Al-Talaba SC

Al-Talaba Sports Club (Arabic: نادي الطلبة الرياضي, lit. ''Students Sports Club'') is an Iraqi professional sports club based in Al-Rusafa, Baghdad. Its football team competes in the Iraq Stars League, the top flight of Iraqi football. Founded in 1969, the club was named Al-Jamiea (lit. 'University') but became known as Al-Talaba ahead of the 1978–79 season after being merged with a new club of the same name. Al-Talaba is one of Iraq's most successful teams, having won five Iraq Stars League titles, most recently in the 2001–02 season, as well as two Iraq FA Cup titles and one Iraqi Super Cup title. Al-Talaba helped to establish the Baghdad Championship in 1991 and went on to win the competition a joint-record three times. Al-Talaba's best achievements in international football include finishing fourth at the 1986 Asian Club Championship, finishing as runners-up of the 1995–96 Asian Cup Winners' Cup and finishing fourth at the 1998–99 Asian Cup Winners' Cup. The club was owned by the National Union of Iraqi Students until 1993, when the club was attached to the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research with the minister being the honorary president of the club. The team is popularly nicknamed "Al-Aneeq" (lit. 'The Elegant') and competes in Baghdad derbies with rivals Al-Zawraa, Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya and Al-Shorta.