Football Club Photos - Borussia Mönchengladbach, Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia

Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. Borussia Mönchengladbach play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football. The club is one of Germany's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 50,000 members and is the sixth largest club in Germany. The official mascot of the club is the foal Jünter. "Borussia" is a Latinized form of Prussia, a popular term in naming German clubs located within the former Kingdom of Prussia.

Football Club Photos - FC Schalke 04, Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia

Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke, is a German association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major successes have been rare since the club's heyday in the 1930s and early 1940s. The football team is the biggest part of a large sports club with more than 100,000 members (August 2011) making it the second largest sports club in Germany. Other activities offered by the club include basketball, handball, and track and field.

Schalke won its first major European trophy in 1997 by defeating in the final Internazionale on penalty kicks for the UEFA Cup. Schalke holds a long-standing rivalry with Borussia Dortmund, and matches between the two teams are referred to as the Revierderby. The mascot of the club is called Erwin (also Ährwin.)

Football Photos - Spain national football team

The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque. The Spanish side is commonly referred to as La Roja (The Red [One]) or La Furia Roja (The Red Fury).

Spain are the current reigning World and European champions, having won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship. Spain also won the 1964 European Nations' Cup and reached the UEFA Euro 1984 Final. In July 2008 Spain rose to the top of the FIFA World Rankings for the first time in the team's history, becoming the sixth nation to top this ranking, and the first nation to top the ranking without previously having won the World Cup. Between November 2006 and June 2009 Spain went undefeated for a record-tying 35 consecutive matches before their loss to the United States, a record shared with Brazil, including a record 15-game winning streak and thus earning third place in the FIFA Confederations Cup.

Recently, the team has become known for using a style of play which involves roaming movement and positional interchange amongst midfielders, moving the ball in intricate patterns, and sharp, one- or two-touch passing; this style of play has been dubbed Tiki-taka (or Tiqui-taca). The success of Spain in recent times and their style of play, has helped the Spanish team become a dominant force in world football.

Spain are currently ranked number 1 on the FIFA rankings, and 6th on Strongest football team by Elo Ratings.

Football Club Photos - SV Werder Bremen, Bremen Northwest German

SV Werder Bremen is a German sports club best known for its association football team playing in Bremen, in the northwest German federal state of the same name. The club was founded on 4 February 1899 as Fußballverein Werder by a group of sixteen vocational high school students who had won a prize of sports equipment to set them on their way. They took their name from the seldom used regional German word for “river peninsula”, describing the riverside field they first played football on. Werder Bremen has grown to 39,100 members.

Bremen have been a mainstay in the Bundesliga, top flight of German football. Bremen have been crowned champions on four occasions and have won the DFB-Pokal on six occasions. Their most recent achievements in these competitions came in 2004, when they won an historic double. Bremen have also tasted European success, beating AS Monaco in the 1992 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, 2–0. Bremen also reached the final edition of the UEFA Cup in 2009, before it was rebranded as the UEFA Europa League, where they met Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk. Shakhtar won the final 2–1 in extra time.

Football Photos - Qatar national football team

The Qatar national football team is the national team of Qatar and is controlled by the Qatar Football Association. They have never qualified for a FIFA World Cup but are hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The team has also appeared in seven AFC Asian Cup tournaments and hosted the 2011 AFC Asian Cup.

Football was brought to Qatar in the 1940s and 50s by oil workers. Soon after the formation of the Qatar Football Association in 1970, the national team played its first match against Bahrain in the Gulf Cup. Qatar have only once progressed beyond the group stage in continental championships and have never represented Asia in a FIFA World Cup. However, they have won the Gulf Cup twice, in 1992 and 2004, both times as host, and qualified for the Asian Cup finals in 1980, 1984, 1988, 1996, 2000, 2004 and 2007, and as hosts for 2011.Qatar reached the Asian Zone's final qualifying round for France 1998 when they beat China and Iran to enter the last match against Saudi Arabia needing just a point to gain an automatic qualifying place. However, they lost out as the Saudis went through 1–0.

They reached the final qualifying round again four years later, but were defeated by Bora Milutinovic's China team, who topped the section to progress to their first FIFA World Cup. Frenchman Philippe Troussier took the manager's job after Korea–Japan 2002, but was unsuccessful in both the 2004 Asian Cup and the qualifying campaign for Germany 2006.

