If the betting shops had been allowed to place their bets on the FIH Junior World Cup, the usual suspected favorite teams (D, NL, IN, BE) would have been in front for the title. And hardly anyone would have bet on the U21 team from Switzerland. 26th place in the world rankings. Only Oman (who moved up after Pakistan withdrew) was placed lower.

And yet many things turned out differently than expected: The preliminary round match against Oman was (actually) a must-win, which the Swiss Hockey Boys also won with aplomb. The victory in the second match against Chile was a big surprise, because after two matches the Swiss boys were undefeated in second place in their group.

There was also a big surprise in the last preliminary round match against hosts India: in the second minute of the game, our boys earned two penalty corners – and put the Indian “men in blue” in trouble for the first time at this World Cup. Sure: in the end, India had beaten the Swiss team 5:0. But the result does not show how badly the Indian team had to tremble. In the second half in particular, the Helvetic Boys repeatedly found ways and means of getting into the shooting circle, scoring penalty corners and even being awarded a penalty. The Indian team had their excellent goalkeeper to thank for keeping the score at zero. The world number 26 puts the world number 2 in trouble. In front of a home crowd. It was a match for the history books. Our boys have finally won the hearts of the fans – from Switzerland, in India, in the stadium.

The subsequent placement matches for places 9-16 were a well-deserved, albeit unplanned, recognition of our boys’ performance to date. To be clear, the Swiss team finished 16th, but it was clear from the matches against Ireland and Chile that our boys were on an equal footing – if not slightly dominant. Victories over Ireland and Chile were achievable. But: whether it was the big surprise that they had made it this far and were now able to compete with the top nations and the associated respect, or the unusually long duration of the tournament so far (more than 10 days of being fit at the very highest level and giving more than 100%) or simply the not yet as pronounced “ice-cold efficiency and effectiveness” of the other teams (e.g. the team from Malaysia) – in the end it was unfortunately not enough for “even more” for the Helvetic Boys.

All in all, for the Swiss Hockey selection it was – to put it in Olympic terms – “the best Junior World Championships ever!” in which they had taken part. And it was also their debut. The first chapter of our U21 was written. And we are sure that the second chapter of this team will also be full of excitement.

In the end, all that remains is to say a big thank you to everyone who contributed to the fantastic success of this story:

Thank you guys for giving and showing your best. Not only on the pitch, but also off it. Switzerland can be proud of you.

Thanks to Jair, Thierry, Stas, Jasper, Maria, Mark and Menno. You brought out the best in the boys.

Thanks to Fredy and Monika, who captured these moments for eternity with their pictures and clips.

Thanks to all the parents and friends who stood by the team on site and created a rousing atmosphere for their boys.

Thanks to the fans who stayed at home in front of the screens / in the WA chat.

And finally, of course, thanks to the FIH and Hockey India for the perfect organization of such a fantastic Junior World Cup. Our thanks and respect also go to the people of Chennai and Madurai for their warmth and hospitality.

You can watch all your boys’ matches and other highlights of the FIH Junior World Cup again at https://www.fih.hockey/events/junior-world-cup/men/fih-hockey-mens-junior-world-cup-tamil-nadu-2025-1787/videos.