Swiss make history after reaching women’s Euro quarterfinals

Thousands of fans celebrate Swiss national team at public viewing in Zurich Keystone-SDA

Around 2,000 fans watched the Swiss women's national football team reach the quarterfinals of the European Championships at the public viewing at Zurich's main railway station. There was huge jubilation when Switzerland scored the equaliser and when the final whistle blew.

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After the Finns took the lead with a penalty in the 79th minute, the mood among the fans of the Swiss women’s national team on the Zurich Fan Mile was audibly at rock bottom. The tentative cheers from the small Finnish fan base quickly died down. The cries of joy after the Swiss goal in stoppage time were all the louder, with drinks cups flying through the air.

It is the first time host nation Switzerland have made it out of the group stage since they first qualified for the Euros in 2017.

The public viewing area at the Zurich Fan Mile was already full on Thursday evening some time before kick-off. Around half an hour before kick-off, there was hardly any chance of getting in, and shortly after 9pm it was definitely over – the maximum capacity had been reached.

Hundreds of spectators also joined in the excitement outside the barriers or tried their luck at one of the other public viewings in the city. The atmosphere was relaxed but peaceful, with no major interventions by police or security personnel to be seen.

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While the fan chants were still restrained in the first half, the spectators in the “ZüriFanzone” were much louder in the second half.

Nevertheless, there is one small downer from the point of view of the Zurich fans after the successful evening: although the Swiss women’s national team has made it through to the knockout phase, the quarter-final match, probably against the world champions from Spain, will be played in Bern. But the “ZüriFanzone” is likely to be packed once again.

Translated from German by DeepL/ts

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