 | |||
| Nickname(s) | Die Symbole (The Icons) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Westphalian Football and Athletics Association | ||
| Captain | Ralf Fährmann | ||
| Most caps | Manuel Neuer (173) | ||
| Top scorer | Fabian Klos (99) | ||
| Home stadium | Veltins-Arena (most matches) | ||
| FIFA code | NRW | ||
| |||
| Website | flvw.de (in German) | ||
The North Rhine-Westphalia national football team, (German:Westfälische Fußballnationalmannschraft) is the regional team representing the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The team is only presented in FIFA/EA FC and is not affiliated with FIFA or UEFA, so therefore only plays Squad Battles matches.
History
Early years and FUT appearances
NOTE: The North Rhine-Westphalian national team is completely fictional. All history is made-up from other real life national football teams.
The Westphalian national team was the first of 16 German states to have a professional national team, which was not fully presented in any football videogames until FIFA 23. At first, the team consisted of only Westphalian-born Bundesliga players.[1] A plan for the team to be seen as early as FIFA 22 in Ultimate Team due to the creation of the Bundesliga all-stars in the game.
Instead, the presentation of this national team was shifted to FIFA 23 instead, due to the increased rating of the Bundesliga all-stars. Icons and FUT Heroes have played for North Rhine-Westphalia, which involves the likes of Lars Ricken, Rudi Völler, Jürgen Kohler and Matthias Sammer.
The national team was created in August 1946 and started playing in red and green colours, with the shorts being a 'neutral' colour. In 1947 the team played its first international against Saxony, coming out victorious 3-1. Berti Vogts captained the team in that game, being voted Man of the Match. Between 1928 and 1932, a great period for this national team began, with the squad beating top-class national teams like Spain, Brazil and Norway.[2] The team had follow-up matches in the 1950s against these opponents, coming out victorious again, only for the venue against Brazil to be played at the famed Maracanã Stadium.[3] This rise saw a move to the SchücoArena, home of Arminia Bielefeld.
After four years beating the very best national teams, Westphalia suffered a slow decline. Their first ever defeat came against Baden-Württemberg, losing 4-0 in the process. Soon after, the defeats increased, losing to small German states like Saxony, Brandenburg and Saarland.
1960-2008: Ultra Westfalia, new beginnings and 'German state glory days'
After a period of winning began in early 1960, Westphalia got the winning mentality up again, earning key wins in the German State International Cup, making it all the way to the final, only for them to suffer heartbreak, this time to their arch-rivals Baden-Württemberg. The rise of this squad continued into the 1970s, when they built a reputation for developing youth talent, such as Bernard Dietz, Olaf Thon, Thomas Strunz and the now deceased Heinz Flohe.[4][5] These were players who came from the under-23 team, going on to play for the main team and writing their names in Westphalian folklore.
The 1980s promised the beginning of this 'Ultra Westfalia' era and had a great start to it. Featuring a squad that boasted the likes of Thomas Helmer, Michael Zorc and Daniel Simmes, they achieved their first victory over Bavaria in Dortmund for almost 2 years, with the squad saluting their fans after the game, to end a painful losing streak against Die Bayer.
After the win, the 1990s saw Westphalia win their first ever German State Liga in 1992–93, finishing 14 points ahead of Hesse. Managed by Werner Biskup and a squad featuring the likes of Lars Ricken, Rudi Völler, Jürgen Kohler, Mathias Hönerbach and Maurice Banach, Westphalia looked unstoppable.
Friendly matches against England, Italy, Croatia and Argentina were scheduled, with the team having their best-ever streak of international wins, with 14 wins in a row.
The end of 'Ultra Westfalia' was in 2008, with all of their players from the 1990s retired from the national side. This left Westphalia with a very young squad that had Mesut Özil and Manuel Neuer, an inexperienced manager and a lack of organisation by their association, the team experienced their worst ever year in international football, only winning one game, against Thuringia, which summed up the East Germany national teams’ struggles at the time.[6]
2009-present: 'New Westfalia', downfall and new return
With Uwe Koschinat as their new manager, Westphalia built an unwanted reputation for calling up2. Bundesliga and 3. Liga players over the age of 30. The demise of this team began in 2011, where a streak of defeats saw them temporarily lose status as one of the biggest German states in terms of national football teams.
Clubs like SC Paderborn, MSV Duisburg, Schalke 04. Borussia Dortmund and 1. FC Köln had to give their players to the Westphalian national team in order to save it from humiliation.[7]
The team had multiple captains over the next few years. Calling up players like Ralf Fährmann, Waldemar Anton and Niklas Stark, the possibility of a Westphalian return was very high after a good 2018 in international football, involving wins against Hesse and Bavaria. Their best international player from 2018 to 2020 was Luca Kilian.[8]
Team image
Players
Due to the fact that the Westphalian team is only seen in EA football video games like other German states, the players are either selected if they are gold or silver category cards, but also depending on whether the player was born in Westphalia.
Current squad
The following players were called up for the friendly matches against 
Saxony, 
Thuringia and 
Hesse respectively.
Recent call ups
The following players have also been called up to the squad in the last 12 months and are still available for action.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GK | Marc-André ter Stegen | 30 April 1992 | 173 | 0 |  FC Barcelona | v. Bavaria, 8 June 2022 |