OCH.TO

Photo Gallery The Hopes of Polish Football

Three star Polish players helped launch Borussia Dortmund to the top of Germany's Bundesliga soccer league this year. But now they will be returning home to play for their home country, a co-host of the 2012 European Football Championship. They are under massive pressure to help the troubled national team win the tournament.

30.05.2012, 14.05 Uhr

SPIEGEL bei Google bevorzugen

1 / 3

Polish natives Robert Lewandowski, Lukasz Piszczek and Jakub "Kuba" Blaszczykowski (left to right)helped Borussia Dortmund secure its second consecutive Bundesliga championship in 2012. Now they will be returning home to play in the 2012 European Football Championship, which Poland is co-hosting with Ukraine.

Foto: Federico Gambarini/Pool/ AP

2 / 3

Polish national coach Franciszek Smuda has a lot to worry about: Poland's team lags far behind its rivals in the global rankings, and he feels that a lack of "youth training" has left the team without the kinds of players who have helped it succeed in years past.

Foto: DOMINIC EBENBICHLER/ REUTERS

3 / 3

Workers hang a poster advertising the European Football Championship in Warsaw, which bears the image of star striker Robert Lewandowski. The first match of the tournament will be held in Warsaw on June 8 between Poland and Greece.

Foto: Czarek Sokolowski/ AP

Dieser Beitrag stammt aus dem SPIEGEL-Archiv. Warum ist das wichtig?