Al-Najaf Sports Club ( ar, نادي النجف الرياضي) is an Iraqi professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club based in Najaf. They are members of the Iraqi Premier League. Al-Najaf has competed in the

2007 AFC Champions League The 2007 AFC Champions League was the 26th edition of the top-level Asian club football tournament and the 5th edition under the current AFC Champions League title. Japanese side Urawa Red Diamonds became champions for the first time, beating Se ...

History

In 1960, the city of Najaf began an active movement to establish a sports club after the athletes then felt the need of the city to a sports club that absorbed the energies of young people and their creations which are almost lost in the amateur leagues. Some of the dignitaries of the city were contacted for this purpose. The request was submitted to the Ministry of the Interior, which was responsible for the authorisation of sports clubs in Iraq at that time. The name of Al Ghiri Sports Club was proposed for this institution. In 1961, the Ministry of the Interior approved their request to establish the club and thus wrote the birth certificate of the first sports club in the city of Najaf and consisted of the first administrative body of Messrs. Naji Hassan Hasswa as president and Maki Hadi Maala Vice-President and Alwan Elsafer as secretary. At the beginning of the establishment of the club, the Ministry of the Interior allocated an annual grant of 60 dinars divided into two instalments, and the club relied on this grant and monthly subscriptions from its members.

Stadiums

New Najaf Stadium is a purpose built football stadium that is the current home stadium of Al-Najaf. It opened in 2018, with a capacity of 30,000 people. Until 2018, the club played its home matches at An-Najaf Stadium ( ar, ستاد النجف).

Current squad

First-team squad

Current technical staff

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Haidar Aboodi Haeder Aboudi ( ar, حيدر عبودي) (born 1986) is an Iraqi former footballer who played as a defender for Najaf FC and the Iraq national football team. Managerial statistics Honours Country * 2002 Arab Police Championship: Champi ...

, , , - , Assistant coach:, , Dhiyya Falih, , , - , -bgcolor=#eeeeee , Goalkeeping coach:, , Mohammed Abdul-Zahra, , , - , Fitness coach:, , Salah Hashim, , , - , Team supervisor:, , Fadhel Mohammed, , , -bgcolor=#eeeeee , - , Team manager:, , Mohammed Abdul Hussein, , , -bgcolor=#eeeeee , Team Doctor:, , Haitham Abdul Amir, , , - , U-19 Coach:, , Haider Lafta, , , -

Managerial history

Since the club's promotion to the Iraqi Premier League in the 1987–88 season so far, twenty-six coaches have led the team: * Mohammed Hussein Ismail * Alwan Mena * Nasrat Nasser * Mohammed Hussein Ismail * Alwan Mena * Hatif Shamran * Alwan Mena * Najeh Humoud *

Wathiq Naji Wathiq Naji (1 July 1940 – 20 November 2014) ar, واثق ناجي) was an Iraqi football manager, who took the team to the 1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * Ja ...

* Hatif Shamran * Noman Kadhim & Raheem Jassim * Najeh Humoud * Hadi Mutanish * Ali Kadhim *

Abdul Ghani Shahad Abdul-Ghani Shahad (born 7 March 1968) is an Iraqi professional football coach and former player who is current manager of Naft Al-Wasat SC in the Iraqi Premier League. Abdul-Ghani started his playing career at Al-Najaf FC and remained a one cl ...

* Najeh Humoud *

* Hatif Shamran * Majed Najem *

* Hatif Shamran *

Yahya Alwan Yahya Alwan Manhal ( ar, يحي علوان منهل, (born 1 July 1956 in Baghdad, Iraq) is a former Iraq national and Olympic coach, who is currently coach of Al-Naft Coaching career He is an Iraqi football player and coach, born in 1956 in th ...

* Hassan Ahmed *

Qahtan Chathir Qahtan Chathir is an Iraqi football forward who played for Iraq in the 1996 Asian Cup. He also played for Al Talaba, Al Karkh, Al Ittihad, Al-Thaid, Al Sinaa. Career Playing career Qahtan Chathir played for Al Talaba, Al Karkh, Al Itti ...

