Defunct national football teams
1 - Czechoslovakia national football team
The Czechoslovakia national football team (Czech: Československá fotbalová reprezentace, Slovak: Československé národné futbalové mužstvo) was the national association football team of Czechoslovakia from 1920 to 1992. At the time of the dissolution of Czechoslovakia at the end of 1992, the team was participating in UEFA qualifying Group 4 for the 1994 World Cup; it completed this campaign under the name Representation of Czechs and Slovaks (RCS). The Czech Republic national football team is recognized as the successor of the Czechoslovakia team.The Czechoslovakia team was controlled by the Czechoslovak Football Association, and qualified for eight World Cups and three European Championships. The team had two runner-up finishes in World Cups (1934, 1962) and a European Championship win in 1976.
2 - East Germany national football team
The East Germany national football team was from 1952 to 1990 the football team of East Germany, playing as one of three post-war German teams, along with Saarland and West Germany.After German reunification in 1990, the Deutscher Fußball Verband der DDR (DFV), and with it the East German team, joined the Deutscher Fußball Bund (DFB) and the West German national football team that had just won the World Cup.
3 - West Germany national football team
The Germany national football team (German: Die deutsche Fußballnationalmannschaft) is the men's football team that has represented Germany in international competition since 1908. It is governed by the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund), founded in 1900.Ever since the DFB was reinaugurated in 1949 the team has represented the Federal Republic of Germany. Under Allied occupation and division, two other separate national teams were also recognised by FIFA: the Saarland team representing the Saarland (1950–1956) and the East German team representing the German Democratic Republic (1952–1990). Both have been absorbed along with their records
by the current national team. The official name and code "Germany FR
(FRG)" was shortened to "Germany (GER)" following the reunification in
1990.Germany is one of the most successful national teams in international competitions, having won a total of four World Cups (1954, 1974, 1990, 2014) and three European Championships (1972, 1980, 1996).They have also been runners-up three times in the European
Championships, four times in the World Cup, and further four third World
Cup places. East Germany won Olympic Gold in 1976.Germany is the only nation to have won both the men's and women's World Cups. At the end of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Germany earned the highest Elo rating of any national football team in history, with a record 2200 points. Germany is also the only European nation that has won a FIFA World Cup in the Americas. The current manager of the national team is Joachim Löw.
4 - Soviet Union national football team
The Soviet Union national football team (Russian: сбо́рная Сове́тского Сою́за по футбо́лу, sbornaya Sovyetskogo Soyuza po futbolu) was the national football team of the Soviet Union.After the breakup of the Union the team was transformed into the CIS national football team (a formality name for a team of the non-existing country of Soviet Union). FIFA considers the CIS national football team (and ultimately, the Russia national football team) as the Soviet successor team allocating its former records to them; nevertheless, a large percentage of the team's former players came from outside the Russian SFSR, mainly from the Ukrainian SSR, and following the breakup of the Soviet Union, some such as Andrei Kanchelskis from the former Ukrainian SSR, continued to play in the new Russia national football team.The Soviet Union failed to qualify for the World Cup only twice, in 1974 and 1978, and attended seven finals tournaments in total. Their best finish was fourth in 1966, when they lost to West Germany in the semifinals, 2–1. The Soviet Union qualified for five European Championships, winning the inaugural competition in 1960 when they beat Yugoslavia in the final, 2–1. They finished second three times (1964, 1972, 1988), and fourth once (1968), when, having drawn with Italy in the semi-final, they were sent to the third place playoff match by the loss of a coin toss. The Soviet Union national team also participated in number of Olympic tournaments earning the gold medal in the 1956 and 1988. The Soviet team continued to field its national team players in Olympic tournaments despite the prohibition of FIFA in 1958 to field any national team players in Olympics. However, in 1960 and in 1964 the Soviets were fielding its second national team.
5 - Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (1918–1941, until 1929 as Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes), and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1943–1992, until November 29, 1945 as Democratic Federal Yugoslavia, 29 November 1945–1963 as Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia) in association football. It enjoyed success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars,
the team was suspended from international competition as part of a
United Nations sanction. In 1994, when the boycott was lifted, it was
succeeded by the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia national football team.Serbia national football team inherited Yugoslavia's spot within FIFA and UEFA and is considered by both organisations as the only successor of Yugoslavia.
6 - Ireland national football team (1882–1950)
The Ireland national football team represented Ireland at association football from 1882 until 1950. It was organised by the Irish Football Association (IFA), and is the fourth oldest international team in the world. It mainly played in the British Home Championship against England, Scotland and Wales. Though often vying with Wales to avoid the wooden spoon, Ireland did win the Championship in 1914, and shared it with England and Scotland in 1903.After the partition of Ireland in the 1920s, although the IFA's administration of club football was restricted to Northern Ireland,
the IFA national team continued to select players from the whole of
Ireland until 1950, and did not adopt the name "Northern Ireland" until
1954 in FIFA competition, and the 1970s in the British Home Championship. The IFA's modern Northern Ireland national football team is recognised as the successor to the original Ireland national team. During this era a separate international team, organised by the separate Football Association of Ireland (the F.A.I.), had briefly fielded a team called Ireland, and this team now represents the Republic of Ireland.
7 - Saarland national football team
The Saarland national football team (German: Saarländische Fußballnationalmannschaft) was the association football team representing Saarland from 1950 to 1956 during the French occupation following World War II. As France opposed the inclusion of the Saarland in the Federal Republic of Germany until 1956, they administered it separately from Germany as the Saar Protectorate.As the local population did not want to join France, separate organisations were founded. A National Olympic Committee was founded in 1950, leading to an appearance of Saar at the 1952 Summer Olympics.
Also, considering themselves not an independent nation different from
Germany, the football team was not designated as a "national team", and
was more generally referred to as a "selection" (German: Auswahl) or some similar term.
