The Swiss weekly, considered one of the most prominent conservative voices in the country, researched the family background of Nemo Mattler. While Nemo continued to advocate for human rights and often spoke out against Israel the new article reveals that some of Nemo’s ancestors were members of the Nazi party.
In the past two years, Nemo became a musical superstar, bringing great pride to Switzerland with the Eurovision victory. However, Nemo also used the platform and popularity to express a clearly anti-Israel position. At age 26, Nemo the first non-binary winner in the history of the contest with the song The Code became one of the most prominent voices against Israel’s participation in the competition and called for Switzerland to boycott the event.
Nemo’s actions against Israel peaked in December 2025 with the announcement of returning the trophy in protest. “This trophy does not belong on my shelf,” Nemo wrote in a long Instagram post. “Israel’s continued participatio shows a clear contradiction between these ideals and the decision made by the European Broadcasting Union.”
“The trophy was returned with claims against Israel for not upholding values of unity and respect for all humans, choosing to exclude Israelis from humanity,” wrote investigative journalist Christoph Morgli. Morgli accused Nemo of preaching and generalizing all of Israeli society in the context of the Gaza conflict. The investigation also mentions inappropriate behavior by Nemo in Malmö, where Nemo reportedly refused to accept the greeting of Israel’s representative Eden Golan, turning their back on stage.
The weekly calls on Nemo to reflect on the family history: “A family that supported the Nazi movement intellectually, practically, and financially the same ideology that enabled the genocide of the Jewish people.” The publication accuses Nemo of ignoring the family’s past and of blatant superficiality.
The investigation reveals that the Mattler family from St. Gallen was a wealthy industrial family whose problematic past had been studied by historians, and Nemo was certainly aware of these facts. The report details the story of Arnold Mattler, who, along with his wife, was an enthusiastic admirer of Hitler. Arnold Mattler was also a senior member of a fascist newspaper banned by law and financially supported far-right organizations.
Arnold Mattler’s wife actively opposed aid to Jewish refugees who fled to Switzerland during the war. The article covers the family’s support for Nazi ideology, including financial assistance and smuggling fascists from Swiss justice to Germany. Throughout the Holocaust, Arnold Mattler continued to deny the extermination of the Jewish people, calling it “malicious rumors.”
Shortly after the war ended, Mattler committed suicide by gunshot. His children were also influenced by his admiration for Hitler; one son expressed extreme antisemitism during a visit to the United States, and another, Hans Martin Mattler, volunteered at age 25 for the SS, was sent to the Russian front, and was killed there.
