Ice hockey centenary 2008

The history of ice hockey can be traced back to the 16th century. A game on ice by the name of Bandy is said to have existed in the Netherlands at that time. Bandy, generally regarded as the forerunner of modern ice hockey, is played with a small ball according to rules closely resembling those of football. The first proper match took place in 1875 in London. Just five years later, Bandy reached Switzerland, the mountains of Grisons to be precise.

Ice hockey initially grew in popularity in French-speaking Switzerland. From there, ice hockey fever gradually gripped the entire country. In 1908, the national federation was founded in Vevey. The same year also saw the foundation in Paris of the international federation of which Switzerland was one of the original members. The first Swiss ice hockey championships were held in 1908/09 with eight teams from French-speaking Switzerland. Later, the epicentre of this winter sport shifted to German-speaking Switzerland. Over the course of the last one hundred years, ice hockey has grown to become the most important team game in our country alongside football. At the international level, the Swiss team has also been able to notch up a number of major successes. Unfortunately, these already lie some time ago in the past. Perhaps its luck may be about to change with the 2009 World Championships in our own country.