The following is a summary of the 2002–03 season of competitive football in Switzerland.
Nationalliga A
Qualification phase
Championship round The first eight teams of the regular season (or Qualification) competed in the Championship Playoff Round. They took half of the points (rounded up to complete units) gained in the Qualification as Bonus with them.
Nationalliga B Qualification phase
Promotion/relegation group NLA/NLB
Relegation group NLB/1. Liga
1. Liga
There were 48 teams in this division this season, including seven U-21 teams, which were the eldest youth teams of the professional clubs in the Super League and the Challenge League. The 1. Liga was divided into three regional groups, each with 16 teams.
Group 1
Group 2
Group 3
Promotion play-off The three group winners and the three runners-up, together with the two best third placed teams, then contested a play-off for the four promotion slots.
Meyrin win 4–2 on aggregate and are promoted to 2003–04 Challenge League.
Malcantone win 3–2 on aggregate and are promoted to 2003–04 Challenge League.
Chiasso win 4–2 on aggregate and were promoted to 2003–04 Challenge League.
Bulle win 4–1 on aggregate and were promoted to 2003–04 Challenge League.
La Chaux-de-Fonds were later also promoted later on the green table by the Swiss Football Association up to the 2003–04 Challenge League following the fact that FC Sion were refused their licence for that division.
Play-out against relegation Aarau U-21 withdrew from play-outs and were so relegated directly. The one remaining match was played in a neutral venue, on May 25 in Solothurn.
FC Stade Nyonnais win 5–4 in the penalty shoot-out. Rapperswil-Jona were relegated. Stade Nyonnais remain at this level.
Swiss Cup
The four winners of the quarter-finals played in the semi-finals. The winners of the first drawn semi-final is considered as home team in the final.
Semi-finals
Source:
Source:
Final The final was played in the St. Jakob-Park on 11 May 2003.
Source:
Swiss Clubs in Europe A UEFA Cup place is vacated when a team qualifies for both the Champions League and the UEFA Cup, Basel had achieved the double. When a place is vacated, it is redistributed within the national association by the following rule: The highest-placed team in the league which have not yet qualified for European competitions qualify for the UEFA Cup, with the UEFA Cup qualifiers that finish above them in the league, moved up one "place". Servette as highest placed non-qualified team were granted this vacated place.
FC Basel as 2001–02 Nationalliga A champions and 2001–02 Swiss Cup winners: Champions League second qualifying round Grasshopper Club as runners-up: UEFA Cup first round Lugano as third placed team: UEFA Cup qualifying round Servette as fourth placed team: UEFA Cup qualifying round Zürich as fifth placed team: Intertoto Cup first round St. Gallen as sixth placed team: Intertoto Cup first round FC Vaduz as 2001–02 Liechtenstein Cup winners: UEFA Cup qualifying round
Basel Champions League
Second qualifying round
Basel won 4–1 on aggregate
Third qualifying round
3–3 on aggregate, Basel won on away goals
Group stage
Final group table
Second group stage
Final group table
Grasshopper Club UEFA Cup
First round
Grasshopper won 4–3 on aggregate.
Second round
PAOK won 3–2 on aggregate.
Lugano UEFA Cup
Qualifying round
Ventspils won 3–1 on aggregate.
Servette UEFA Cup
Qualifying round
Servette won 5–0 on aggregate.
First round
4–4 on aggregate. Amica Wronki won on away goals.
Zürich Intertoto Cup
First round
Zürich won 8–2 on aggregate.
Second round
Zürich won 1–0 on aggregate.
Third round
Aston Villa won 3–2 on aggregate.
St. Gallen Intertoto Cup
First round
St. Gallen won 11–1 on aggregate.
Second round
Willem II won 2–1 on aggregate.
Vaduz UEFA Cup
Qualifying round
1–1 on aggregate. Livingston won on away goals.
References
Sources Switzerland 2002–03 at RSSSF 1. Liga season 2002–03 at the official website Switzerland Cup 2002–03 at RSSSF Cup finals at Fussball-Schweiz UEFA Intertoto Cup 2002 at RSSSF