27	FW	AZE	Renat Dadashov (at Hatayspor until 30 June 2024)
50	MF	SUI	Simone Stroscio (at Schaffhausen until 30 June 2024)
74	FW	SUI	Elmin Rastoder (at Vaduz until 30 June 2024)

Women's team

Main articles: Grasshopper Club Zürich (women) and Swiss Women's Super League

The women's division was founded in 2009, when GC/Schwerzenbach (originally FFC Schwerzenbach) was absorbed into the club.

As of 7 September 2023

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

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
4	MF	SUI	Victoria Laino
5	MF	SUI	Sabina Jackson
6	DF	SUI	Luna Lempérière (captain)
7	FW	CRO	Ana Maria Marković
8	MF	CRO	Ella Ljustina
9	DF	GER	Anna Blässe
10	MF	SUI	Yllka Kadriu
11	DF	SUI	Lara Meroni
12	GK	SUI	Isabel Rutishauser
13	DF	SUI	Leandra Flury
14	FW	LTU	Ugnė Lazdauskaitė
15	MF	SUI	Noemi Ivelj
16	FW	SUI	Emanuela Pfister
17	MF	POL	Klaudia Lefeld

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
18	GK	SUI	Saskia Bürki
19	FW	HUN	Emőke Pápai
20	FW	SUI	Janina Egli
21	DF	SUI	Emma Egli
21	MF	SUI	Sydney Schertenleib
23	FW	AUT	Noémie Potier
25	GK	SUI	Lia Winkler
27	DF	SUI	Melanie Müller
28	FW	SVN	Nina Predanič
29	FW	SUI	Seraina Kaufmann
32	DF	GER	Tamar Dongus
44	FW	SUI	Lillian Schertenleib
77	GK	SUI	Gilliane Roch

Notable former players

See also: Category:Grasshopper Club Zürich players

Players for the Swiss national football team

• Alfred "Fredy" Bickel
• Thomas Bickel
• Stéphane Chapuisat
• Patrick de Napoli
• Ricardo Cabanas
• Diego Benaglio
• Christoph Spycher
• Christian Gross
• Marcel Koller
• Stephan Lichtsteiner
• Patrick Müller
• Boris Smiljanić
• Roman Bürki
• Pajtim Kasami
• Ciriaco Sforza
• Alain Sutter
• Kubilay Türkyilmaz
• Johann Vogel
• Eldin Jakupović
• Blaise Nkufo
• Yann Sommer
• Hakan Yakin
• Murat Yakin
• Reto Ziegler
• Raimondo Ponte
• Claudio Sulser
• Stéphane Grichting
• Haris Seferovic
• Philippe Senderos
• Bernt Haas

Players with World Cup appearances for their national teams

• Kurt Jara
• Izet Hajrović
• Senad Lulić
• Günter Netzer
• Daniel Davari
• Vittorio Pozzo
• Wynton Rufer
• Efan Ekoku
• Femi Opabunmi
• Franco Navarro
• Tomasz Rząsa
• Viorel Moldovan
• Tosh McKinlay
• Papa Bouba Diop
• Henri Camara
• Ove Grahn
• Mats Gren
• Kim Källström

Coaching staff

Current coaching staff

As of 21 July 2023

Position	Name	Since
Head coach	Marco Schällibaum	04/2024
Assistant coach	Rolf Neumann	04/2024
Assistant coach	Klaus Hildermann	04/2024
Fitness coach	Sascha Kaufmann	04/2024
Athletic coach	Philippe Hasler	05/2021
Goalie Coach	Jörg Stiel	06/2021
Video analyst	Rain Nappir	04/2021

Academy Coaches and Staff

As of 29 May 2024

Position	Name	Since
Technical Director	Remo Gaugler	05/2024
Technical Director	Sandro Chieffo	05/2024
Talent Manager	Sascha Müller	03/2023
Under 21	Nikola Marunic	02/2024
Under 19	Kristijan Đorđević	02/2024
Under 18	Artur Petrosyan	01/2022
Under 17	Jacob Wolf	07/2023
Under 16	Porimet Lötscher	07/2023
Under 15	Raffaele Cardiello	07/2023

List of Coaches (since 1925)

