Nationalliga A
Encyclopedia
National League A is a professional ice hockey
league in Switzerland
. It is the top tier of the Swiss hockey league system and of the two-tier National League. Prior to the 2007-08 season, the league was officially called Nationalliga A (German
, ).
Switzerland has the most attended hockey club in Europe, SC Bern
, and also the most attended league.
Swiss International Championship Serie A (1909-1933)
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
league in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. It is the top tier of the Swiss hockey league system and of the two-tier National League. Prior to the 2007-08 season, the league was officially called Nationalliga A (German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, ).
Switzerland has the most attended hockey club in Europe, SC Bern
SC Bern
Schlittschuh Club Bern is an ice hockey team based in Bern, Switzerland. The club was the most attended team in Europe for the 2010-11 season, averaging 15,856 spectators....
, and also the most attended league.
Season structure
During the regular season, each of the 12 teams play 50 games. The top eight teams after the regular season qualify for the playoffs to determine the Swiss champion in best-of-seven series'. The bottom four teams in the standings play a relegation tournament with the loser then playing the winner of the National League B playoffs in a best-of-seven series for a spot in the successive NLA season.Current teams
| Team | City | Arena | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| HC Ambrì-Piotta HC Ambri-Piotta Hockey Club Ambrì-Piotta is a Swiss professional ice hockey club and a member of the National League A. The club was founded September 19, 1937 and is also known as "Bianco-Blu"... |
Ambrì Ambri Ambri is a town in the municipality of Quinto, Levintina, Switzerland. Other towns close to Ambri includes Piotta, Airolo and Fiesso.- Sports :The town hosts the professional ice hockey team HC Ambri-Piotta. Ambri is also a popular are for hiking.... |
Valascia Valascia Valascia is an indoor sporting arena located in Ambrì, Switzerland. The capacity of the arena is 7,000 and was built in 1959. It is the home arena of the HC Ambri-Piotta ice hockey team of the Swiss Hockey League. The ends of arena are open air, making a hockey being played there partially... |
7,000 |
| SC Bern SC Bern Schlittschuh Club Bern is an ice hockey team based in Bern, Switzerland. The club was the most attended team in Europe for the 2010-11 season, averaging 15,856 spectators.... |
Bern | PostFinance-Arena | 17,131 |
| EHC Biel EHC Biel The EHC Biel or HC Bienne is a professional ice hockey Club based in the bilingual city of Biel/Bienne, Switzerland and plays in the National League A.... |
Biel/Bienne Biel/Bienne Biel/Bienne is a city in the district of the Biel/Bienne administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.It is located on the language boundary and is throughout bilingual. Biel is the German name for the town, Bienne its French counterpart. The town is often referred to in both... |
Eisstadion Biel | 7,000 |
| HC Davos HC Davos Hockey Club Davos is a professional Swiss ice hockey club based in Davos, Switzerland. Davos play in the Swiss National League A, which is ranked as Europe's sixth best ice hockey league. The team is usually a strong force in the league and often bolster their roster with Swiss national team... |
Davos Davos Davos is a municipality in the district of Prättigau/Davos in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has a permanent population of 11,248 . Davos is located on the Landwasser River, in the Swiss Alps, between the Plessur and Albula Range... |
Vaillant Arena | 7,080 |
| HC Fribourg-Gottéron | Fribourg Fribourg Fribourg is the capital of the Swiss canton of Fribourg and the district of Sarine. It is located on both sides of the river Saane/Sarine, on the Swiss plateau, and is an important economic, administrative and educational center on the cultural border between German and French Switzerland... |
BCF Arena | 7,144 |
| Genève-Servette HC Genève-Servette HC Genève-Servette HC, is a professional ice hockey team based in Geneva, Switzerland and compete in National League A.-History:* 1905 : Foundation of Servette FC's ice hockey section.... |
Geneva Geneva Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland... |
