The Zürcher Schlittschuh Club Lions is a professional ice hockey team based in Zürich, Switzerland. The team competes in the National League (NL), the highest league in Switzerland. Its home arena is the 12,000-seat Swiss Life Arena. The team was founded in 1930 and played at the Dolder-Kunsteisbahn from its establishment until 1950.[1] Between 1950 and 2022, it played at the Hallenstadion.
| ZSC Lions | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Zürich, Switzerland |
| League | National League |
| Founded | 1930 |
| Home arena | Swiss Life Arena |
| Colors | |
| CEO | Peter Zahner |
| General manager | Sven Leuenberger |
| Head coach | Marco Bayer |
| Captain | Patrick Geering |
| Affiliates | GCK Lions |
| Website | www |
| Franchise history | |
| 1930–1997 | Zürcher SC |
| 1997–present | ZSC Lions |
 Current season | |
History
editZSC Lions was formed in 1997 as a result of the merger of the two local teams: the highly popular Zürcher Schlittschuh Club (German for "Zürich Skating Club"), who was struggling financially in National League A, and the ice hockey section of Grasshopper Club Zürich of the National League B, backed by entrepreneur and billionaire Walter Frey.[2]
ZSC was the first Swiss team to play in an indoor arena (Hallenstadion). The team won the Swiss championship in 1936, 1949 and 1961 and the Spengler Cup in 1944 and 1945. After the merger, the ZSC Lions won the Swiss championship in 2000, 2001, 2008, 2012, 2014 and 2018, and also won the IIHF Continental Cup in 2001 and 2002.
Champions Hockey League and Victoria Cup
editDuring the 2008–09 Season, the ZSC Lions participated in the first ever Champions Hockey League. For the group stage, the team was placed in group D with HC Slavia Praha and Linköpings HC. The Lions qualified for the semi-finals with a 3–1 record, first place in the group. With team's wins against the Finnish Espoo Blues, 6–3 and 4–1 respectively, it qualified for the tournament final. The first leg of the final was held on January 21, 2009 in the Magnitogorsk Arena where the Lions came back from a 0–2 deficit to Metallurg Magnitogorsk to end with a 2–2 tie.[3] The second leg was played a week later, on January 28, 2009, in the Diners Club Arena in Rapperswil-Jona, Switzerland. ZSC Lions won the game and the Silver Stone Trophy with a 5–0 victory.
With its victory in the Champions Hockey League, the ZSC Lions qualified to play the Chicago Blackhawks of the National Hockey League for the 2009 edition of the Victoria Cup challenge. Playing at home arena, the Lions upset the Blackhawks with a 2–1 victory, winning the trophy.[4] It was the first time since 1991 that the Blackhawks had lost to a club in Europe.
Honors
edit
- Swiss Champions (11): 1936, 1949, 1961, 2000, 2001, 2008, 2012, 2014, 2018, 2024, 2025
- Victoria Cup (1): 2009
- Champions Hockey League (2): 2009 (Silver Stone trophy), 2025
- IIHF Continental Cup (2): 2001, 2002
- Swiss Cup (3): 1960, 1961, 2016
- Spengler Cup (2): 1944, 1945
Players
editCurrent roster
editUpdated 1 June 2026
References
edit- ↑ "1930 bis heute | ZSC Lions". www.zsclions.ch. Archived from the original on 2016-04-16. Retrieved 2016-05-29.
- ↑ "ZSC-Lions Brochure" (PDF) (in German). zsclions.ch. 2021-07-13. Retrieved 2022-09-27.
- ↑ "Game Summary" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-02-06. Retrieved 2009-01-21.
- ↑ "Blackhawks suffer first loss to European club since '91". ESPN.com. 2009-09-29. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
External links
edit
- ZSC Lions official website (in German)