Football match staged in empty stadium ends in a draw

Sion and Servette Geneva battle it out in front of empty stands Keystone

The first Swiss football match ever to be staged behind closed doors has finished in a 1-1 draw between Sion and Servette Geneva.

The two clubs were forced to replay their first division match in an empty Tourbillon stadium after the Servette goalkeeper, Eric Pédat, was felled by a cracker thrown from behind his goal during their encounter last month. Servette lost the game 2-1.

Tight security measures meant that only around 100 people, mainly officials, ballboys and members of the press, were able to witness the contest, which passed without trouble.

Those who made it into the ground saw Sion grab an early lead in the third minute when Pouyes capitalised on an error by the Servette midfielder Pizzinat.

The score remained 1-0 until the 63rd minute when the Geneva side scored with practically their first chance of the match. Thurre continued his rich vein of form since returning from injury – four goals in the last three matches – by drilling the ball past Borer in the Sion goal.

The result moves Servette into fifth place in the table, level on points with Basel and Zurich, and just three points behind the leaders, St Gallen. Sion remain bottom with 24 points.

swissinfo with agencies