Patinoire des Vernets Patinoire des Vernets Patinoire des Vernets is an arena in Geneva, Switzerland. It is primarily used for ice hockey and is the home arena of Genève-Servette HC. opened in 1958, it has a seating capacity for 6,700 people.... |
7,382 |
| Kloten Flyers Kloten Flyers The Kloten Flyers are an ice hockey team based in the city of Kloten in Switzerland. They originated from the EHC Kloten. The team participates in the National League A and is known for its promotion of young players.... |
Kloten Kloten -External links:* -References:... |
Kolping Arena | 7,719 |
| SCL Tigers SCL Tigers SC Langnau Tigers are a professional ice hockey team from Langnau im Emmental, Switzerland. They have played in Switzerland's top hockey level, National League A, since last promotion in 1998.-History:-Champions:*NDA Championship : 1976... |
Langnau i.E. Langnau im Emmental -Sport:Langnau is the home of the SCL Tigers, who plays in the Swiss National League A. They play their home games at the Ilfis Stadium.- External links :* * *... |
Ilfis Stadium Ilfis Stadium Ilfis Stadium is an indoor sporting arena built in 1975, located in Langnau i.E., Switzerland. The capacity of the arena is 6,500. It is the home arena of the SCL Tigers ice hockey team.-External links:* '... |
6,500 |
| HC Lugano | Lugano Lugano Lugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy... |
Pista La Resega Pista La Resega Pista La Resega is an arena in Lugano, Switzerland. It is primarily used for ice hockey and is the home arena of Hockey Club Lugano and HC Porza. It holds 8,000 people. The stadium has also a conference room, a restaurant and a buvette.... |
7,800 |
| Rapperswil-Jona Lakers Rapperswil-Jona Lakers The Rapperswil-Jona Lakers are a professional ice hockey club from Rapperswil, Switzerland and are members of the Swiss National League A. The Lakers were founded in 1945 and were known as SC Rapperswil-Jona until 2005, when the club changed to its present name... |
Rapperswil Rapperswil Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Busskirch, Curtiberg, Kempraten-Lenggis, Wagen, and Wurmsbach.-Today:On... |
Diners Club Arena | 6,100 |
| EV Zug EV Zug EV Zug is a professional men's ice hockey team from Zug, Switzerland. They are a current member of National League A and play their home games at Bossard Arena.-History:EV Zug won its lone championship in the 1997–98 season.... |
Zug Zug Zug , is a German-speaking city in Switzerland. The name ‘Zug’ originates from fishing vocabulary; in the Middle Ages it referred to the right to ‘pull up’ fishing nets and hence to the right to fish.The city of Zug is located in the Canton of Zug and is its capital... |
Bossard Arena Bossard Arena Bossard Arena is an indoor sporting arena located in Zug, Switzerland. The capacity of the arena is 7,105 spectators and opened in 2010. It hosts indoor sporting events such as ice hockey. It hosts the EV Zug of the National League A. It replaced Eishalle Herti as the home of EV Zug.... |
7,015 |
| ZSC Lions ZSC Lions The Zürcher Schlittschuh Club Lions are a professional ice hockey team located in Zürich, Switzerland, playing in the National League A. The home arena, the 10,700 seat Hallenstadion, is in the Zürich district of Oerlikon... |
Zürich Zürich Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich... |
Hallenstadion Hallenstadion The Hallenstadion is a multi-purpose facility, in the Swiss city of Zurich.Designed by Bruno Giacometti, it opened on July 18, 1939, and was renovated in 2005.... |
10,700 |
Past champions
Swiss National Championship Serie A (1916-1937)Swiss International Championship Serie A (1909-1933)
External links
National League, official website National League, official website- Puck.ch Results of Swiss Ice Hockey - in English, French, German and Italian
- Meltzer, Bill. "Hockey a Hot Ticket in Switzerland" at NHL.com. Retrieved 04-06-06.
- Meltzer, Bill. "Former NHLers Shining in Switzerland" at NHL.com. Retrieved 10-25-06.
- Pat Schafhauser Foundation
- An Analysis Of The Swiss NLA
- All-time standings 1909-2008
See also
- National League B
- PostFinance Top ScorerPostFinance Top ScorerAt the end of the season, the ice hockey player who has chalked up the most goals and assists in the Swiss National Leagues NL A and NL B for his team during the regular season is awarded the title of PostFinance Top Scorer...