The FC Thun heroes do not hide their amusement and amazement when speaking about what has been an incredible season. They giggle when asked if they could possibly have expected such a scenario. They know that the situation is surreal and illogical. The words “incredible” and “unbelievable” are used frequently.

When Thun were promoted to the Swiss Super League in May, they were predicted to struggle. “A lot of pundits identified them as No 1 relegation candidates. Expectations were very low, and fans thought that avoiding relegation would be a major success,” Berner Zeitung journalist Adrian Horn says.

Instead, Thun are top of the table. Not only that – they opened a 15-point gap over second-placed St Gallen after 31 matches that produced 23 wins and 72 goals scored. Even if they lose all of the remaining seven fixtures, they would still probably be crowned champions. A first title in the modest club’s 128 years of existence is all but secured by March.

You might recall that Thun played in the Champions League in 2005, but they qualified for the tournament as runners-up. It was a sensational campaign, as they beat Dynamo Kyiv and Malmö in the qualifiers. The group stage debut was at Arsenal, and their striker Mauro Lustrinelli remembers it perfectly.

“We had a magnificent game and were very close to getting a draw but Dennis Bergkamp made it 2-1 in injury time,” he says. “Two weeks later, we scored late ourselves and beat Sparta Prague. Then I scored against Ajax, and missed a great chance to make it 3-2 at 90 minutes. They scored immediately on the counter and won. Those were amazing times.”

Now Lustrinelli is writing another glorious chapter in Thun’s history as the head coach, while the president, Andres Gerber, was also part of the 2005 squad. “I joined Thun towards the end of my playing career and unexpectedly found myself in the Champions League,” Gerber says. “An achilles tendon injury forced me to miss some matches, but I had to play at Highbury with painkillers. I wanted to experience that.”

Gerber stayed at Thun as sporting director after retiring, and then took charge in 2020 at the most crucial time.

“We were relegated, the previous president Markus Lüthi resigned, and I was the only person who could replace him,” he says. “The situation was very difficult. We didn’t know if we would survive financially and had to count every euro. Somehow, we found our way until a new investor arrived and we were safe.”

Thun were still a mid-table club in the second division when Lustrinelli was hired as coach in 2022. He finished a successful spell at the Swiss under-21 national team and had more lucrative offers, but returned to the club he knew well.

Gerber says: “I wasn’t in touch with Mauro frequently, but we remained in good relations from our playing days. We went to Mauro’s home, explained the project to him and were delighted that he agreed.” Lustrinelli adds: “After talking to Andres, I felt that was the right project for me. I chose with my heart.”

He had a lot of work to do, as the captain, Marco Bürki, recalls: “I played for Thun on loan from Young Boys a decade ago, and returned to the club in 2021 because I liked its culture. However, when I arrived it turned out that the work ethics weren’t there any more. We had to change that and take responsibility. When Mauro was appointed, things started to improve gradually.”

Thun finished sixth in the second division in 2023 and learned the lesson. Gerber says: “We brought a lot of players on loan, and there was no team spirit. Therefore, we chose to build the squad around those who belong to Thun and believe in us. We wanted to promote local footballers.”

One of those local talents is Ethan Meichtry. At the age of 15, he was discarded from the academy during the Covid crisis. “We had to train alone during the lockdown. I didn’t take it too seriously and wasn’t fit when I came back, so the coach told me to leave,” he says. Meichtry went on to work as a road builder in the town, while playing for the amateur club Dürrenast. He was spotted there by a youth coach from Thun and was excited to come back in 2023. By 2025, he was part of the lineup that won the promotion.

Pundits claimed that inexperienced players such as Meichtry weren’t ready for the Super League, but Thun disagreed. “Continuity and spirit are crucial,” Lustrinelli says. “We have a great group and had to stay together. My mission is to improve the players. They helped Thun to go up, and they got their chance in the top division.”

Gerber adds: “We made a few signings, but it was easy for them to join the existing squad.”

Before the season, Gerber and Lustrinelli targeted finishing in the top six, which was considered unrealistic by many. “We had to be ambitious, even though our budget is second from last in the league,” the president says. Then, during preseason, the feeling was positive. “We saw that we were at a good level, but obviously nobody thought about challenging at the top,” Bürki says.

Thun started the season with four wins – an unprecedented record for a promoted team – and never looked back. Bürki says: “After seven or eight games, I remember sitting down with our star midfielder Leonardo Bertone and saying: ‘Look, we are top of the table.’ That was funny. We have a lot of untested players, and didn’t know how they would react. They all responded brilliantly. We were never nervous, never felt pressure.”

By December, they cautiously thought that finishing in the top three could be possible, and the final fixture of 2025 was fundamental. Lustrinelli says: “We were trailing 2-0 against Zürich at half-time and won 4-2. That is when I understood that this team really has a winning mentality. We knew we can make something special.”

Lustrinelli adds: “A lot of people said that we couldn’t keep it up after the Christmas break, but our performances actually improved. We grew up mentally and truly believed in ourselves.”

Thun went on an incredible run of 10 wins in a row, while all the other clubs, including heavyweights Young Boys and Basel, were wildly inconsistent. By February, their lead became insurmountable.

“It is insane to go from road builder to champion of Switzerland in three years. My friends can’t believe it,” Meichtry says. “If someone told me that I would be champion after joining Thun, I would say that he was drunk,” Bürki laughs.

Bürki was considered the less talented footballer in the family, as his elder brother Roman played for Borussia Dortmund as a goalkeeper. He is now at St Louis City, and the stopper had a clause in his contract that he could join his brother’s club for free. “I have always dreamed of playing with Roman, but in retrospect I am lucky that those negotiations never materialised,” he says.

Gerber says: “Our story proves that there are no impossible things in football. Never say never.” Lustrinelli is delighted when his team is compared to Leicester’s Premier League title in 2016. “Well, both had Italian coaches. I am not Claudio Ranieri, but I am a Swiss Italian,” he smiles.

Having signed a contract until 2028, he is likely to stay at Thun longer than Ranieri did with Leicester. After sealing the title, Thun will have the chance to try to qualify for the Champions League for the second time. “That would be a great way to close a circle, but definitely won’t be easy. For now, we just have to enjoy the moment,” Gerber and Lustrinelli agree.