As soon as the Swiss Football Association (SFA) publishes the national team's fixture schedule, Silvia from the SWISS Sponsoring team reaches for her phone. She alerts her contacts as early as possible: new flights for the national team are on the horizon. With that call, she sets off a chain reaction across many teams – from SWISS to the federal aviation authority. Network planning colleagues search for a suitable slot, a window in the existing timetable, and assign the right aircraft. Crew planning reaches out to experienced Cabin Crew Members and pilots who receive specialist training for high-profile assignments like these. Ground Operations colleagues in Zurich – and at the destination – ensure that the football stars move through security checks and airport corridors as privately and smoothly as possible. The catering team assembles a menu selection with the players' preferences in mind. And the Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA) signs off on the special procedures at Zurich Airport.

A scheduled flight with special guests
Preparations for the flight to Los Angeles for the Football World Cup in North America began in January – and unfolded a little differently than usual. Rather than chartering an aircraft, the players travelled on a regular scheduled flight service, with Silvia having reserved the entire SWISS Business cabin for the team. The other guests on the flight were far from forgotten, though: she had arranged in advance for Gate Gourmet to dress every seat with a Swiss football shirt for guests to keep. In many other ways too, Silvia and her team never run short of ideas when it comes to giving the players and their entourage an exceptional experience in the air.

One detail is non-negotiable: personalised headrest covers – printed with "Hopp Schwiiz" on the outbound flight and "Welcome Home" on the return. The team selects the in-flight menu themselves, tailored specifically to the athletes' nutritional needs. During recent European and World Championships, every guest on SWISS flights also received specially printed SWISS chocolate, bringing a touch of football spirit to the skies.

Heart on board
Beyond all the thoughtful extras, it is the personal care that truly defines the experience. After so many years working alongside the national team, Silvia has become a trusted figure for the players whenever they travel together. They call her, affectionately, the "SWISS woman". Silvia smiles: "In the office, my colleagues call me the football woman – and with the players, I'm the SWISS woman." Some players, she notes, are not particularly keen on flying. There was once a player with a real fear of it. The crew is trained for exactly these moments, and the close, personal setting that footballers share with the flight crew actually makes it easier to address such concerns directly. On that particular flight, the captain took the player under his wing immediately. He explained flying and the crew's role in terms the player would understand best: "A flight crew is like a football team – we also have lines of defence before the ball hits the back of the net. Everyone on the team plays their part." In other words: just as coaches prepare their players for every eventuality, the crew briefs for every scenario before each flight.

When plan B becomes plan A
Things don't always go to plan – that is simply part of aviation. In those moments, Silvia's decade of relationship-building proves its worth. She is certain of one thing: "Everything can be solved when you have the right contacts." She leaves nothing to chance, either. On departure days, full concentration is the rule, and Silvia has her rituals. About an hour before the crew briefing, she walks into the Network Operations Control office to confirm that the right aircraft is in the right place at the right time. And it's happened before that she has found an error in the schedule that only came to light on the day of departure. Fortunately, it hadn't amounted to more than a small delay.

Spontaneously becoming the twelfth player
Silvia describes the European Football Cup 2020, postponed to 2021 due to Covid-19, as the most extraordinary period of her career with the SFA. The complexity was partly down to the tournament's pan-European format: she had to fly the team from city to city across the continent. "We had drawn up a detailed charter plan in advance," she recalls, "but after the third leg, we threw the whole thing out and started again." The team was in Baku, Azerbaijan, and the original plan was to return the aircraft and crew to Zurich and collect the players again later. But the association decided to leave Baku for the next venue earlier than planned. After discussions with Network and Crew Planning in Zurich, the aircraft – and with it the flight crew – stayed on in Baku. There was one problem: entering Azerbaijan required a visa. Fortunately, a tournament ticket was accepted as an entry document during the competition. The solution was straightforward: the entire crew needed tickets – and, naturally, the matching Swiss football shirts to go with them. Silvia organised everything. And so it was that the next day, the crew did not board a return flight to Zurich as planned, but spontaneously cheered on the Swiss national team in person at the Switzerland–Turkey match.

When football stars are simply human
What was the most memorable moment in ten years? Silvia has more than one answer. If pressed, she would choose the moment the entire squad sang "Happy Birthday" to her on board. Her birthday falls in what is known as the "FIFA window" – precisely the period when the national team plays its matches. But she is not the only one to have celebrated in the air: in October 2021, on the flight to Vilnius for the World Cup qualifier against Lithuania, Xherdan Shaqiri marked his 30th birthday. A milestone like that called for a proper celebration at altitude. Not only the football association, but also the SWISS crew had a surprise ready for him. "These are always the very personal moments when the players are simply ordinary people," Silvia says warmly.

This warmth is consistent. When the players climb the steps to board the aircraft and find Silvia at the door, an extended round of greetings begins. "I'd love to get them on board as quickly as possible," she laughs – but the personal connections she has built over ten years with the players and the association are what make this job genuinely special. She came to the role through an internal job posting, having already been working at SWISS. "You don't have to be a football fan," she says. "But it certainly makes the job easier if you care about it."

Fan and professional, all at once
When the national team plays at a World Cup, Silvia watches with two sets of eyes – and one of them is never fully at rest. The result determines whether work is waiting for her. She remembers the moment at EURO 2021 when Yann Sommer saved the decisive penalty against France: "I was sitting there, one eye on the screen as a fan, the other already on my open laptop."

Her wish for the FIFA World Cup in North America: that the Swiss national team goes as far as possible – for sporting reasons, logistical ones, and of course personal ones. She allows herself a little room to dream: "And that we get to bring the team home as champions."