This season's cup competition began with the games of the first round, played on the week-end of the 23 September 1956. The competition was to be completed on Whit Monday, 10 June 1957, with the final, which was traditionally held at the former Wankdorf Stadium in Bern. The clubs from the 1956–57 Swiss 1. Liga were given a bye for the first round, they joined the competition in the second round on the week-end of 7 October. The clubs from this season's Nationalliga A (NLA) and from this season's Nationalliga B (NLB) were given byes for the first two rounds. These teams joined the competition in the third round, which was played on the week-end of 20 and 21 October.
The matches were played in a knockout format. In the event of a draw after 90 minutes, the match went into extra time. In the event of a draw at the end of extra time, a replay was foreseen and this was played on the visiting team's pitch. If the replay ended in a draw after extra time, a toss of a coin would establish the team that qualified for the next round.[1]
Round 1
In the first phase, the lower league teams that had qualified themselves for the competition through their regional football association's regional cup competitions or their association's requirements, competed here. Whenever possible, the draw respected local regionalities. The first round was played on the weekend of 23 September 1956.
The teams from the NLA and NLB entered the cup competition in this round. However, the teams from the NLA were seeded and could not be drawn against each other. Whenever possible, the draw respected local regionalities. The third round was played on the week-end of 20 and 21 October 1956.
