The History of Clubs’ Participation in the Iraqi Volleyball Premier League and Its Results for the Period from (1991 to 2022)

Omar Saeed Sabbar^*, Ali Mousa Jawad and Maher Amer Jabbar
^*Correspondence: Omar Saeed Sabbar, College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, University of Baghdad, Iraq, Email:

Keywords

Participation. Iraqi premier league. Volleyball.

Introduction

One of the important topics in our present time is the study of the history of sports, since this subject is our field of competence in which we work and also it is the window through which we can learn about previous achievements and work on developing and preserving them, as sport has become a means to measure the progress of societies and the extent of the development of their culture in all fields, and sport Volleyball is one of the beautiful and widespread popular games in Iraq, which prompted the researcher to conduct a historical study on the game in Iraq and the entry of the game into the country, as it came out of being a game played by the rich class when it appeared and is now being practiced by many countries of the world. The lack of its requirements and the ease of playing it led to its spread and the large number of its practitioners. It can be played in different numbers and for both sexes. The importance of the research lies in documenting the entry of the game into Iraq and its development and the participation of the Iraqi teams in the Iraqi Premier League for men through presentation and analysis and the most important positions obtained by those teams for the period from (1991) to (2022), which is the duration of the research.

Research problem

Due to the scarcity of research in Iraqi libraries in this field and the fact that researchers are specialists, several questions arise, namely:

• Is there documentation of entering the volleyball game to Iraq and how it spread?

• What are the most important achievements of the Iraqi teams in the Premier League for men for the period from (1991) to (2022).

• Are there reasons that prevented the participation of some clubs in the Premier League for men for the period from (1991) to (2022).

Research objective

• Identifying the results of the clubs participating in the men's Volleyball Premier League for the period from (1991) to (2022).

• Archive the results of the Iraqi clubs participating in the Iraqi Premier League for men for the period from (1991) to (2022).

• Diagnosing and analyzing the causes of fluctuation in the participation of some Iraqi clubs in the Premier League for men for the period from (1991) to (2022).

Research fields

• Iraqi clubs participating in the Premier League for men's volleyball and its results.

Research Methodology and Field Procedures

Research methodology

The nature of the research necessitated that the researcher use the historical approach or the so-called documentary approach, taking advantage of the historical development that took place for the participation of Iraqi clubs for men in the Premier League from (1991) until 2022), the last league held in Baghdad, in order to suit this approach to the objectives of the study, as it is considered the historical approach" It is a description and recording of past facts and events, then interpreting and analyzing them in order to arrive at facts intended to draw a picture of the future " (Mahjoub and et al., 1988).

Community and sample research

The research sample included the Iraqi clubs participating in the Iraqi Premier League for men's volleyball, which numbered (32) participants, as they were chosen by the intentional method, as they fall within the period under study for the period from (1991) to (2022). The reason for choosing the year (1991) came because in this year the Iraqi league and Iraqi sports in general were resumed because of the war, and the reason for choosing the year (2022) was that it was the last league (Table 1).

Means of Collecting and Recording Historical Information

• Written or printed sources:

• The researcher used the following sources:

• Arabic historical books and literature.

• Documents, archives and records of the Iraqi Central Volleyball Federation.

• Personal interviews of volleyball pioneers, international referees and coaches in Iraq.

Data collection method

• The researcher designed an initial questionnaire to obtain information from the experts, who are the pioneers of the volleyball game in Iraq and as shown in appendix 1 (Appendix 1).

Statistical means

Percentage law = part/whole x 100. (Badr. 1985).

Results and Discussion

It appears to us through the above table that KarkhVolleyball Club, for the period from (1999) to (200), is the most crowned in the Premier Volleyball League championship, as it was able to achieve first place (5) times and also second place (2) times. It also appears to us that the Al-sinaa Club was able to win the first place in the league championship (4) times, the second place (5) times, the Army Club once, the second place (3) times, and the third place (2) times, while the Air Force delegate was able to win the third place (3 times). And the Peace Club twice, and the Al-Daghara Club, Kufa, and Al-Rumaitha Club only once (Table 2).

It appears from the above table that Al-Sinaa Club is the most crowned in the advanced positions, followed by KarkhClub, then Al-Jaish Club, Air Force Club and Al-Salam Club. Through personal interviews with the pioneers of the game, including coaches, players and some members of the federation. Al-sinaa Club was able to build a strong and distinguished generation through the work of a five-year plan that was able to build a strong team by assigning coaches at a high and scientific level. They were able to build a team for several years and also establish a school for the game “The development of visual narration is one of the necessities of volleyball training, since the element of surprise and tactical tactics dominates the course of the game.” (Atiya W and Satar K. 2022) , as for Karkh Club, it has moved away from the league for several years from (1998) to (2000) due to the policies that took over the administrative body of the club. The volleyball team in Karkh Club was suspended for unknown reasons. This was confirmed by Mr. (Mohammed Bahir), one of the employees in the administrative body Karkh club and supervisor of the team. The Army Club relied on the military players who were seconded from the military service, assigned them, and discharged them from the compulsory military service. The Army Club relied on the military players who were seconded from the military service, assigned them, and released them from the compulsory military service. As for the remaining clubs, their positions ranged between the third and below, because most of the teams relied on self-financing, i.e. noninstitutional clubs. These clubs continued to play the game because the state's direction in that period was towards building a strong sport and creating a strong generation capable of competition, as well as the spread of the game from "During the establishment of youth centers by the Ministry of Youth in most regions, as well as the large number of clubs and the strong league at that time, as well as the state's sponsorship of sports by addressing many deficiencies, as it issued a new law for federations."( Al-Khatib .1984).

