The Uhrencup is a club football tournament, held annually in Grenchen and Biel in Switzerland. The Uhrencup is seen as a testament to the major influence that is exercised by the local watchmaking industry on the cultural lives of the area's residents ( is German for "watches"). The tournament usually features four teams (sometimes more), each playing two matches, and is held in July as a friendly tournament, the format of which tends to be fluid. For the teams taking part, the tournament is a welcome opportunity to prepare for the upcoming football season.
Origin Founded in 1962 by representatives of Grenchen's watchmaking industry, the first Uhrencup was held to celebrate the inauguration of the new grandstand at the local Brühl stadium. Due to the tournament's reverberating success it was repeated the following year and, thanks to the sponsoring from the local watch industry, it continues to be held annually (with the exception of 1967, 1974 and 2012).
History
Established as an international tournament (1962–1968) The first Uhrencup in 1962 already featured an international line-up. Together with the two local clubs FC Grenchen and FC Biel-Bienne, the Belgian team Cercle Brügge and Italian team AC Como also took part in the tournament. Due to its success and because it attracted about 20,000 spectators, it was repeated the following year.
The English side Ipswich Town won the tournament in 1963 and the Dutch team Sparta Rotterdam was the second international representative. A year later German club Karlsruher SC and the French team Nîmes Olympique competed in the Uhrencup. In 1965 Lanerossi Vicenza won the competition, Maccabi Tel Aviv also took part. In 1966 and again in 1968 FC Sochaux took part, winning the first of the two competitions, but not being at all successful two years later. In 1967 the competition was not held.
Uhrencup as regional event (1969–2002) At the end of the 1967–68 Nationalliga A season Grenchen were relegated and therefore the tournament lost its international significance. From here on it was mainly Swiss sides that took part in the Uhrencup and it turned into a regional event. FC Basel took part for the first time in 1969 and won the cup 5–3 in the final against Biel-Bienne, Wenger, Hauser (twice), Balmer and Odermatt scoring the Basel goals. A year later Basel defended the title with an 8–7 win after penalties following a 5–5 at full-time.
The next year the home team Grenchen won the cup for the second time, winning 3–1 against reigning Swiss Champions Basel, local boy Serge Muhmenthaler scoring one of the Grenchen goals. Neuchâtel Xamax won the Uhrencup 1972. Young Boys won the title 1973, Serge Muhmenthaler scoring a goal and winning his second Uhrencup title this time with his new team. In 1974 the competition was not held. Young Boys (1975) and Zürich (1976) were the next two cup winners. Serge Muhmenthaler reached his third Uhrencup Final with his third club in 1977 but was unable to repeat the success, the final ended in a 6–1 defeat against Neuchâtel Xamax. However reaching the final again in the next year Muhmenthaler won the 1978 Uhrencup with FC Basel 2–1 against the same finalists.
Basel won the title six times (1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1986, 1988), Grenchen won it three times (1981, 1982, 1985), Servette (1984) and Young Boys (1987) during the following years. As international teams were again invited to participate Partizan Belgrade (1989), Górnik Zabrze (1990) and 1. FC Köln (1991) competed and won the tournament.
During the following years (1992 to 2002) the Uhrencup returned to being a Swiss-Internal tournament. The winners being FC Zürich (three times), Grenchen (twice) and FC Solothurn, Grasshoppers and Sevette each once. FC Subingen, a team from the 2. Liga (then fourth tier of the Swiss Football League) won Uhrencup in 1997.
New edition as an international tournament (2003–2011) In 2003 a new organising committee took over the marketing of the Uhrencup and with added financial help it was again possible to invite international teams. Casino SW Bregenz, FC Schalke 04, 1. FC Kaiserslautern (twice), 1. FC Köln, Bayer Leverkusen, FC Red Bull Salzburg, Celtic Glasgow, Borussia Dortmund, Legia Warsaw and Panathinaikos Athens have participated during this period, but only Trabzonspor (2005) and Shakhtar Donetsk (2009) were able to win the title.
2010 was a truly international affair, with only one club (Young Boys) originating from Switzerland. The remaining competitors were Deportivo de La Coruña from Spain, the Dutch side Twente Enschede and the eventual winner VfB Stuttgart from Germany.
