Hockey Club Lugano was officially founded on 11 February 1941 in Switzerland’s Italian-speaking city of Lugano. The club are regarded as one of the strongest teams in Switzerland, both domestically and internationally, and regularly compete for the championship.

Lugano rose to the National League B in 1963/64 and first made the top flight, the National League, in 1970/71. Despite being relegated the following season, they returned in 1981 and have stayed there ever since.

The club’s first major success came between 1986 and 1990, when the club won four Swiss titles in five seasons and competed internationally in the European Cup. Another important period in club history was between 1998 and 2006, when Lugano made the Swiss NL final six times, winning the championship three times.

After narrowly missing out on their eighth national title to rivals the ZSC Lions in 2015/16, Lugano qualified for their very first CHL season (2016/17) and have participated in one more since.

In their debut season, in form Lugano topped their group and beat Czech side HC Pilsen in the Round of 32 before being eliminated the following round by the ZSC Lions. In 2018/19 they made their second appearance in the CHL. Lugano qualified for the Playoffs but were once again eliminated in the Round of 16.