Troussier was sacked after the World Cup qualifying campaign, and under Bosnian Dzemaludin Musovic the team won the Gulf Cup in 2004 and the Asian Games gold in 2006. Musovic stepped down after Qatar took just two points from three matches in the AFC Asian Cup 2007. The job of coaching the team in qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup fell to Uruguayan Jorge Fossati, who led the team throughout the first and second AFC rounds up to the third one. After leaving them at the top of their group in the third round with only two played matches, Fossati had to undergo surgery. Subsequently, the Qatar FA ended their cooperation with him, who supposedly needed too long to recover from surgery. Bruno Metsu was called up for the job, but Qatar failed to qualify after finishing fourth in their qualifying group. Qatar will host the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Qatar have qualified to the 1984 and 1992 Olympic Games football tournaments.

Their U-17 youth team won the Asian Cup one time, while their Youth team made a famous appearance in the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship, where they finished as runners-up to Germany in the final match.

Football Photos - Bahrain national football team

The Bahrain national football team (Arabic: منتخب البحرين لكرة القدم‎) is the national team of the Kingdom of Bahrain and is controlled by the Bahrain Football Association; it was founded in 1951 and joined FIFA in 1966. They have never reached the finals of the World Cup, but have twice come within one match of doing so. Bahrain won the FIFA's most improved team award in 2004, and finished fourth in the 2004 Asian Cup, beating Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals but losing to Japan in the semi-finals 4–3. Bahrain then lost to Iran in the third-place match, thus finishing in fourth place overall. The detention without trial of Shia members of the current team in the wake of the 2011 pro-democracy reform protests has had political as well as sporting repercussions.

Football Photos - Iraq national football team

The Iraqi national football team (Arabic: منتخب العراق لكرة القدم‎) represents Iraq in international football and is controlled by the Iraq Football Association. They won the 2007 AFC Asian Cup.

Iraqi football reached a peak in the 1970s and 1980s – Iraq qualified for the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, and 3 times for the Olympic Games in Moscow, Los Angeles and Seoul. Iraq also won the 1982 Asian Games, the Arab Nations Cup 4 times, the Gulf Cup of Nations 3 times, and the 1985 Pan Arab Games fielding a B team. Iraq finished in 4th place in the 1976 AFC Asian Cup – the last Asian Cup Iraq would participate in until 1996.

 

Football Photos - Kuwait national football team

The Kuwait National Football Team is the national team of Kuwait and is controlled by the Kuwait Football Association. They made one World Cup Finals appearance, in 1982, managing a draw with Czechoslovakia but losing to England and France. During the match against France, France scored a goal while some of the Kuwaiti players had stopped, having heard a whistle. The goal was initially awarded by the referee, who had not blown, but Kuwait walked off the pitch in protest. They eventually resumed playing only after the intervention of Sheikh Fahad Al Ahmed and the referee's changing his mind to disallow the French goal.

They had better success contending for the Asian Cup, reaching the finals in 1976 and taking home the winner's trophy in 1980.

Kuwait's 20–0 win over Bhutan in 2000 was at the time the biggest ever win in international football. It was surpassed in 2001, when Australia beat Tonga 22–0. Also in 2000, Kuwait took part at the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.

Kuwait, who last qualified for the FIFA World Cup in 1982, were drawn with Korea Republic, United Arab Emirates, and Lebanon in the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification.

Football Club Photos - Borussia Dortmund, Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia

Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football. They are the current Bundesliga champions.

Borussia Dortmund have won seven German football championships, two German Cups, a record-tying four German Supercups, one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and one Intercontinental Cup. Their UEFA Cup Winners' Cup win in 1966 made them the first German team to win a European title.

Since 1974, Dortmund have played their home games at Westfalenstadion. The stadium is the biggest stadium in Germany and the sixth biggest in Europe. Dortmund holds a long-standing rivalry with Schalke, and matches between the two teams are referred to as the Revierderby. Borussia Dortmund's motto is "Echte Liebe" (English: "True Love"). 

Football Club Photos - Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia

Bayer 04 Leverkusen is a German football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the most well-known department of TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a sports club whose members also participate in athletics, gymnastics, basketball and other sports.

On 27 November 1903 Wilhelm Hauschild wrote a letter – signed by 170 of his fellow workers – to his employer, the Friedrich Bayer and Co., seeking the company's support in starting a sports club. The company agreed to support the initiative, and on 1 July 1904 Turn- und Spielverein Bayer 04 Leverkusen was founded.

On 31 May 1907 a separate football department was formed within the club. In the culture of sports in Germany at the time, there was significant animosity between gymnasts and other types of athletes. Eventually this contributed to a split within the club: on 8 June 1928 the footballers formed a separate association – Sportvereinigung Bayer 04 Leverkusen – that also included the handball and fistball players, athletics, and boxing, while the gymnasts carried on as TuS Bayer 04 Leverkusen. SV Bayer 04 Leverkusen took with them the club's traditional colours of red and black, with the gymnasts adopting blue and yellow.