The Uhrencup is a club football tournament, held annually in Grenchen and Biel in Switzerland. The Uhrencup is seen as a testament to the major influence that is exercised by the local watchmaking industry on the cultural lives of the area's residents (Uhren is German for "watches"). The tournament usually features four teams (sometimes more), each playing two matches, and is held in July as a friendly tournament, the format of which tends to be fluid. For the teams taking part, the tournament is a welcome opportunity to prepare for the upcoming football season.

Uhrencup
Tournament details
Host countrySwitzerland
Dates10–14 July
Teams4 (from 3 confederations)
Venue(s)2 (in 2 host cities)
Final positions
ChampionsEngland Wolverhampton Wanderers (1st title)
Runners-upNetherlands Feyenoord
Third placeSwitzerland Young Boys
Fourth placeSwitzerland FC Basel
Tournament statistics
Matches played4
Goals scored15 (3.75 per match)
Top scorer(s)Bonatini, Mir, van Persie
(2 goals each)

Origin

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Founded in 1962 by representatives of Grenchen's watchmaking industry, the first Uhrencup was held to celebrate the inauguration of the new grandstand at the local Brühl stadium. Due to the tournament's reverberating success it was repeated the following year and, thanks to the sponsoring from the local watch industry, it continues to be held annually (with the exception of 1967, 1974 and 2012).

History

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Established as an international tournament (1962–1968)

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The first Uhrencup in 1962 already featured an international line-up. Together with the two local clubs FC Grenchen and FC Biel-Bienne, the Belgian team Cercle Brügge and Italian team AC Como also took part in the tournament. Due to its success and because it attracted about 20,000 spectators, it was repeated the following year.

The English side Ipswich Town won the tournament in 1963 and the Dutch team Sparta Rotterdam was the second international representative. A year later German club Karlsruher SC and the French team Nîmes Olympique competed in the Uhrencup. In 1965 Lanerossi Vicenza won the competition, Maccabi Tel Aviv also took part. In 1966 and again in 1968 FC Sochaux took part, winning the first of the two competitions, but not being at all successful two years later. In 1967 the competition was not held.

Uhrencup as regional event (1969–2002)

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At the end of the 1967–68 Nationalliga A season Grenchen were relegated and therefore the tournament lost its international significance. From here on it was mainly Swiss sides that took part in the Uhrencup and it turned into a regional event. FC Basel took part for the first time in 1969 and won the cup 5–3 in the final against Biel-Bienne, Wenger, Hauser (twice), Balmer and Odermatt scoring the Basel goals. A year later Basel defended the title with an 8–7 win after penalties following a 5–5 at full-time.

The next year the home team Grenchen won the cup for the second time, winning 3–1 against reigning Swiss Champions Basel, local boy Serge Muhmenthaler scoring one of the Grenchen goals. Neuchâtel Xamax won the Uhrencup 1972. Young Boys won the title 1973, Serge Muhmenthaler scoring a goal and winning his second Uhrencup title this time with his new team. In 1974 the competition was not held. Young Boys (1975) and Zürich (1976) were the next two cup winners. Serge Muhmenthaler reached his third Uhrencup Final with his third club in 1977 but was unable to repeat the success, the final ended in a 6–1 defeat against Neuchâtel Xamax. However reaching the final again in the next year Muhmenthaler won the 1978 Uhrencup with FC Basel 2–1 against the same finalists.

Basel won the title six times (1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1986, 1988), Grenchen won it three times (1981, 1982, 1985), Servette (1984) and Young Boys (1987) during the following years. As international teams were again invited to participate Partizan Belgrade (1989), Górnik Zabrze (1990) and 1. FC Köln (1991) competed and won the tournament.

During the following years (1992 to 2002) the Uhrencup returned to being a Swiss-Internal tournament. The winners being FC Zürich (three times), Grenchen (twice) and FC Solothurn, Grasshoppers and Sevette each once. FC Subingen, a team from the 2. Liga (then fourth tier of the Swiss Football League) won Uhrencup in 1997.

New edition as an international tournament (2003–2011)

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In 2003 a new organising committee took over the marketing of the Uhrencup and with added financial help it was again possible to invite international teams. Casino SW Bregenz, FC Schalke 04, 1. FC Kaiserslautern (twice), 1. FC Köln, Bayer Leverkusen, FC Red Bull Salzburg, Celtic Glasgow, Borussia Dortmund, Legia Warsaw and Panathinaikos Athens have participated during this period, but only Trabzonspor (2005) and Shakhtar Donetsk (2009) were able to win the title.

2010 was a truly international affair, with only one club (Young Boys) originating from Switzerland. The remaining competitors were Deportivo de La Coruña from Spain, the Dutch side Twente Enschede and the eventual winner VfB Stuttgart from Germany.

