Women's national football team embarks on Euro adventure with support from Magglingen
Switzerland’s women’s football team has qualified for the UEFA Women’s Euro 2022 in England on 6–31 July 2022. The Swiss Federal Institute of Sport Magglingen (SFISM) assisted the team with its preparations by conducting performance diagnostics.
Peak physical fitness is essential if the women’s team is to have a chance against Europe’s top 15 teams at the Euro tournament. That's why the Swiss women's team turned to the Swiss Federal Institute of Sport Magglingen SFISM – part of the Federal Office of Sport (FOSPO) – for support with their preparations.
Positive development
In April, the sports physiology team around Markus Tschopp, a medical doctor, and Hélène Maystre, the responsible officer for women’s football, tested the Swiss women’s "explosivity" – a central athletic element in top-class football – by means of various jump tests on force plates. A second test window in mid-June was used to assess the women’s development based on the individual training recommendations derived from the initial tests. "The players’ values are encouraging – the results are clearly pointing upwards," says Tschopp. "The national team has gained in speed and power."
Mobile, fast, low-strain
To integrate the tests as far as possible into the team’s normal training environment, five SFISM scientists travelled to the training camp at Pfäffikon in Canton Schwyz. This meant that 24 players could be tested on site within the space of one hour. For test manager Tschopp, the project has been a resounding success: "We adapted the tests from those used for the men’s national "A" team. They now encompass an injury prevention component in addition to the performance aspect."
Ever more professional
SFISM has been cooperating with the Swiss Football Association (SFV-ASF) for many years. The importance of performance diagnostics in women’s football has increased enormously in recent years. "The degree of professionalism is advancing rapidly – you can see that especially in the women who are going to England", says Tschopp. That’s also confirmed by Lia Wälti, who will be captaining the team in England: "The physical reference values are extremely useful for us."
The Women's European football championships are being held in England from 6 to 31 July 2022. In the group phase, Switzerland will meet Portugal, Sweden and the Netherlands.