Esteghlal F.C. facts for kids
| Full name | Esteghlal Tehran Football Club | ||
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| Nickname(s) | تاج (Crown) | ||
| Founded | September 24, 1945 | ||
| Ground | Azadi Stadium Tehran, Iran |
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| Capacity | 78,000 | ||
| Chairman |  Amirhossein Fathi |
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| Head Coach |  Andrea Stramaccioni |
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| League | Persian Gulf Cup | ||
| Persian Gulf Cup 2018-19 | Persian Gulf Cup, 3rd | ||
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Esteghlal Cultural and Athletic Club Persian: باشگاه فرهنگی ورزشی استقلال ایران is an Iranian sports club most widely known for its professional football team based in Tehran. It was founded as Taj (Persian: تاج), meaning 'Crown' in Persian and renamed after the Islamic Revoloution in 1979.
Esteghlal have been Asian Champions AFC Champions League twice and have also won six National Championship titles. Esteghlal together with Al-Hilal Riadh of Saudi Arabia are the second most successful clubs in Asian Champion's League, after Pohang Steelers of South Korea, with two champions titles and two runner up.
Season-by-season
The table below chronicles the achievements of Esteghlal in various competitions since 1945.
| Season | League | Pos. | Hazfi Cup | ACL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1945-1946 | Tehran Provincial League | 2nd | Not held | Not held |
| 1946-1947 | Tehran Provincial League | 5th | ||
| 1947-1948 | Tehran Provincial League | ? | ||
| 1948-1949 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1949-1950 | _ | Not held | ||
| 1950-1951 | Tehran Provincial League | 2nd | ||
| 1951-1952 | Tehran Provincial League | 5th | ||
| 1952-1953 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | ||
| 1953-1954 | Tehran Provincial League | 4th | ||
| 1954-1955 | _ | Not held | ||
| 1955-1956 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1956-1957 | Tehran Provincial League | 2nd | ||
| 1957-1958 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1958-1959 | Tehran Provincial League | ? | ||
| 1959-1960 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1960-1961 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | ||
| 1961-1962 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1962-1963 | Iran Local League | 4th | ||
| 1963-1964 | Iran Local League | 2nd | ||
| 1964-1965 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | ||
| 1965-1966 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | ||
| 1966-1967 | _ | Not held | ||
| 1967-1968 | Iran Local League | 5th | ||
| 1968-1969 | Iran Local League | 4th | ||
| 1969-1970 | _ | Not held | ||
| 1970-1971 | Iran Local League | 1st | Cup | |
| 1971-1972 | Iran Local League | 4th | 3 | |
| 1972-1973 | _ | Not held | Did not qualify | |
| 1973-1974 | Takht Jamshid Cup | 2nd | ||
| 1974-1975 | Takht Jamshid Cup | 1st | ||
| 1975-1976 | Takht Jamshid Cup | 4th | 1/8 Final | |
| 1976-1977 | Takht Jamshid Cup | 4th | Cup | |
| 1977-1978 | Takht Jamshid Cup | 4th | Not held | |
| 1978-1979 | Takht Jamshid Cup | did not finish | ||
| 1979-1980 | 1979 Shahid Espandi Cup | 6th | ||
| 1980-1981 | Tehran Provincial League | 4th | ||
| 1981-1982 | Tehran Provincial League | 2nd | ||
| 1982-1983 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1983-1984 | Tehran Provincial League | did not finish | ||
| 1984-1985 | Tehran Provincial League | 1st | ||
| 1985-1986 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | ||
| 1986-1987 | Tehran Provincial League | 3rd | 1/8 Final | |
| 1987-1988 | Tehran Provincial League | 2nd | 1/16 Final | |
| 1988-1989 | 17th of Shahrivar league | 4th | 1/8 Final | |
| 1989-1990 | Qods League | 1st | Final | |
| 1990-1991 | _ | Not held | 1/8 Final | Cup |
| 1991-1992 | Azadegan League | 2nd | Not held | Final |
| 1992-1993 | Azadegan League | 3rd | Not held | Did not qualify |
| 1993-1994 | 2nd Division | 2nd | ||
| 1994-1995 | Azadegan League | 2nd | ||
| 1995-1996 | Azadegan League | 3rd | Cup | |
| 1996-1997 | Azadegan League | 6th | Semifinal | |
| 1997-1998 | Azadegan League | 1st | Not held | Did not qualify |
| 1998-1999 | Azadegan League | 2nd | Final | Final |
| 1999-2000 | Azadegan League | 2nd | Cup | Second round |
| 2000-2001 | Azadegan League | 1st | Semifinal | 3 |
| 2001-2002 | Iran Pro League | 2nd | Cup | Semifinal |
| 2002-2003 | Iran Pro League | 9th | First round | |
| 2003-2004 | Iran Pro League | 2nd | Final | Did not qualify |
| 2004-2005 | Iran Pro League | 3rd | ||
| 2005-2006 | Iran Pro League | 1st | Quarterfinal | |
| 2006-2007 | Iran Pro League | 4th | 1/16 Final | Disqualified |
| 2007-2008 | Iran Pro League | 13th | Cup | Did not qualify |
| 2008-2009 | Iran Pro League | 1st | 1/16 Final | First round |
| 2009-2010 | Iran Pro League | 3rd | 1/8 Final | Round of 16 |
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Images for kids
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Parviz Khosravani, the founder and the first president of the club
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Ali Danaeifard, club player and manager from 1946 until 1969
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Büyük Jeddikar is known for being the first footballer in Iranian football history to be transferred from an Iranian club TAJ (Esteghlal) to a foreign club in 1957.
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TAJ squad in 1970 as national and continental champions
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Esteghlal fans at Tehran derby
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Esteghlal squad against Tractor in 2019–20 Pro League, 1 November 2019.
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Voria Ghafouri, current captain of the team
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Mahmoud Fekri is the current manager of the club.
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Zdravko Rajkov was Esteghlal's first international coach.
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Arash Borhani is Esteghlal's all-time leading goalscorer with 108 goals in all competitions
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Friendly match of Taj F.C. Women's Football team and selected team of Italian women footballers in 1970