Basel won the competition for the twelfth time. In the 2011 event, they beat Hertha Berlin 3–0, and then went on to defeat West Ham 2–1 in their second game. The second Swiss team, Young Boys Bern, also won both matches against the international teams, but had a lower overall goal score with 6–3. To celebrate the 50th edition of the tournament, the current German champion Borussia Dortmund played a friendly game against the Swiss vice champion FC Zürich, which ended with a 1–1 tie.

Since 2013

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In 2012 the tournament was not held, but was held in 2013 between 5 and 9 July with Basel and Grasshopper Club Zürich taking part.[1] For Basel it was the 29th time that they would take place; they have won the competition thirteen times. The tournament again took a hiatus, this time of two years before returning in 2015.[2][3]

2011

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Basel 2 2 0 0 0 5 1 +4 6 2011 Uhrencup Champions
2   Young Boys 2 2 0 0 0 6 3 +3 6
3   West Ham United 2 0 0 0 2 2 4 −2 0
4   Hertha Berlin 2 0 0 0 2 2 7 −5 0
Source: [1]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goal ratio

Matches

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Young Boys  4–2  Hertha Berlin
Report

All Stars
Final
Borussia Dortmund  1–1  FC Zürich
Report

Young Boys  2–1  West Ham United
Report

Basel  3–0  Hertha Berlin
Report

Basel  2–1  West Ham United
Report

2013

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   FC Basel 2 2 0 0 0 5 1 +4 6 2013 Uhrencup Champions
2   Red Star Belgrade 2 1 0 0 1 2 2 0 3
3   Fortuna Düsseldorf 2 0 1 0 1 2 4 −2 2
4   Grasshopper Club Zürich 2 0 0 1 1 1 3 −2 1
Source: [2]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goal ratio

Matches

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FC Basel  3–0  Fortuna Düsseldorf
Report

Grasshopper Club Zürich  0–1  Red Star Belgrade
Report

FC Basel  2–1  Red Star Belgrade
Report

Grasshopper Club Zürich  1–1  Fortuna Düsseldorf
Report
Penalties
5–6

2015

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Biel 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 +2 3 2015 Uhrencup Champions
2   B. Mönchengladbach 1 1 0 0 0 2 1 +1 3
3   Sion 1 0 0 0 1 1 2 −1 0
4   A. Salzburg 1 0 0 0 1 0 2 −2 0
Source: [3]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goal ratio

Matches

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B. Mönchengladbach  2–1  Sion
Report

Biel  2–0  A. Salzburg
Report

2016

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP D LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Galatasaray 2 1 0 1 0 0 4 1 +3 4 2016 Uhrencup Champions
2   Zürich 2 1 0 0 0 1 2 4 −2 3
3   Borussia Mönchengladbach 2 0 1 0 0 1 5 5 0 2
4   Young Boys 2 0 0 1 1 0 4 5 −1 2
Source: Uhrencup
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Goal ratio[4]

Matches

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Young Boys  3–3  Borussia Mönchengladbach
Report
Penalties
4–5

Borussia Mönchengladbach  1–2  Zürich
Hahn   59'
Attendance: 1,952[6]

Galatasaray  3–0  Zürich
Report

Young Boys  1–1  Galatasaray
Lecjaks   84' Report Bruma   14'

2017

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Stoke City 2 1 1 0 0 4 2 +2 5 2017 Uhrencup Champions
2   BSC Young Boys 2 1 0 1 0 7 4 +3 4
3   S.L. Benfica 2 1 0 0 1 3 5 −2 3
4   Neuchâtel Xamax 2 0 0 0 2 0 3 −3 0
Source: [4]

Results

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S.L. Benfica  1–5  BSC Young Boys
Jonas   22' Report

2018

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 2 0 0 0 6 1 +5 6 2018 Uhrencup Champions
2   Feyenoord 2 1 0 0 1 5 3 +2 3
3   BSC Young Boys 2 1 0 0 1 3 4 −1 3
4   FC Basel 2 0 0 0 2 1 7 −6 0
Source: [5]

Results

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BSC Young Boys  3–0  Feyenoord
Report

FC Basel  0–5  Feyenoord
Report

BSC Young Boys  0–4  Wolverhampton Wanderers
Report

2019

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W WP LP L GF GA GD Pts Final result
1   BSC Young Boys 2 2 0 0 0 7 1 +6 6 2019 Uhrencup Champions
2   Eintracht Frankfurt 2 1 0 0 1 4 6 −2 3
3   Crystal Palace 2 0 1 0 1 2 3 −1 2
4   FC Luzern 2 0 0 1 1 2 5 −3 1
Source: [6]

Results

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BSC Young Boys  5–1  Eintracht Frankfurt
Report

