FC Lugano secured three valuable points at the Stade de Tourbillon, beating FC Sion 2–1 on Matchday 5 of the Brack Super League. The bianconeri opened the scoring straight away through Daniel Moncada, were pegged back by Boteli early in the second half, and scored the winner in the closing stages thanks to Beckham Castro.
In a closely contested, fast-paced match, Mattia Croci-Torti’s side thus managed to build on their strong start to the season, taking their tally to 12 points and moving to the top of the table.
MONCADA STRIKES EARLY
It took Lugano just three minutes to take control of the match. Following a corner taken by Grgić, Moncada timed his run perfectly to beat the Valais defence and headed home to make it 0–1. The bianconeri striker proved decisive once again, having already been the star of the show with his goal against Maccabi Tel Aviv and starting the match in Sion in place of the injured Behrens.
The home side’s response came in the 21st minute: Boteli played the ball to Rrudhani on the right of the penalty area, but von Ballmoos was on hand to parry the shot. The match continued at a fast pace, though without producing many clear-cut chances for either side. Lugano held on to their lead and went into the break one goal ahead.
CASTRO SEALS THE DEAL IN THE FINAL
STAGES Sion came back onto the pitch with greater intensity and equalised in the 55th minute. Baltazar was played in with a through ball and, once inside the box, squared the ball across for Boteli, who was unmarked to tap it home for the 1-1.
The bianconeri’s response was immediate. In the 59th minute, Steffen crossed from the wing; Zanotti ran onto the ball, controlled it and struck a powerful shot at the near post, only for Racioppi to make the save. Three minutes later, it was Boteli who posed a threat once more: he received the ball in the box, turned quickly and aimed for the near post, only to hit the outside of the net.
The match remained open until the 79th minute, when Lugano struck the decisive blow. Beckham Castro accelerated down the left flank and delivered a powerful, dangerous cross into the box: Racioppi failed to hold onto it and the ball crossed the line to restore the Bianconeri’s lead.
Sion tried to respond immediately and, in the 81st minute, Kololli sought an equaliser with a shot from the edge of the box, which von Ballmoos gathered in two attempts. In the closing stages, Lugano defended their lead and held on to the 2-1 scoreline until the final whistle.
Although they did not perform at their best, the bianconeri managed to come out on top in a hard-fought match and secured another three points, taking their tally to 12 and moving to the top of the table. Their next fixture is as early as Thursday, when FC Lugano return to the AIL Arena for a midweek fixture against Servette FC.
MATCH REPORT
FC SION – FC LUGANO 1-2
Brack Super League – Matchday
5 30 August 2026 – Stade de Tourbillon
Attendance: 8,000
Goalscorers: 3’ Moncada, 55’ Boteli, 79’ B. Castro.
FC SION (4-1-4-1): Racioppi; Lavanchy, Sow, Kronig, Cipriano; Kabacalman; Berdayes (68’ Kololli), Sylla (68’ Lukembila), Baltazar, Rrudhani (68’ Nivokazi); Boteli (77’ Chipperfield).
Substitutes: Ruberto, Hefti, Kessler, Chouaref, Surdez.
Manager: Didier Tholot.
FC LUGANO (3-4-3): von Ballmoos; Papadopoulos, Mai (78’ Kelvin), Bichsel; Zanotti (75’ Karimov), Grgić, Kendouci, Pihlström (75’ B. Castro); Cimignani, Moncada (46’ Steffen), Dos Santos (46’ Bislimi).
Substitutes: Gebhardt, Delcroix, Carbone, Ajdin.
Manager: Mattia Croci-Torti.
Referee: Sven Wolfensberger
. Assistant referees: Claudio dos Santos and Pascal Hirzel
. Fourth official: Luca Schelbli
. VAR and AVAR: Hajrim Qovanaj and Sandro Schärer
Booked: Zanotti (LUG), Bislimi (LUG), Karimov (LUG).