Many players emerged in that period from them, as the Karkh team was represented by each of the players (Salman Razouqi, Qassem Jabbar, Saad Yahya, the late Ayman Ahmed, Odeh Khashan, Mohsen Abdel Wahed, Ziyad Abdel Kazem, and others. The team trained during that period each of the gentlemen Ahmed Hussein, Ali Abdullah, Amer Khalil, Salah Hadi.

As for the Al-sinaa team, it was represented by each of the players (the late Naseer and his brother, the late Wamid Shamel. The late Muzaffar Hashem. And the late Saad Abdel Wahhab. Hazem Muhammad Ali. Diaa Salman. Ali Fleikh. Haitham Sadiq. Muhammad Jabbar. Khalil Sattar. Omar Saeed. Yasser Salman). The coaches are Tariq Hassan, Amer Khalil and Riyadh Khalil.

The army team was represented by Tariq Fadel, Iyad Abdul Kadhim Mohsen and Hamza Ali Akbar. Mohammed Kennedy. Ahmed Sabhan. Hussein Sabhan.And others coached the late team Karim Antar. Muad Arak

As for the external participations, there were no participations, in the year (1990), when the Union was punished after the events of the Gulf War, as Iraq was deprived of Arab and international participations, this estrangement lasted for 13 years, during which the game was destroyed. (Sabbar. 2019) (Table 3).

The above table shows us that the club that won the title the most is the Al Shorta Club, and that was in the years (2008, 2009, 2010), followed by KarkhClub twice in (2001, 2006), and it won the second place once, in the year (2004), and the third place once in the year (2002). Then the Al-Sinaa clubs in the year ranked first in 2002, the second place three times, the third place once, Erbil club in 2006, Brusk club in 2004, Matin club in 2005, Al-Bahri club twice the second place, twice the third place, Al-Hudud and Al-Masafi club the third place.

Through what was displayed in the above table, it was found that the Al Shorta Club was able to win the championship title for more than one season. The reason for this is that the club attracted most of the players of the Iraqi national team in that period and appointed them to the staff of the Ministry of Interior and assigned them to the Al Shorta games, and they are both players (Haider Abdullah, Salman Razzouqi, Hassan Fadel, Ali Fawzi, Amer and his brother, Ibrahim Abdul Karim,) This was confirmed to us by the supervisor of the team, Mr. (Ali Yaqoub)*. As Mr. Supervisor spoke to us about that period, saying that the club provided the team with all the necessities for success in terms of the presence of a sports hall for the club, the provision of balls, training supplies, and internal and external camps. The team was coached during that period by Messrs. (Hussein Ali, Saad Yahya, Salman Razzouqi).

It is also noticeable in that period is the emergence of new teams that were able to win the league, and that was the years (2004, 2005, 2007), which are the clubs of the northern governorates (Erbil and Dohuk), as those teams were able to build strong teams and assign players to the national team at a high level. Mr. (Qahar Omar)* told us that the Brusque Club attracted the best players of the national team to the Brusque team, taking advantage of the turbulent security situation in the country, especially Baghdad, as the country was living in chaos of dissolution and instability, which forced the players to migrate to the northern governorates to play the game and escape from the bitter reality that The country is experiencing occupation and instability. As for the year (2003), the activity in all sports activities stopped due to the outbreak of war and the occupation of Baghdad by America, which led to the cessation of sports in general and volleyball in particular, as the league stopped on (10/2/2003) and after examining the situation in Iraq, we note It did not settle for one day, and even if it does, the period of stability will be. (Khlef MM, Ali YS. 2023) (Table 4).

Through the table, it became clear to us that the South Gas for the period from (2011 to 2022) is the most winning in the first place, followed by the Bahri Club three times, then the Peshmerga twice and the Al Shorta Club once. As for the second and third place, South Gas was able to occupy the second place three times and the third place twice, while Bahri occupied the second place on two occasions and the third twice. The Peshmerga twice ranked second and twice third, and the Al Shorta Club was able to obtain the second place in three years and the third place four times.