Basel won the competition for the twelfth time. In the 2011 event, they beat Hertha Berlin 3–0, and then went on to defeat West Ham 2–1 in their second game. The second Swiss team, Young Boys Bern, also won both matches against the international teams, but had a lower overall goal score with 6–3. To celebrate the 50th edition of the tournament, the current German champion Borussia Dortmund played a friendly game against the Swiss vice champion FC Zürich, which ended with a 1–1 tie.
Since 2013 In 2012 the tournament was not held, but was held in 2013 between 5 and 9 July with Basel and Grasshopper Club Zürich taking part. For Basel it was the 29th time that they would take place; they have won the competition thirteen times. The tournament again took a hiatus, this time of two years before returning in 2015.
2011
Standings
Matches
2013
Standings
Matches
2015
Standings
Matches
2016
Standings
Matches
2017
Standings
Results
2018
Standings
Results
2019
Standings
Results
Uhrencup winners by year
Year Placements Winner 2nd Place 3rd Place 4th place 1962 FC Grenchen Cercle Brugge K.S.V. Calcio Como FC Biel-Bienne 1963 Ipswich Town FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne Sparta Rotterdam 1964 BSC Young Boys Karlsruher SC Nîmes Olympique FC Grenchen 1965 Lanerossi Vicenza FC Grenchen BSC Young Boys Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. 1966 FC Sochaux-Montbéliard FC Grenchen Lanerossi Vicenza FC Biel-Bienne 1967 Not held 1968 FC Biel-Bienne BSC Young Boys FC Sochaux-Montbéliard FC Grenchen 1969 FC Basel FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen FC Lausanne-Sport 1970 FC Basel BSC Young Boys FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen 1971 FC Grenchen FC Basel FC Lausanne-Sport FC Biel-Bienne 1972 Neuchâtel Xamax FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen FC Basel 1973 BSC Young Boys FC Biel-Bienne Neuchâtel Xamax FC Grenchen 1974 Not held 1975 BSC Young Boys FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne FC La Chaux-de-Fonds 1976 FC Zurich BSC Young Boys FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne 1977 Neuchâtel Xamax FC Basel FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen 1978 FC Basel Neuchâtel Xamax FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne 1979 FC Basel FC Grenchen FC La Chaux-de-Fonds FC Luzern 1980 FC Basel FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne FC Luzern 1981 FC Grenchen FC Basel FC Luzern FC Biel-Bienne 1982 FC Grenchen FC Basel FC Aarau FC Biel-Bienne 1983 FC Basel FC Zurich FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne 1984 Servette FC FC Basel FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen 1985 FC Grenchen FC Basel FC Biel-Bienne Servette FC 1986 FC Basel Grasshopper Club Zürich FC Grenchen FC Biel-Bienne 1987 BSC Young Boys FC Grenchen Górnik Zabrze FC Basel 1988 FC Basel FC Grenchen FC Nitra FC Twente 1989 FK Partizan FC Grenchen FC Basel FC Zurich 1990 Górnik Zabrze FC Basel FC Lugano FC Aarau Eliminated (with the other two) as the last of group 1: FC Grenchen Eliminated as severed bottom of Group 2: FC Zurich 1991 1. FC Köln FC Sion Olimpia Poznań FC Grenchen 1992 FC Zurich SR Delémont FC Basel FC Grenchen 1993 FC Zurich FC Basel FC Grenchen SR Delémont 1994 FC Zurich SR Delémont FC Grenchen FC Schaffhausen 1995 FC Aarau FC Solothurn BSC Young Boys FC