Football Club Željezničar was established in 1921. During its existence and competition, it has had significant results so one can conclude that FC Željezničar is the most successful club in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The club was champion of former Yugoslavia, has six titles in Bosnia and Herzegovina, six Cup of Bosnia and Herzegovina and three Super Cup of Bosnia and Herzegovina. From international results, the most important are the quarterfinal of UEFA Cup 1971/1972 and semifinal in 1984/1985, as well as frequent participation in UEFA competitions in new era (Champions League and Europe League).
FC Željezničar has always paid big attention to work with young ones. For generations, club has been given great players with big international careers. The best indicator for this claim is a current structure of the national team, full of club’s former and current players.
Policy of the club is based on careful work with younger categories, so every season few young men are transfered to A team and they usually become standard members of the team and carriers of the game. One of examples of dedicated work of experts in junior team of FC Željezničar is UNICEF and this project ambassador Edin Džeko, one of the best and most wanted world attackers, the best scorer in Bundesliga for 2009/10 and Seria A for 2016/17 and standard member of the national team. Džeko has grew up on Željo’s “dirt”, as well as generations of young footballers before him, and in these days he remarks with proud that Željo was his first club and the one he carries in his heart. Beside Džeko, there are a few more players before his era who grew up in Željezničar with significant international career: Mehmed Baždarević, Elvir Baljić, Mario Stanić, etc.
FC Željezničar is with all indicators the best school of football in Bosnia and Herzegovina. All its attendees are provided with:
- work with experts and educated coaches,
- work in conditions which provide proper development of sport personality,
- empowering of healthy competition which brings to development of competition spirit through “fair play”,
- constant improvement of work methods,
- monitoring of modern flows in training implementation and work with children,
- maintenance and further development of infrastructure and keeping up with the rest football schools in Europe in this field.
Being a member of the club’s football school means not only to learn first steps in football, but learn values that the club has cherished from the beginning, which can truly influence on proper development of a child and his/her personality in whole.
Near 500 boys, divided in 17 selections, follow these footsteps, under the guidance of former players, now coaches, which were members of the national team.