Friedrich Dürrenmatt, Johanna Cartier, Paulo Catrica, Arthur Debert, Pedro Lenz, This Lüscher, Gianni Motti, Philémon Otth and Barthélémy Toguo
From 5th July to 9th November 2025
Ever since his first childhood experiences of football followed by his fondness for Neuchâtel Xamax from the 1960s, Friedrich Dürrenmatt nurtured a passion for the game, both in his personal life and in his art.
He showed his sense of humour when drawing caricatures of footballers and he invented a football narrative with Switzerland as a football team, F.C. Helvetia 1291.
Highlighting the sport’s dramatic side., Dürrenmatt cultivated links between football and theatre, but he also enjoyed using his telescope to watch matches at the Maladière stadium from his terrace!
Enriched by the works of current artists – Johanna Cartier, Paulo Catrica, Arthur Debert, Pedro Lenz, This Lüscher, Gianni Motti, Philémon Otth and Barthelemy Toguo – as well as the Neuchâtel Xamax archives, the exhibition, assembled with a nod to the Women’s European Championships in Switzerland in 2025, highlights the dialogue between sport and artistic creation.
The exhibition material in english is available on request at the reception desk of the CDN.
The exhibition will be complemented by an issue of the series “Cahiers du CDN,” published in French and German, and a new season of the podcast, also in French and German.
Neuchâtel Xamax, the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) and the Neuchâtel Football Association (Association neuchâteloise de football, ANF) are partners of the exhibition.
To mark the 125th anniversary of the ANF, an exhibition (in French) has been made tracing the history of football in Neuchâtel. You can view the digital version on the following page: