“Richi, I said you should take care of yourself”

Fingers crossed, cheering, singing loudly, and waving flags, the fans in the stands follow their nation's game. They wait for that one moment when the tension transforms into ecstasy. When the little round thing hits the back of the net. And an adrenaline rush surges through their bodies. The players on the ice embrace, high-five, tap their teammates on the head, and give the entire bench a high five. At the same time, an unmistakable melody rings out in the arena, fitting the country that just scored. The fans are ecstatic, belting out the lyrics. Intonation? Who cares?

What's special about it: Each team has free rein in choosing its own goal celebration song. The Austrians spontaneously strike up the Zillertal Wedding March, the unmistakable refrain of Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Free Bird" echoes through the stadium for the Americans, while Germany, just like in football, opts for the notes of "Major Tom." The trumpet echo of Slavko Avsenik, which musically accompanies the Slovenian goals, also proves very popular. Italy's team, which used Gabry Ponte's "Tutta l'Italia" at the Olympic Games, has something new in store in Fribourg: A remix of the 1974 classic "E, la vita la vita" by Cochi & Renato is intended to get the Azzurri fans fired up.

Richi is causing a stir. Some goal songs – like that of the Azzurri – are new and therefore still need to become ingrained in the minds of the fans. Others, however, have long since achieved cult status – like that of the host nation. The song Richi The Stubete Gang is an exception, as it's not only played when Switzerland scores. Whether in the fan zone or during intermissions, the song is omnipresent at the Ice Hockey World Championship. First presented as a goal song at the 2024 World Championship, its use this year was in doubt. To understand the reasons behind this, a look at the past is necessary.

Young and old sing along to "Richi". © APA/afp / ENNIO LEANZA

The song refers to the SRF program "Auf und davon" (Up and Away), which followed the Schönbächler family with a television crew after their emigration to Canada in 2010. Several clips from the program became famous in Switzerland as memes. The episode where little Richi fell from the excavator and his father Hermann said, "Richi, i ha gseit, du söusch di häbe" (Richi, I said you should hold on to it), remained particularly memorable. This short and concise sentence was previously heard before the chorus.

Ende gout, alles gout The Schönbächler family publicly expressed their displeasure this spring. Although the Swiss Ice Hockey Federation (SIHF) denied any connection to the complaints, a new version was recorded – ironically, with coach Patrick Fischer, who was subsequently dismissed for forgery. Once again, the federation had to revise the goal song. They decided to forgo lyrics altogether.

The changes have not diminished the song's popularity. Richi The song, which is also used by SV Kaltern as their goal celebration tune, delights young and old, Swiss and non-Swiss alike. It is considered the unofficial World Cup song and is intended to musically accompany the Swiss dream of gold.

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“Richi, I said you should take care of yourself”

The goal songs are on everyone's lips at the Ice Hockey World Championship in Switzerland. One melody in particular is enjoying great popularity – that of the hosts. Richi has long since become an international phenomenon.

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