* Salman Hussein * Haider Yahya * Hatif Shamran * Haider Yahya * Hameed Salman * Ali Wahab * Emad Mohammed * Hatif Shamran * Emad Mohammed * Nadhim Shaker * Ali Hashim * Ahmed Khalef *

Mudhafar Jabbar Mudhafar Jabbar Tawfik (born 11 January 1965) is an Iraqi footballer. He competed in the men's tournament at the 1988 Summer Olympics. Mudhafar Jabbar is coaching Al-Hudood Al-Hudood Sports Club ( ar, نادي الحدود الرياضي, li ...

* Thair Jassam * Chasib Sultan * Hassan Ahmad *

* Hatif Shamran *

Honours

Domestic

* Iraqi Premier League **''Runners-up (3):'' 1995–96, 2005–06, 2008–09 * Iraqi Elite Cup **Winners (1):

1997 File:1997 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The movie set of ''Titanic'', the highest-grossing movie in history at the time; ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'', is published; Comet Hale-Bopp passes by Earth and becomes one of t ...

Friendly

*Victory and Peace Championship **Winners (1): 1992 *Love Championship **Winners (1): 2003

Performance in AFC Competitions

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League (abbreviated as ACL) is an annual continental club football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's top-division football clubs. It is the most prestigious club competition ...

: 1 appearance ::

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

: Group stage

Statistics

In domestic competitions

{, class="wikitable collapsible " style="text-align: center;" , - !Year ! Premier League ! Iraq Cup !

Super Cup A super cup is a competition, usually but not exclusively in association football, which often forms the 'curtain raiser' to a season, and typically involves only two teams who have qualified through success in other competitions during the prev ...

! Elite Cup , - , 1987–88, , 16, , -, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , rowspan=4, Started in
1991 , - , 1988–89, , 6, , Round of 32, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 1989–90, , 8, , Quarter-final, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 1990–91, , 7, , Quarter-final, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 1991–92, , 6, , Round of 16, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , Group stage , - , 1992–93, , 15, , Second round, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , Group stage , - , 1993–94, , 4, , -, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , , - , 1994–95, , bgcolor="#cc9966", 3, , -, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , 4 , - , 1995–96, , bgcolor=silver, Runner-up, , -, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , Group stage , - , 1996–97, , 4, , Quarter-final, , , , bgcolor="#cc9966", 3 , - , 1997–98, , 4, , Round of 16, , , , bgcolor=gold, Winner , - , 1998–99, , 8, , Round of 32, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , Group stage , - , 1999–2000, , 9, , Round of 16, , , , Group stage , - , 2000–01, , 6, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , , , , - , 2001–02, , 5, , bgcolor="#cc9966", Semi-final, , , , Group stage , - , 2002–03, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not finished'', , Quarter-final, , , , Group stage , - , 2003–04, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not finished'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , Group stage , - , 2004–05, , 6, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , rowspan=18, Abolished in
2004 , - , 2005–06, , bgcolor=silver, Runner-up, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2006–07, , bgcolor="#cc9966", 3, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2007–08, , 5, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2008–09, , bgcolor=silver, Runner-up, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2009–10, , 11, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2010–11, , 11, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2011–12, , 9, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2012–13, , 11, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not finished'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2013–14, , 15, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2014–15, , 17, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2015–16, , 13, , , , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2016–17, , 9, , Round of 16, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2017–18, , 6, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'', , , - , 2018–19, , 12, , Round of 16, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2019–20, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not finished'', , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not finished'', , , - , 2020–21, , bgcolor="#cc9966", 3, , Round of 16, , bgcolor="#cd5c5c", ''not held'' , - , 2021–22, , 7, , Round of 16, ,

References

External links

Official Website
(Arabic)
Club Page On Kooora
{{Iraq Super League 1961 establishments in Iraq Najaf Association football clubs established in 1961 Football clubs in Najaf