Why Alisha Lehmann feels at home in Como

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"I want to play"

"People in Como are more respectful, which makes life easier." Lehmann then adds with a laugh: "And I have such a nice house by the lake, I don't really have to leave it anyway." Comparing her previous stations, she feels most at home in Como so far. "When I arrived and saw the view, I thought: 'This is just like home'."

Alisha Lehmann wants to fight for a regular place in the national team again

Keystone

But the 26-year-old striker didn't switch clubs because of the beautiful view. Lehmann had already moved to Italy in 2024 after she had gone from being a regular to a substitute at Aston Villa in England. However, the move to Juventus Turin did not bring the hoped-for progress in sporting terms, and she remained mostly a substitute striker there too.

"I think every female footballer is lying when she says she's happy with a place on the bench. I want to play," says Lehmann, also with a view to the national team. The move to Como was therefore a conscious decision: to finally get back on the pitch on a regular basis. Although she was part of the European Championship squad and represented Switzerland at the home tournament, she only played ten minutes in total, nine of which came in the match against Finland.

Part of something new

"A big tournament is always about the team. You have to put your own feelings to one side. But of course I also came to Como with the idea of being able to play in the national team again with more playing time. Especially because Pia Sundhage attaches great importance to this," explains Lehmann. Although she likes to be there for other players in the national team, she also wants to fight for her place on the pitch again.

So far, this plan seems to be working: She is in the squad for the upcoming international matches against Canada and Scotland, and in Como she was already in the starting eleven several times, even scoring a goal.

But Alisha Lehmann is not just a player at FC Como. She is part of a larger project in women's football. The club is owned by Mercury 13, an investor group that only invests in women's football - with the aim of establishing the multi-club ownership model, which has long been familiar from men's football, in the women's game too.

At the start of this mission is FC Como Women, a club that is independent of a men's team. In addition, Mercury 13 recently took over the English club Bristol City Women, which plays in the second division. Many more clubs are set to follow. In the coming years, Mercury 13, led by founder and CEO Victoire Souki Cogevina, wants to invest 100 million dollars in women's football and build up an international network of clubs.

Lehmann does not see himself as a figurehead

Alisha Lehmann has also taken a liking to this project, which aims to specifically promote women's football: "It's very cool what the club wants. Of course, the main reason I moved to Como was to play more. But it's a really cool project in women's football and I'm happy to be part of it."

And Nicola Verdun, CEO of the club, is quoted on the website about Lehmann's transfer: "Together we want to continue to build a club that reflects who we are: authentic, ambitious and proud to do things our own way."

So is Lehmann, with her enormous reach that extends far beyond football fans, especially on Instagram, now the figurehead of FC Como? The Bern native laughs: "I don't think she's the figurehead per se. But certainly as part of the team. Now, of course, I'm also trying to push that."

According to her, the club is on the right track. Planning is forward-looking and the budget is growing steadily. The training conditions are not yet at the level of Juventus, and certainly not as good as in England. But she is convinced: "Como will certainly get even bigger in the next few years."

And perhaps Alisha Lehmann will finally make the step back to being a regular player with Como - both at the club and in the national team.