The second edition of the Handelszeitung Business & Football Summit presented by Lugano Region took place on Monday 11 May at Arena Cinemas Sihlcity in Zurich, once again bringing together topics related to business and football on a single stage. Following last year’s debut with the BILANZ Business & Football Summit, the event once again confirmed the strength of the format in 2026, welcoming 275 participants, an increase of around 33% compared to the first edition.

Partners, sponsors, entrepreneurs, executives and representatives from the world of football attended the evening. Among those present were Murat Yakin, head coach of the Swiss men’s national team, together with members of his staff such as Pierluigi Tami, Director of Men’s National Teams at the Swiss Football Association, Davide Callà, assistant coach of the national team, and Patrick Foletti, goalkeeping coach. Swiss football executive Ilja Kaenzig was also among the guests. It was an important turnout, confirming the growing interest in an event designed to connect topical content, networking and strategic vision.

The theme chosen for this second edition, “Mental Strength and Resilience in Business and Football”, was explored through three high-profile contributions, each offering the audience different yet complementary perspectives.

Opening the programme was Philipp Riederle, researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, who is also active as an author, keynote speaker and consultant on digital generations. In his speech, he encouraged companies not to fear change, underlining that even in the age of artificial intelligence, more and more organisations are realising the value of their most important resource: people, and especially the younger generations.

This was followed by Thomas Baschab, a well-known management trainer, mental coach and speaker, recognised for his work with major companies and numerous top-level athletes. The German speaker focused on the relationship between thoughts, mental images and personal energy. He explained how negative emotions and thoughts can significantly lower energy levels, while a positive mental approach produces the exact opposite effect. It was a clear message centred on the awareness that not everything can be controlled, but that everyone can choose how to respond to difficulties.

The session concluded with the talk featuring Oliver Kahn, who brought to the stage the experience of one of international football’s most iconic figures. The former Germany goalkeeper stressed the importance of not dwelling too much on defeats and failures, pointing out how people often tend to analyse mainly what goes wrong, while success is almost taken for granted. On the contrary, for Kahn, it is precisely victories that deserve particular attention, because that is where confidence, consistency and new high-level performances are born. An awareness that, combined with careful preparation for every new challenge, creates the best conditions for performing at the highest level even under extreme pressure.

Overall, the evening offered inspiring and informative content and received very positive feedback from those in attendance. In this sense, the event continues to represent an important tool for strengthening the Club’s presence in German-speaking Switzerland, a strategic market in which, together with partner Lugano Region, the aim is to consolidate relationships, develop networks and promote the image of Ticino.

At the end of the event, Martin Blaser, Vice Chairman and CEO of the company, underlined the value of the project: “Everything stems from the fact that Lugano Region and we share common objectives and, to a large extent, address the same audience. If around 60% of Lugano Region’s bookings come from German-speaking Switzerland, we can also count on sponsors who are active in that area. Through initiatives like this one, we want to further strengthen our visibility in this strategic market and, in the long term, generate benefits on the commercial side as well.”

The second edition of the Handelszeitung Business & Football Summit therefore confirmed the strength of an initiative which, through dialogue between different yet connected worlds, helps to enhance Lugano and its economic fabric, while at the same time strengthening the visibility of the region.