Grenchen 1996 FC Grenchen FC Solothurn SV Lyss FC Biel-Bienne 1997 FC Subingen FC Biel-Bienne FC Grenchen SV Lyss 1998 FC Solothurn SR Delémont FC Subingen FC Grenchen 1999 FC Grenchen FC Solothurn FC Langenthal FC Thun 2000 BSC Young Boys Neuchâtel Xamax FC Solothurn FC Grenchen 2001 Grasshopper Club Zürich BSC Young Boys FC Solothurn FC Grenchen 2002 Servette FC BSC Young Boys FC Aarau FC Grenchen 2003 FC Basel BSC Young Boys Grasshopper Club Zürich SC Bregenz 2004 BSC Young Boys 1. FC Kaiserslautern FC Basel FC Schalke 04 2005 Trabzonspor 1. FC Kaiserslautern BSC Young Boys FC Basel 2006 FC Zürich/FC Basel BSC Young Boys Bayer 04 Leverkusen, 1. FC Köln (both third) 2007 BSC Young Boys FC Basel FC Red Bull Salzburg Celtic F.C. 2008 FC Basel Borussia Dortmund FC Luzern Legia Warsaw 2009 FC Shakhtar Donetsk BSC Young Boys FC Basel Panathinaikos F.C. 2010 VfB Stuttgart BSC Young Boys FC Twente Deportivo de La Coruña 2011 FC Basel BSC Young Boys West Ham United Hertha BSC 2012 Not held 2013 FC Basel Red Star Belgrade Fortuna Düsseldorf Grasshopper Club Zürich 2014 Not held 2015 FC Biel-Bienne B. Mönchengladbach FC Sion A. Salzburg 2016 Galatasaray FC Zurich BSC Young Boys B. Mönchengladbach 2017 Stoke City BSC Young Boys S.L. Benfica Neuchâtel Xamax 2018 Wolverhampton Wanderers Feyenoord BSC Young Boys FC Basel 2019 BSC Young Boys Eintracht Frankfurt Crystal Palace FC Luzern
Titles by team
TeamYears wonTitles FC Basel1969, 1970, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1986, 1988, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2011, 201313 BSC Young Boys1964, 1973, 1975, 1987, 2000, 2004, 2007, 20198 FC Grenchen1962, 1971, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1996, 19997 FC Zurich1976, 1992, 1993, 1994, 20065 FC Biel-Bienne1968, 20152 Neuchâtel Xamax1972, 19772 Servette FC1984, 20022 1. FC Köln19911 FC Aarau19951 FC Shakhtar Donetsk20091 FC Sochaux-Montbéliard19661 FC Solothurn19981 FC Subingen19971 FK Partizan19891 Galatasaray20161 Grasshopper Club Zürich20011 Górnik Zabrze19901 Ipswich Town19631 Lanerossi Vicenza19651 Stoke City20171 Trabzonspor20051 VfB Stuttgart20101 Wolverhampton Wanderers20181
Participation by club
TeamParticipant FC Grenchen 39 FC Basel 30 BSC Young Boys24 FC Biel-Bienne23 FC Zurich10 FC Solothurn6 Neuchâtel Xamax6 FC Luzern5 FC Aarau4 Grasshopper Club Zürich4 SR Delémont4 Servette FC3 1. FC Kaiserslautern2 1. FC Köln 2 Borussia Dortmund2 Borussia Mönchengladbach2 FC La Chaux-de-Fonds2 FC Lausanne-Sport2 FC Sion2 FC Sochaux-Montbéliard2 FC Subingen2 FC Twente2 Górnik Zabrze2 Lanerossi Vicenza2 2 Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1 Calcio Como1 Celtic F.C.1 Cercle Brugge K.S.V. 1 Crystal Palace 1 Deportivo de La Coruña1 Eintracht Frankfurt1 FC Langenthal1 FC Lugano1 FC Nitra1 FC Red Bull Salzburg1 FC Schaffhausen1 FC Schalke 041 FC Shakhtar Donetsk1 FC Thun1 Feyenoord1 FK Partizan1 Fortuna Düsseldorf1 Galatasaray1 Hertha BSC1 Ipswich Town 1 Karlsruher SC1 Legia Warsaw1 Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C.1 Nîmes Olympique1 Olimpia Poznań1 Panathinaikos F.C.1 Red Star Belgrade1 SC Bregenz1 S.L. Benfica1 Sparta Rotterdam1 Stoke City1 SV Austria Salzburg1 Trabzonspor1 VfB Stuttgart1 West Ham United1 Wolverhampton Wanderers1
See also Swiss Super League List of football (soccer) competitions
References
External links Official site