It is noticeable in this aforementioned period that most of the clubs that won the first place are the clubs of the governorates and also from the clubs of government institutions, as Mr. (Hazem Ali)* spoke to us that the South Gas Club is affiliated with the Basra Gas Company, and huge sums are allocated to it every year to recruit players at the level High, as well as participating in continental and Arab championships, including Asian clubs and Arab clubs, which occur every year using the method of analyzing matches using a computer from anyone.(Abed al mutalib J and Ali T. 2019).

Also, the Al-Bahri Club is affiliated with the Ministry of Defense through the Naval Force, and huge sums are allocated to them each season to recruit the best players. And also the Al Shorta Club, which is considered one of the oldest and most prestigious clubs in Iraq in all games, as well as the game of volleyball because of its legacy and ancient history, and it presented many players to the national team, such as (the late Karim Antar, Raad Kazem, Ouda Khashan, Salman Razouqi, Haider Abdullah, Bassem Badr Hassan Fadel et al.).

The development of the game and the league had a great impact on the entry of the game in Iraq into the world of professionalism, as the Iraqi Central Volleyball Federation decided in (2011) to allow clubs to assign two players (Arab and foreign professionals) to represent the clubs. This decision had a great impact on the development of the game and the first to assign two players They are (South Gas Club) and then the (Peshmerga Club, then the Al-Bahri and Al Shorta) club, and “if we classify the skills in volleyball into skills that need work, style, and perhaps a new strategy that takes into account all aspects.”(Amir M and Khaleel R. 2022).

Through the foregoing, the researchers concluded that most of the winning teams in the Iraqi Volleyball League for the period under discussion are institutional clubs affiliated with the state departments and are supported by the government to attract the best players and provide them with all the requirements for success and also provide the necessary funds for the players to recruit them in order to win the Premier League title in volleyball “Each specific sport requires special physical specifications that must be taken into account when selecting players” (Noor S and Talip S 2019).

We can collect the clubs and their achievements throughout the period from (1991 to 2022) through the following table (Table 5).

Conclusions and Recommendations

Conclusions

• Many participations of the Iraqi teams in the Iraqi Volleyball Premier League championship are not documented, and therefore there are several advanced positions that were achieved during the period from (1991) to (2022) that are not documented by the authorities concerned with the game (Iraqi Volleyball Federation).

• It became clear to us that the most participating club in the Iraqi league is Al-Sina’a Club with (32) participation, followed by Al-Shorta Club and then Al-Bahri Club from (1991 to 2022).

• The club that managed to get the most first place is the South Gas Club, followed by Al-Karkh, then Al-Shorta and Al-Bahri.

Recommendations

• The importance of documenting the participation of Iraqi teams in the Iraqi Premier League in volleyball on an ongoing basis by opening records of participation in the federation.

• Conducting other historical studies of the sports teams and counting their participation in the foreign championships for men and women.

• Opening a record of volleyball players participating in all tournaments so that the biography of each player can be known.

References

Wajih Mahjoub and et al., 1988. Scientific research methods and approaches in physical education, Baghdad, Higher Education and Scientific Research Press, p. (41).

Ahmed Badr. 1985. Principles of Scientific Research, Amman, Dar Al-Kutub for Publishing and Distribution, p. 11).

Atiya W and Satar K. 2022. The Effect of Using Visual Accuracy Device on Spiking in Youth Volleyball. job [Internet]. Dec. 28 [cited 2023 Apr. 28, 2023]. 19]; 34(4):567-81. Available from: https://jcope.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/jcope/article/view/1319

Munther Hashem Al-Khatib .1984. History of Physical Education, Baghdad, Al-Deeb Press, pg. 51).

Said Sabbar. 2019. The history of the emergence and development of volleyball in Iraq until (2018). PhD thesis. University of Baghdad / College of Physical Education and Sports Sciences, pg. 122).

Khlef MM, Ali YS. 2023. A Historical Study of Iraqi Paralympic Participations in IPC World Championships Athletics from 1990 till 2017. jope [Internet]. 2021 Jun. 28 [cited 2023 Apr. 19];33(2):62-70. Available from: https://jcope.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/jcope/article/view/1142

Abed al mutalib J and Ali T. 2019. The Effect of Game – Like Exercisers According to Click Scout On Some Skill Performance Types In. V.ـolleyball Primer League Players. jope [Internet]. Sep. 28 [cited 2023 Apr. 19]; 31(3):153-66. Available from: https://jcope.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/jcope/article/view/870

Amir M and Khaleel R. 2022. The Effect of Jigsaw Strategy on Learning Spiking in Volleyball for Sophomore Students. jope [Internet]. Dec. 28 [cited 2023 Apr. 19];34(4):522-34. Available from: https://jcope.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/jcope/article/view/1322

Noor S and Talip S. 2019 . Establishing Criteria Levels For Some Anthropometric Measurement for Volleyball Primer League Female Players. jope [Internet]. Sep. 28 [cited 2023 Apr. 19];31(3):5-10. Available from: https://jcope.uobaghdad.edu.iq/index.php/jcope/article/view/853