Al-Ittihad Sport Club (), is an

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

football team A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-st ...

based in Al-Ashar,

Basra Basra () is a port city in Iraq, southern Iraq. It is the capital of the eponymous Basra Governorate, as well as the List of largest cities of Iraq, third largest city in Iraq overall, behind Baghdad and Mosul. Located near the Iran–Iraq bor ...

, that plays in

Iraqi Second Division League The Iraqi Second Division League is a Association football, football league that is the fourth tier of the Iraqi football league system. The league was founded in 1974, and consists of 20 teams split into two groups in the first stage. The top fou ...

History

Foundation and early years

Al-Ittihad was founded in 1937 in the Al-Bachari district, and it was the first administrative body headed by Nadhum Majeed. In 1940, Tawfiq Al-Ainachi assumed the presidency of the club. The club's activities stopped at the outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1945, the club resumed activity, and moved to a new location in the Al-Saee district.

Prince's patronage and "Royal" nickname

In the 1940s, the club was receiving direct support from Prince Abd al-Ilah. Prince Abd al-Ilah's encouragement was the first motive for the club's activity, as he visited

on every occasion, he came to the stadium to enjoy one of the football matches that the club was running. He also donated a silver cup to the football club bearing his name in 1947, and on April 22, 1949, the prince spent an entire day in the club's hospitality to supervise himself the activities of the club teams, and the club's name was changed to the Al-Ittihad Al-Malaki "Royal" Sport Club. At the end of the 1940s and the beginning of the 1950s, the president of the club was Sami Al-Hilali, who issued the first

sports Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in ...

newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

in September 1950 under the name of Al-Ittihad Sports Newspaper, he was an influential figure, and at that time he was communicating with club administrations in neighboring countries to conduct friendly matches and hold

sporting events Sport is a physical activity or game, often competitive and organized, that maintains or improves physical ability and skills. Sport may provide enjoyment to participants and entertainment to spectators. The number of participants in a ...

In FA Basra Premier League

Al-Ittihad has participated in the Iraq FA Basra Premier League (the top division) since its inception in 1948. The 1949–50 season was the second season of League organised by the Basra branch of the Iraq Football Association. The tournament began on 19 October 1949, and the regular season ended in November 1949 with Sharikat Naft Al-Basra and Al-Ittihad qualifying for the final. Al-Ittihad lost 5–1 in the final and took second place.

In Premier League

Al-Ittihad played in the Iraqi Premier League for the first time in its history in the 1976–77 season, and it came in sixth place as its best position in the history of the tournament, as it played 11 matches, winning 4, drawing 3 and losing 4 of them, and the team's player Abbas Fadhel won the league's top scorer title with six goals, in conjunction with four other players. In the 1977–78 season, the team finished the league in 11th place, as it played 13 matches, won 3, drew 3, and lost 7 of them. In the 1978–79 season, the team finished in 12th place after playing 12 matches, winning 2 matches, drawing 3 and losing 7 of them, and relegated to the

Iraqi First Division League The Iraqi First Division League is a Association football, football league that is the third tier of the Iraqi football league system, which was founded in 1974. The league consists of 20 teams split into two groups in the first stage. The top fou ...

. The club played in Iraqi First Division League and won this championship in 1980–81 season and promoted in the Iraqi Premier League again and played in 1981–82 season, however the team fell to the bottom of the league standings, after playing 22 matches, winning only one match, drawing 2 and losing 19 of them, and relegated back to the Iraqi First Division League.

President assassination

On January 18, 2005, unidentified armed persons

assassinated Assassination is the willful killing, by a sudden, secret, or planned attack, of a personespecially if prominent or important. It may be prompted by political, ideological, religious, financial, or military motives. Assassinations are orde ...

the club's president, Alaa Hamid Nasih in

, and then escaped without being arrested.

Famous players

* Karim Allawi * Saeed Easho * Mejbil Jwayed * Hassan Ali Funjan * Hassan Muwla * Rahim Bakr * Abdul Karim Jassim

Honours

National

Iraqi Premier Division League The Iraqi Premier Division League () is the second-highest division of the Iraqi football league system after the Iraq Stars League. The league is contested by 20 clubs and is operated by the Iraq Football Association (IFA). Each season, the two ...

(second tier) **Winners (2): 1975–76, 1980–81

Regional

* Iraq FA Basra Premier League (top tier) **''Runners-up (1):'' 1949–50

Al-Ittihad Women

Al-Ittihad Club is the first club in

that was concerned with the women's sports movement. In 1957, the first woman was elected as a member of the administrative board of the club, Saadiya Abdul Wahed Al-Farhan. Mondays were designated for women to engage in sports activities, and this led to the formation of women's teams, so that The women's athletics team participated in the national championship in 1975.

References

External links

Al-Ittihad SC
on Goalzz.com

Basra Clubs Union

Hanna Al-Sheikh Cup
{{Iraqi Second Division League Football clubs in Iraq Association football clubs established in 1937 Football clubs in Basra Basra