Switzer­land show no mercy – Austria suffer 0–9 defeat

10,000 fans, including around 9,800 Swiss, created a deafening atmosphere and could hardly stop singing and celebrating the goal at the start of the game. Theo Rochette, Timo Meier, Nico Hischier and Damien Riat made the Swiss Life Arena shake in the power play.

Even without Vinzenz Rohrer and Dominic Zwerger, who were rested, Austria didn't hide and created chances, but the Swiss were the clear team that set the tone and stayed that way.

In the middle of the second period, Hischier on the power play and Calvin Thurkauf extended the lead to 6–0. Roger Bader took the hitherto hapless David Kickert, who was not to blame for all six goals conceded, off the ice and let Florian Vorauer take over. But he also had to reach behind himself for the first time after just over two minutes on the ice.

Despite a 7-0 lead, the Swiss made no move to slow down and played real “tiki-taka ice hockey”. With great success. While Austria fought for the consolation goal, Damien Riat and Christoph Bertschy scored the final points for the hosts.

Now Austria is enjoying a two-day break and they are urgently needed. Four games in five days took a toll. The next opponent is Germany on Saturday, can be seen live at 8:20 p.m. on ORF 1.

Head coach Roger Bader: "It was a game against a totally superior opponent who is an absolute favorite for the World Championship title. They have been runner-up to the World Championship twice in the last few years, so they are strong. Plus 10,000 people who are pushing them forward. They play fantastic ice hockey, that has to be said. We have nothing to counter this speed, this skill level and this intensity. You have to acknowledge that without envy. We were also a bit tired, and that was also the case We already felt the fourth game in five days. We also left a few players out to protect them. I don't know whether it was a 9-0 game with 30:20 shots on goal, but in any case the Swiss are much better and an absolute favorite for the title.

Captain Peter Schneider: "We made a few positional mistakes at the beginning, which the Swiss simply exploited coldly. We completely let David Kickert down and the slightest mistake, which might not be so bad against other teams, is immediately punished here. We knew that Switzerland was a favorite for the title. The two days' break are very important now. It's been a strenuous four games so far. Now it's time to recover, recover, recover and then we'll focus and prepare for Germany. No matter what, you always have to play games like this quickly Nothing happened now, but we have to learn from it and do better in the next game.”

2026 IIHF ICE HOCKEY WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP

May 15, 2026 - May 31, 2026, Zurich and Fribourg (SUI)
Defending champions: USA
Group A, Zurich: USA, Switzerland, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Austria, Hungary, Great Britain
Group B, Fribourg: Canada, Sweden, Czech Republic, Denmark, Slovakia, Norway, Slovenia, Italy

Schedule
Austria vs. Switzerland 0:9 (0:4, 0:3, 0:2)
Wed., May 20, 2026, 4:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Goalscorers Switzerland: Theo Rochette (6th, 33rd), Timo Meier (10th), Nico Hischier (12th, 30th/PP), Damien Riat (14th/PP, 51st/PP), Calvin Thurkauf (31st), Christoph Bertschy (57th)
Game sheet

Austria vs. Germany
Sat., May 23, 2026, 8:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Live on ORF SPORT+

Finland vs. Austria
Sun., May 24, 2026, 8:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Live on ORF SPORT+

USA vs. Austria
Tuesday, May 26, 2026, 4:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Live on ORF 1

Already played
Great Britain vs. Austria 2:5 (2:3, 0:2, 0:0)
Sat., May 16, 2026, 12:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena, 7,974 spectators
Goalscorers Great Britain: David Clements (16th), Liam Kirk (17th)
Goalscorers Austria: Benjamin Nissner (3rd), Peter Schneider (7th, 27th), Paul Huber (10th), Leon Wallner (34th)
Game sheet

Austria vs. Hungary 4:2 (1:1, 0:0, 3:1)
Sun., May 17, 2026, 4:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Goalscorers Austria: Vinzenz Rohrer (6th/PP), Dominic Zwerger (47th/PP), Thimo Nickl (48th, 60th)
Goalscorers Hungary: Istvan Sofron (12./PP), Peter Vincze (54./PP)
Game sheet

Latvia vs. Austria 1:3 (0:0, 0:1, 1:2)
Tuesday, May 19, 2026, 4:20 p.m., Swiss Life Arena
Goalscorer Latvia: Rudolfs Balcers (41.)
Goalscorers Austria: Tim Harnisch (28th), Benjamin Nissner (45th/PP), Vinzenz Rohrer (60th/EN)
Game sheet

Ticketing
Information about World Championship ticket sales 2026.iihfworlds.com
Link to World Championship tickets for Zurich and Fribourg 
Link to individual games with Austria 
Link to World Championship packages with the Austria games