This study on the results of implementing a new primary school programme in German-speaking Central Swiss schools, containing English as the first foreign language (FL) to be acquired (from Grade 3 onwards), followed by French as the second FL (from Grade 5 onwards), demonstrates that learners' English competencies and their reading abilities in German, the local medium of instruction, positively affect the acquisition of the third language (French). A broad range of other contextual and individual factors were comprised in the study to explore whether they contribute to the elucidation of students' L3 skills.