FC Luzern  1–3  Eintracht Frankfurt
Report

Uhrencup winners by year

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 Year  Placements
Winner 2nd Place 3rd Place 4th place
1962   FC Grenchen   Cercle Brugge K.S.V.   Calcio Como   FC Biel-Bienne
1963   Ipswich Town   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne   Sparta Rotterdam
1964   BSC Young Boys   Karlsruher SC   Nîmes Olympique   FC Grenchen
1965   Lanerossi Vicenza   FC Grenchen   BSC Young Boys   Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C.
1966   FC Sochaux-Montbéliard   FC Grenchen   Lanerossi Vicenza   FC Biel-Bienne
1967 Not held
1968   FC Biel-Bienne   BSC Young Boys   FC Sochaux-Montbéliard   FC Grenchen
1969   FC Basel   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen   FC Lausanne-Sport
1970   FC Basel   BSC Young Boys   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen
1971   FC Grenchen   FC Basel   FC Lausanne-Sport   FC Biel-Bienne
1972   Neuchâtel Xamax   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen   FC Basel
1973   BSC Young Boys   FC Biel-Bienne   Neuchâtel Xamax   FC Grenchen
1974 Not held
1975   BSC Young Boys   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne   FC La Chaux-de-Fonds
1976   FC Zurich   BSC Young Boys   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne
1977   Neuchâtel Xamax   FC Basel   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen
1978   FC Basel   Neuchâtel Xamax   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne
1979   FC Basel   FC Grenchen   FC La Chaux-de-Fonds   FC Luzern
1980   FC Basel   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Luzern
1981   FC Grenchen   FC Basel   FC Luzern   FC Biel-Bienne
1982   FC Grenchen   FC Basel   FC Aarau   FC Biel-Bienne
1983   FC Basel   FC Zurich   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne
1984   Servette FC   FC Basel   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen
1985   FC Grenchen   FC Basel   FC Biel-Bienne   Servette FC
1986   FC Basel   Grasshopper Club Zürich   FC Grenchen   FC Biel-Bienne
1987   BSC Young Boys   FC Grenchen   Górnik Zabrze   FC Basel
1988   FC Basel   FC Grenchen   FC Nitra   FC Twente
1989   FK Partizan   FC Grenchen   FC Basel   FC Zurich
1990
0
0
  Górnik Zabrze   FC Basel   FC Lugano   FC Aarau
Eliminated (with the other two) as the last of group 1:   FC Grenchen
Eliminated as severed bottom of Group 2:   FC Zurich
1991   1. FC Köln   FC Sion   Olimpia Poznań   FC Grenchen
1992   FC Zurich   SR Delémont   FC Basel   FC Grenchen
1993   FC Zurich   FC Basel   FC Grenchen   SR Delémont
1994   FC Zurich   SR Delémont   FC Grenchen   FC Schaffhausen
1995   FC Aarau   FC Solothurn   BSC Young Boys   FC Grenchen
1996   FC Grenchen   FC Solothurn   SV Lyss   FC Biel-Bienne
1997   FC Subingen   FC Biel-Bienne   FC Grenchen   SV Lyss
1998   FC Solothurn   SR Delémont   FC Subingen   FC Grenchen
1999   FC Grenchen   FC Solothurn   FC Langenthal   FC Thun
2000   BSC Young Boys   Neuchâtel Xamax   FC Solothurn   FC Grenchen
2001   Grasshopper Club Zürich   BSC Young Boys   FC Solothurn   FC Grenchen
2002   Servette FC   BSC Young Boys   FC Aarau   FC Grenchen
2003   FC Basel   BSC Young Boys   Grasshopper Club Zürich   SC Bregenz
2004   BSC Young Boys   1. FC Kaiserslautern   FC Basel   FC Schalke 04
2005   Trabzonspor   1. FC Kaiserslautern   BSC Young Boys   FC Basel
2006   FC Zürich/FC Basel   BSC Young Boys   Bayer 04 Leverkusen,   1. FC Köln (both third)
2007   BSC Young Boys   FC Basel   FC Red Bull Salzburg   Celtic F.C.
2008   FC Basel   Borussia Dortmund   FC Luzern   Legia Warsaw
2009   FC Shakhtar Donetsk   BSC Young Boys   FC Basel   Panathinaikos F.C.
2010   VfB Stuttgart   BSC Young Boys   FC Twente   Deportivo de La Coruña
2011   FC Basel   BSC Young Boys   West Ham United   Hertha BSC
2012 Not held
2013   FC Basel   Red Star Belgrade   Fortuna Düsseldorf   Grasshopper Club Zürich
2014 Not held
2015   FC Biel-Bienne   B. Mönchengladbach   FC Sion   A. Salzburg
2016   Galatasaray   FC Zurich   BSC Young Boys   B. Mönchengladbach
2017   Stoke City   BSC Young Boys   S.L. Benfica  Neuchâtel Xamax
2018   Wolverhampton Wanderers   Feyenoord   BSC Young Boys   FC Basel
2019   BSC Young Boys   Eintracht Frankfurt   Crystal Palace   FC Luzern

