Grasshopper Club Zurich facts for kids
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| Full name | Grasshopper Club Zurich | ||
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| Nickname(s) | Grasshoppers or Hoppers | ||
| Short name | GC, GCZ, Grasshoppers | ||
| Founded | 1 September 1886 | ||
| Ground | Letzigrund | ||
| Capacity | 26,104 | ||
| Owner | Los Angeles FC | ||
| President | Stacy Johns | ||
| Sporting director | Alain Sutter | ||
| Coach | Gerald Scheiblehner | ||
| League | Swiss Super League | ||
| 2024–25 | 11th of 12 | ||
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Grasshopper Club Zurich (often called GCZ or just GC) is a famous sports club from Zurich, Switzerland. People often call them the Grasshoppers or Hoppers. The most well-known part of the club is its football (soccer) team.
The Grasshoppers hold the record for winning the most national championships in Switzerland, with 27 titles. They have also won the Swiss Cup 19 times, which is another record! They are the oldest football team in Zurich and have a big rivalry with FC Zurich.
Nobody knows for sure how the club got its unique name. One popular idea is that their early players celebrated goals with lots of energy, jumping around like grasshoppers. Their playing style was also quick and lively.
Over the years, Grasshopper Club Zurich has played in major European tournaments like the UEFA Champions League. This has made them one of Switzerland's most recognized football clubs. Besides football, the club has many other sports teams. These include rowing, ice hockey, handball, lawn tennis, field hockey, curling, basketball, rugby, squash, floorball, and beach soccer.
Contents
Club History and Achievements
Grasshopper Club Zurich was started on September 1, 1886. An English student named Tom E. Griffith founded the club. In 1893, the Grasshopper Club became the first Swiss team to play a match in Germany. They won against Strasbourg with a score of 1–0.
The Grasshoppers won the very first Swiss championship in 1897–98. They also won the first championship played in a league format in 1899–1900.
Their best result in a European competition was in the 1977–78 UEFA Cup. They reached the semi-finals against a French team called Bastia. They won the first game at home 3–2. However, they lost the second game 0–1 and were knocked out because of the away goal rule.
In 1997, the Grasshopper Club became a company. By May 2005, it was officially called Neue Grasshopper Fussball AG. This made Grasshopper the first Swiss sports club to be publicly owned.
Their most recent Swiss championship title was in 2003. In 2013, the Grasshoppers won the Swiss Cup after ten years without a trophy. They beat Basel in a penalty shoot-out in the final. This was their last major trophy for over a decade.
In 2019, the Grasshoppers were moved down to the second division. This was the first time in 68 years they had been relegated.
In April 2020, a company from Hong Kong bought 90% of the club's shares. Then, on January 17, 2024, a new partnership was announced. The MLS team Los Angeles FC bought over 90% of the shares from the previous owners.
Home Stadium and Training
Since September 2007, Grasshopper Club Zurich has played its home games at the Letzigrund stadium. This stadium is also the home ground for their rival, FC Zurich. There are plans for a new stadium in Zurich. Both teams are expected to play there once it is finished.
Before 2007, the Grasshopper Club had its own stadium called Hardturm. This stadium was built in 1929 but was torn down in December 2008. Before 1929, the team played at different places.
The club's training facilities and football academy are in Niederhasli. In 2005, the club opened a large facility there. It includes five practice fields, apartments for young players, and offices.
Big Rivalries
FC Zurich Derby
FC Zurich was founded in 1896, ten years after GC. The first game between these two Zurich clubs was in 1897–98. GC won that game 7–2. Since the teams were not always in the same league, it took almost 70 years to reach 100 derby matches. So far, there have been 251 official derby games. GC has won 121 times, FC Zurich has won 90 times, and 39 games ended in a draw.
A match on October 2, 2011, is known as the "Disgrace of Zurich" by Swiss media. This was because of fighting among FC Zurich fans. The violence started after Grasshopper fans took FC Zurich banners and showed them in their own section to make fun of their rivals.
Rivalry with Basel
Basel has also been a long-time rival for GC. This is mainly because of the competition between the two cities. Games between Grasshoppers and Basel are often very intense. They can sometimes lead to clashes between fans.
From the late 1960s to the early 1980s, both GC and Basel won many Swiss championships. However, in 1988, Basel was relegated to a lower league. The rivalry became strong again in the early 2000s. FCB started playing much better and became a top team in the Swiss league. But as FCB got stronger, GC's performance went down. This made the rivalry less balanced. The most recent important game between them was the Swiss Cup Final in 2013. Grasshoppers beat Basel in a penalty shootout after the game ended 1–1.
Club Honours
National Titles
League Championships
- Swiss Championship
- Champions (27 times): 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 (a record!)
- Runner-up (21 times): 1925–26, 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 times): 1950–51, 2020–21
Cup Wins
- Swiss Cup
- Winners (19 times): 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 (a record!)
- Runner-up (13 times): 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
- 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 and Teams
Current Men's Squad
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Academy Players with First-Team Contracts
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Players on Loan
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Women's Team
The Grasshopper Club also has a women's football team. It was started in 2009 when another club, FFC Schwerzenbach, joined GC.
Famous Former Players
Many talented players have played for Grasshopper Club Zurich. Some of them have even played for their national teams in big tournaments like the FIFA World Cup.
Players who played 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 who played in the World Cup 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
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Academy Coaches and Staff
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Club Management
| Board of Directors | ||
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| Position | Name | Since |
| President |  Stacy Johns |
January 2024 |
| Vice-president | András Gurovits |
July 2023 |
| Board member | Larry Freedman |
January 2024 |
| Management | ||
| Sporting director | Alain Sutter |
May 2025 |
| Chief Business Officer | Christoph Urech |
June 2025 |
| Head of Finance | Roland Gebhard |
February 2023 |
More About Grasshopper Club Zurich
- History of Grasshopper Club Zurich
- Grasshopper Club Zurich in European football
- Zurich Derby
- Hardturm and Letzigrund
See also
In Spanish: Grasshopper Club Zúrich para niños
