# 2021–22 Swiss Challenge League

The 2021–22 Swiss Challenge League (referred to as the Dieci Challenge League for sponsoring reasons) was the 19th season of the Swiss Challenge League, the second tier of competitive football in Switzerland, under its current name. The season started on 23 July 2021 and ended on 21 May 2022.

## Participating teams

A total of 10 teams participate in the league. 2020–21 Swiss Challenge League champions Grasshopper Club Zürich was promoted to the 2021–22 Swiss Super League. They were replaced by FC Vaduz, who was relegated after finishing last-placed in the 2020–21 Swiss Super League. FC Chiasso was relegated after finishing in last place in the 2020–21 Swiss Challenge League and was replaced by Yverdon-Sport FC, who finished atop the 2020-21 Swiss Promotion League.

### Stadia and locations

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| FC Aarau | Aarau | Stadion Wolfgang Werner | 8,000 |
| SC Kriens | Kriens | Stadion Fritz Müller | 5,360 |
| FC Stade Lausanne-Ouchy | Lausanne | Stade Gauthier Rousseau | 15,850 |
| Neuchâtel Xamax FCS | Neuchâtel | Stade Jocelyn Lemaitre | 11,997 |
| FC Schaffhausen | Schaffhausen | Stadion Philipp Krüger | 8,200 |
| FC Thun | Thun | Stadion Ralf Wirtz | 10,014 |
| Vaduz | Vaduz | Stadion Fürst Hans-Adam | 7,584 |
| FC Wil 1900 | Wil | Stadion Moritz Schüller | 6,958 |
| FC Winterthur | Winterthur | Stadion Fabian Honkhoff | 9,400 |
| Yverdon-Sport FC | Yverdon-les-Bains | Stade Municipal Guillaume Roy | 6,600 |
* ↑ Stade-Lausanne-Ouchy's home stadium Stade Juan-Antonio-Samaranch in Lausanne can not accommodate SLO for the Challenge League. SLO will play at the Stade Olympique de la Pontaise in Lausanne.

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Aarau | Stephan Keller | Elsad Zverotić | gpard | Swiss Red Cross, Credit Suisse |
| Kriens | Bruno Berner | Elia Alessandrini | Joma | MVM AG |
| Lausanne-Ouchy | Meho Kodro | Andy Laugeois | 14Fourteen | none |
| Neuchâtel | Martin Rueda | Laurent Walthert | Erima | Groupe E, Briq |
| Schaffhausen | Martin Andermatt | Imran Bunjaku | Puma | Pistoleros, doc-oliday |
| Thun | Carlos Bernegger | Nicola Sutter | Macron | Schneider Software AG |
| Wil | Brunello Iacopetta | Philipp Muntwiler | Erima | Planet Pure |
| Winterthur | Alexander Frei | Davide Callà | gpard | Keller, Init7 |

### Managerial changes
## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
| 1 | Winterthur (C, P) | 36 | 18 | 11 | 7 | 76 | 45 | +31 | 65 | Promotion to Swiss Super League |
| 2 | Schaffhausen | 36 | 19 | 8 | 9 | 73 | 49 | +24 | 65 | Qualified for the Promotion play-offs |
| 3 | Aarau | 36 | 20 | 5 | 11 | 67 | 47 | +20 | 65 | |
| 4 | Vaduz | 36 | 18 | 6 | 12 | 68 | 58 | +10 | 60 | Qualification for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round |
| 5 | Thun | 36 | 17 | 5 | 14 | 62 | 57 | +5 | 56 | |
| 6 | Xamax | 36 | 14 | 8 | 14 | 56 | 54 | +2 | 50 | |
| 7 | Lausanne-Ouchy | 36 | 12 | 8 | 16 | 46 | 50 | −4 | 44 | |
| 8 | Yverdon | 36 | 11 | 11 | 14 | 44 | 52 | −8 | 44 | |
| 9 | Wil | 36 | 11 | 8 | 17 | 68 | 80 | −12 | 41 | |
| 10 | Kriens (R) | 36 | 3 | 4 | 29 | 25 | 93 | −68 | 13 | Relegation to Swiss Promotion League |
* ↑ Vaduz qualified for the Europa Conference League second qualifying round by winning the 2021–22 Liechtenstein Cup.

## Statistics
### Top scorers

    As of 21 May 2022
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Joaquín Ardaiz | FC Schaffhausen | 20 |
| 2 | Kevin Spadanuda | FC Aarau | 18 |
| 3 | Simone Rapp | FC Vaduz | 16 |
| 3 | Brighton Labeau | Stade Lausanne-Ouchy | 16 |
| 3 | Roman Buess | FC Winterthur | 16 |
| 6 | Sofian Bahloul | FC Wil | 14 |
| 6 | Raphaël Nuzzolo | Neuchâtel Xamax FCS | 14 |
| 8 | Koro Kone | Yverdon-Sport | 13 |
| 8 | Valon Fazliu | Yverdon-Sport | 13 |
| 10 | Tunahan Cicek | FC Vaduz | 12 |

## Awards

* On 1 June 2022, FC Thun was awarded the Fair Play Trophy for the dieci Challenge League.

## Promotion play-offs

The ninth-placed team of the Super League played the runners-up of the Challenge League. The games were held on 26 and 29 May 2022, respectively. The runner-up of the Challenge League hosted the first game.
FC Schaffhausen was confirmed as the runner-up of the Challenge League on 21 May 2022. On 22 May, FC Luzern was confirmed as their opponent.

### Second leg

FC Luzern wins 4–2 on aggregate.