• Izidor "Dori" Kürschner (1925–34)
• Karl Rappan (1935–48)
• Gerhard "Hardy" Walter (1948–50)
• Willi Treml (1950–55)
• Willi Hahnemann (1955–58)
• Svetislav Glišović (1958)
• Antun Pogačnik and Alfred "Fredy" Bickel (1958–60)
• Branislav Vukosavljević (1960–63)
• Alfred "Fredy" Bickel (1963–64)
• Albert Sing (1964–66)
• Walter Brunner and Werner Schley (1966–67)
• Henri Skiba (1967–69)
• Walter Brunner and Werner Schley (1969–70)
• René Hüssy (1970–73)
• Erich Vogel and István Szabó (1973–76)
• Helmuth Johannsen (1 July 1976 – 30 June 1979)
• Jürgen Sundermann (1 July 1979 – 30 June 1980)
• Friedhelm Konietzka (1980–82)
• Hennes Weisweiler (1 July 1982 – 5 July 1983)
• Miroslav Blažević (1983 – 30 June 1985)
• Friedhelm Konietzka (1985–86)
• Kurt Jara (1 November 1986 – 30 June 1988)
• Ottmar Hitzfeld (1 July 1988 – 30 June 1991)
• Oldrich Svab (1991–92)
• Leo Beenhakker (1 July 1992 – 30 June 1993)
• Christian Gross (1 July 1993 – 23 November 1997)
• Hanspeter Latour (interim) (1997)
• Rolf Fringer (1 January 1998 – 17 December 1998)
• Roger Hegi (1 January 1999 – 1 August 1999)
• Roy Hodgson (1 July 1999 – 30 June 2000)
• Piet Hamberg (interim) (2000)
• Hanspeter Zaugg (22 June 2000 – 8 January 2002)
• Marcel Koller (1 January 2002 – 2 October 2003)
• Carlos Bernegger (interim) (3 October 2003 – 22 December 2003)
• Alain Geiger (23 December 2003 – 4 October 2004)
• Carlos Bernegger (interim) (4 October 2004 – 31 December 2004)
• Krassimir Balakov (16 January 2006 – 21 May 2007)
• Carlos Bernegger (interim) (2007)
• Hanspeter Latour (1 July 2007 – 30 June 2009)
• Ciriaco Sforza (1 July 2009 – 15 April 2012)
• Uli Forte (16 April 2012 – 30 June 2013)
• Michael Skibbe (1 July 2013 – 8 January 2015)
• Pierluigi Tami (15 January 2015 – 12 March 2017)
• Carlos Bernegger (12 March 2017 – 24 August 2017)
• Murat Yakin (28 August 2017 – 10 April 2018)
• Mathias Walther (10 April 2018 – 23 April 2018) (caretaker)
• Thorsten Fink (23 April 2018 – 4 March 2019)
• Tomislav Stipic (6 March 2019 – 9 April 2019)
• Uli Forte (9 April 2019 – 7 February 2020)
• Goran Djuricin (10 February 2020 – 15 May 2020)
• Zoltán Kádár (15 May 2020 – 5 August 2020) (caretaker)
• João Carlos Pereira (6 August 2020 – 5 May 2021)
• Zoltán Kádár (5 May 2021 – 9 June 2021) (caretaker)
• Giorgio Contini (9 June 2021 – 9 June 2023)
• Bruno Berner (9 June 2023 – 9 April 2024)
• Marco Schällibaum (10 April 2024 – present)

Organisation

As of 21 May 2024

Board of Directors
Position	Name	Since
President	Stacy Johns	01/2024
Board member	Larry Freedman	01/2024
Vice-president	András Gurovits	07/2023
Management
Sporting director	Stephan Schwarz	03/2024
Director of Commercial	Mike-David Burkhard	07/2024
Head of Finance	Roland Gebhard	02/2023

Further reading

• History of Grasshopper Club Zürich
• Grasshopper Club Zürich in European football
• Zürich Derby
• Hardturm and Letzigrund

External links

Fan sites

• GCZForum – Bulletin Board (Forum) for Fans of GCZ (in German)
• GCZone – Fansite of GCZ (in German)
• Grassmokers – Oldest unofficial fanclub of GCZ Archived 8 March 2005 at the Wayback Machine (in German)
• Main fan page with organisation for away games (in German)