AFI has extensive experience working with the Swiss community in Australia.
We are now looking forward to bringing Footy 9s to Switzerland!
Footy 9s is played on rectangular fields, allowing the sport to be played on any soccer or rugby field.
There are 3 great formats to choose from – Men’s Footy, Women’s Footy and Touch Footy.
Get Involved
If you are keen to be involved with the development of the sport in Switzerland, we would love to hear from you. Please contact us via info@aflinternational.com.
AUSTRALIA & SWITZERLAND
The first confirmed Swiss citizen to arrive in Australia was Johann Waeber, a painter engaged by Captain James Cook as an illustrator for Cook’s third voyage to Australia.
The first Swiss migrants arrived in Australia during the early 19th century, with Victoria attracting the largest number. A notable figure was Sophie de Montmollin from Neuchâtel, married to Charles Joseph La Trobe, who was superintendent of Port Phillip and then lieutenant governor of the colony of Victoria.
Larger numbers arrived during the gold-rush in the mid-1850s particularly from Ticino, an Italian-speaking district of Switzerland. In 1891, there were 2555 Swiss-born in Australia.
The 2016 Census recorded 12,128 Switzerland-born people in Australia, and 31,567 Australians claimed Swiss ancestry.
TEAM SWITZERLAND
Team Switzerland participates in a number of AFI events, including the Harmony Cup, World 9s and Touch Footy World Cup.
Major Results
2017 Harmony Cup – Division 2 Champions
2019 World 9s – Division 2 Champions
2021 Touch Footy World Cup – Champions
2022 Touch Footy World Cup – Champions
Claude Alain Staub
Head Coach, Team Switzerland
Switzerland is a mountainous and landlocked country located in Western Europe. It is surrounded by 5 countries: Austria and Liechtenstein to the east, France to the west, Italy to the south and Germany to the north. Switzerland is one of the smallest countries in Europe, with a maximum north-south length of 220 km and an east-west length of about 350 km.
Switzerland is well known for the Alps in the south and south east. North of the Alps, the Swiss plateau runs along the east-west axis of the country. Most of the population of Switzerland lives on the rolling hills and plains of the plateau.
Switzerland is divided into 26 sovereign cantons. The cantons along the Swiss plateau tend to be the most populous and industrial. The cantons in the Alps tend to be less populous and have an agrarian or tourism-based economy.
Switzerland is also divided by language. There are 4 official languages; German 63.7% of population, French 20.4% of population, Italian 6.5% of population and Romansh 0.5% of population. From Bern east (except Ticino) the population generally speaks German. West of Bern, the population generally speaks French. In the southern Canton of Ticino, most people speak Italian. Romansh, a group of dialects descended from Vulgar Latin, is spoken in several regions in the canton of Graubünden.
