Zurich Sechseläuten Böögg explodes after 12 minutes and 48 seconds - the summer should be beautiful

Sechseläuten takes place in Zurich on Monday. The Böögg exploded after just over 12 minutes and promises a good summer. Read the ticker here.

For once, the Böögg was hit early: it took 12 minutes and 48 seconds for his head to explode. Whether it will be such a good summer remains to be seen. As a weatherman, the Böögg is not always very reliable.

At 6 p.m. sharp, on the sixth stroke of the bells, the President of the Graubünden cantonal government, Martin Bühler, lit the log under the Böögg. Not all the guilds had arrived at Sechseläutenplatz by then. Bühler was slightly off the mark with his SRF prediction of 18 minutes.

Guild master explains SechseläutenWhy exactly do the people of Zurich burn this Böögg?

The sun was shining and the wind was light as the groups of guild riders circled the Böögg for the "Sechseläuten March". After 10 minutes, the first firecrackers exploded and the flames snaked their way up to the Böögg. While the wood pile burned even longer, the winter figure quickly went up in flames.

Popular guests of honor

The celebrity guests of honor from the worlds of music and sport were particularly popular with the visitors, especially singer Beatrice Egli.

In addition to Egli, the 120 guests of honor this year included Federal Councillor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, ice hockey legends Mark Streit and Andres Ambühl and the Bishop of Chur, Joseph Maria Bonnemain.

Apart from Baume-Schneider, no one from the Federal Council was represented. In 2025, four Federal Councillors were still present. The president of HC Davos, Gaudenz Domenig, treated himself to the trip to Zurich before his club plays its second final game against Fribourg-Gottéron in the evening. Army chief Benedikt Roos also made the march to Sechseläutenplatz.

A particularly large number of guests of honor came from the host canton of Graubünden, including the entire cantonal government. The President of the Council of States Stefan Engler, actress Tonia Maria Zindel, ex-Mister Switzerland Renzo Blumenthal and former cross-country skier Dario Cologna were also present. While wrestling king Armon Orlik ran with the Grisons, his brother Curdin, three-time Swiss champion, was guest of honor at the Zunft zum Weggen.

Penny-farthings and robots

There was a premiere to marvel at thanks to the Bündner: a humanoid robot took part in the parade. It drew attention to the Tech Summit in Davos in the summer and was able to keep up with the human participants.

Various Graubünden groups ran at the head of the parade. They appeared in traditional costumes, as haymakers or skiers and mountain guides from times long past.

Some members of the city guild were on penny-farthings, a not entirely safe means of transportation between the streetcar tracks. The riders looked a little safer.

Thousands of visitors lined the streets of Zurich's city center. Traditionally, they distributed flowers to the guests of honor and the guilds. The route ran along Bahnhofstrasse to Bürkliplatz and back. The guildsmen, the people of Graubünden and the guests of honor then walked along the particularly crowded Limmatquai to Sechseläutenplatz.

The Böögg awaited its fate for hours on Sechseläutenplatz, with two ibexes adorning the fly as a reminder of the host canton of Graubünden. After the long wait, the end came quickly. The embers of the fire were then traditionally used by Zurich residents to roast sausages on Sechseläutenplatz.

Read the ticker to catch up:

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6.45 pm

Hopefully the Böögg is right

That concludes our ticker. And in the hope that the Böögg is right, we wish you a wonderful summer. Thanks for reading along.

6.37 pm

It's all over again so quickly

If the Böögg is chased away quickly, the whole thing will be over relatively soon. The pyre is still burning. Afterwards, people will gather on Sechseläutenplatz to use the embers to roast sausages.

18.28 hrs

The pyre continues to burn

Even though the Böögg has already exploded, the pyre continues to burn. At the same time, guild members ride around it on horseback. The tradition is criticized every year: The horses are exposed to a lot of noise and stress. In 2017 , a study by the University of Zurich showed that although they have an increased heart rate during the procession, the overall stress level is moderate and reasonable for the horses.

One exception was in 1965, when the guildsmen rode around the pyre on hobbyhorses due to horse flu.

18.17 hrs

Böögg forecast is not really reliable

The Böögg has predicted: It's going to be a beautiful summer. But is this forecast reliable? Short answer: No. Long answer: "The statistical analysis shows no demonstrable correlation between the burning time of the Böögg and the summer temperature on the Swiss Plateau. Or to put it another way: the Böögg's predictive quality cannot be proven." So writes Meteo Switzerland.

Rather, the burning time depends on the structure of the pyre, the humidity of the wood used, the weather on the day of the Sechseläuten and the amount of accelerant used.

18.13 hrs

12 minutes and 48 seconds

The summer will be beautiful. The Böögg's head is blown off after 12 minutes and 48 seconds.

6.12 pm

Now the whole Böögg is on fire

The Böögg is completely ablaze. It probably won't be long before it blows its head off.

6.11 pm

First explosions

After 10 minutes, the first explosions can be heard: The Böög also has explosive devices built into its body. But it all depends on when the explosives in its head detonate.

18.05 hrs

These are the guests' tips

Fortunately, Tele Züri has had the whole afternoon to ask lots of experts and non-experts how long it will take for the Böögg's head to explode. Here is an (incomplete) overview:

- Armon Orlik, wrestling king: 20 minutes
- Felix H. Boller, President of the Central Committee of Zurich's Guilds: 21 minutes
- Beatrice Egli, pop singer: 16 minutes, 30 seconds
- Mark Streit, former ice hockey player: 7 minutes
- Raphael Golta, likely future Mayor of Zurich: 15 minutes, 18 seconds
- Nico Santos, German musician: 16 minutes, 14 seconds
- Luki Meier, Böögg builder: 16 minutes, 22 seconds

By the way, we asked another AI: according to Google Gemini, it takes 14 minutes and 42 seconds to chase the Böög's head off.

6.00 pm

The pyre is burning

The pyre on which the Böögg is burning. Last chance for you to give a tip on how long it will take for the Böögg's head to explode. Last year it took 26 minutes and 30 seconds, in 2024 31 minutes and 28 seconds. And in 2023 it took 57 minutes, longer than ever before. The fastest were 1968 and 1971: the Böögg's head exploded after just 5 minutes.

5.45 pm

It's about to start

At 6 pm, the pyre on which the Böögg is placed is lit. For all those who forget every year, it goes like this: the faster the Böögg's head explodes, the better the summer will be.

17:17

Graubünden's appearance as guest canton costs 500,000 francs

The guest canton at this year's Sechseläuten is the canton of Graubünden. The motto: "genuinely patgific." "Patgific" comes from the Rhaeto-Romanic language and means something like peaceful, cozy, relaxed.

The Tages-Anzeiger newspaper reported at the beginning of the week that an appearance as a guest canton at Sechseläuten costs the respective canton around 500,000 francs. The money finances, among other things, a four-day exhibition at the Lindenhof, various activities and its own delegation at the parade.

5.05 pm

Here the police escort the Böögg through the city

The Böögg traditionally makes its way to Sechseläutenplatz with the children's procession on the Sunday before Sechseläuten. But to get to the parade at all, the police escort him from the Böögg builder's studio through the city. You can see what this looks like in the video.

The exact location of the Böögg maker's workshop has been a secret since 2006. Back then, the Böögg was stolen by a left-wing group - it reappeared on May 1st.

5.00 pm

Welcome to the Sechseläuten ticker

The traditional Sechseläuten festival is taking place in Zurich today. At 6 pm, the Böögg will be burned on Sechseläutenplatz. blue News is ticking live.

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