national team
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national team
A sports team made up of the best players from a country that represents that country in international competitions.
Die deutsche Nationalmannschaft spielt heute Abend gegen Frankreich.
The German national team is playing against France tonight.
This word is made up of 'National' (adjective from nation) and 'Mannschaft' (team). So it literally means a 'national team'.
Jedes Land schickt seine beste Mannschaft zum Wettbewerb.
Every country sends its best team to the competition.
Common verbs in this context are 'in der Nationalmannschaft spielen' (to play on the national team), 'für die Nationalmannschaft antreten' (to compete for the national team), or 'in die Nationalmannschaft berufen werden' (to be called up to the national team).
Es ist der Traum vieler junger Sportler, in die Nationalmannschaft berufen zu werden.
It is the dream of many young athletes to be called up to the national team.
Especially in the context of football, the German national team is often colloquially called simply 'die Mannschaft' (the team), if it is clear from the conversation what is meant.
Hast du das Spiel von der Mannschaft gestern gesehen?
Did you see the team's game yesterday?
national team
Nationalmannschaft and Nationalelf can refer to the same football team. However, Nationalmannschaft can also mean the entire squad or the team in general, while Nationalelf particularly emphasizes the eleven players on the field. For other sports, only Nationalmannschaft is appropriate.
Die Nationalmannschaft reist mit 23 Spielern zum Turnier.
The national team is traveling to the tournament with 23 players.
Die Nationalelf steht nach der Pause wieder auf dem Spielfeld.
The eleven players are back on the field after halftime.