Titles by team

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Team Years won Titles
  FC Basel 1969, 1970, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1986, 1988, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2013 13
  BSC Young Boys 1964, 1973, 1975, 1987, 2000, 2004, 2007, 2019 8
  FC Grenchen 1962, 1971, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1996, 1999 7
  FC Zurich 1976, 1992, 1993, 1994, 2006 5
  FC Biel-Bienne 1968, 2015 2
  Neuchâtel Xamax 1972, 1977 2
  Servette FC 1984, 2002 2
  1. FC Köln 1991 1
  FC Aarau 1995 1
  FC Shakhtar Donetsk 2009 1
  FC Sochaux-Montbéliard 1966 1
  FC Solothurn 1998 1
  FC Subingen 1997 1
  FK Partizan 1989 1
  Galatasaray 2016 1
  Grasshopper Club Zürich 2001 1
  Górnik Zabrze 1990 1
  Ipswich Town 1963 1
  Lanerossi Vicenza 1965 1
  Stoke City 2017 1
  Trabzonspor 2005 1
  VfB Stuttgart 2010 1
  Wolverhampton Wanderers 2018 1

Participation by club

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Team Participant
  FC Grenchen 39
  FC Basel 30
  BSC Young Boys 24
  FC Biel-Bienne 23
  FC Zurich 10
  FC Solothurn 6
  Neuchâtel Xamax 6
  FC Luzern 5
  FC Aarau 4
  Grasshopper Club Zürich 4
  SR Delémont 4
  Servette FC 3
  1. FC Kaiserslautern 2
  1. FC Köln 2
  Borussia Dortmund 2
  Borussia Mönchengladbach 2
  FC La Chaux-de-Fonds 2
  FC Lausanne-Sport 2
  FC Sion 2
  FC Sochaux-Montbéliard 2
  FC Subingen 2
  FC Twente 2
  Górnik Zabrze 2
  Lanerossi Vicenza 2
  SV Lyss [de] 2
  Bayer 04 Leverkusen 1
  Calcio Como 1
  Celtic F.C. 1
  Cercle Brugge K.S.V. 1
  Crystal Palace 1
  Deportivo de La Coruña 1
  Eintracht Frankfurt 1
  FC Langenthal 1
  FC Lugano 1
  FC Nitra 1
  FC Red Bull Salzburg 1
  FC Schaffhausen 1
  FC Schalke 04 1
  FC Shakhtar Donetsk 1
  FC Thun 1
  Feyenoord 1
  FK Partizan 1
  Fortuna Düsseldorf 1
  Galatasaray 1
  Hertha BSC 1
  Ipswich Town 1
  Karlsruher SC 1
  Legia Warsaw 1
  Maccabi Tel Aviv F.C. 1
  Nîmes Olympique 1
  Olimpia Poznań 1
  Panathinaikos F.C. 1
  Red Star Belgrade 1
  SC Bregenz 1
  S.L. Benfica 1
  Sparta Rotterdam 1
  Stoke City 1
  SV Austria Salzburg 1
  Trabzonspor 1
  VfB Stuttgart 1
  West Ham United 1
  Wolverhampton Wanderers 1

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "FC Basel und Grasshopper Club Zürich am Uhrencup 2013" (in German). bielertagblatt.ch. Archived from the original on 15 August 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2013.
  2. ^ "Media Release". Uhrencup (in German). 14 April 2016. Archived from the original on 1 July 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  3. ^ "Uhrencup 2016". Uhrencup. 22 June 2016. Archived from the original on 1 July 2016. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
  4. ^ "Modus". Uhrencup. Archived from the original on 9 July 2016. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
  5. ^ a b "Auftaktsieg beim Uhrencup". Borussia Mönchengladbach (in German). 13 July 2016. Archived from the original on 15 July 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2016.
  6. ^ a b "1:2-Niederlage gegen Zürich beim Uhrencup". Borussia Mönchengladbach (in German). 15 July 2016. Archived from the original on 17 July 2016. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  7. ^ "Uhrencup - Galatasaray: 3-0 FC Zürich". Galatasaray S.K. (in Turkish). 17 July 2016. Archived from the original on 19 July 2016. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
  8. ^ "Uhrencup'ta Şampiyon Galatasaray!". Galatasaray S.K. (in Turkish). 19 July 2016. Archived from the original on 21 August 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
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