Young Boys is one of the most stable and famous Swiss clubs. Constantly takes part in European competitions. Very rarely achieved serious success in the Euroarena, but often brings surprises.
The history of the club
Professional football in Switzerland arose at the end of the 19th century. The national championship at that time was considered quite strong. The idea of ​​creating a new club came to several students at the University of Bern after watching the match between FC Bern (the leader of Swiss football at that time) and Old Boys (Basel). The guys took the name of the Basel club "Old Guys" as the main idea for the name of the new club. They decided that youth always plays football, so they named the team “Young Guys”. The first 2-3 years, the team developed under the auspices of FC Bern.
Young Boys FC was admitted to PFL Switzerland in 1900. The first derby with the Bern team took place on August 26, 1900. Already in the 1902/1903 season, the Young Boys football club took its first trophy.
Eurocups
The team celebrated the first serious European success in 1958. In the 1/8 finals of KECH, the Swiss twice beat the Hungarian MTK (1: 2 and 1: 4). In the quarter-finals, the rival of the Young Men was a club from the GDR Erzgebirge. To identify the winner, the couple had to play the third match, since at that time the tournament regulations did not provide for extra time and the use of the post-match lottery. The first and second fights ended in a draw (0: 0 and 2: 2), and in the replay the players from Bern were already stronger - 2: 1. The club could not overcome the semi-final barrier, because the rival was the eminent and then very strong champion of France, “Reims”. The home game “Young Boys” won 1-0, but lost on the road 0-3.
In the 1987/1988 season, the Swiss successfully played in a tournament that no longer exists - the European Cup Winners Cup. In the 1/16 final, the team played with the club “Danube Streda” from Czechoslovakia (1: 2, 3: 1). In the 1/8 round “Young Boys”, thanks to the away goal rule already existing at that time, the Dutch “Den Haag” (1: 2, 1: 0) was held. In the quarter finals, the Swiss team was unable to overcome the legendary Amsterdam “Ajax”, losing twice at 0: 1.
If we talk about the high-profile sensations that the team sometimes presents, we can recall, for example, the recent games of the 3 qualifying round of the Champions League between Donetsk Shakhtar and Young Boys. The first game took place in Lviv and ended 2-0 in favor of the miners. The first half of the return game in Bern did not portend disaster for the miners, ending in a draw 0: 0. But then came the nightmare interval between 54 and 60 minutes, when the Swiss hit the gate of Shakhtar twice, and then brought the matter to a penalty shootout, which they won.
The secret to the success of “Young Guys” is dedication and self-confidence. Thanks to the order, well-established work of the players on the field, this team is quite capable of passing more high-class rivals.
Club Achievements
The team won the Swiss championship 11 times in its history. The last title "Young Men" took a long time (in the season 1985/1986). The club won the Cup of their country 6 times, but the last time it happened 29 years ago. In addition, “Young Boys” have in their track record victories in such tournaments:
- League Cup in Switzerland (1 time);
- Alps Cup (1 time);
- Cup hours (7 wins);
- Super Bowl (once).
Most of the triumphs of the Young Boys football club are a thing of the past. In the 21st century, the team only once (in 2007) won the Watch Cup.