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Movies like Escape to Victory

Key Features:
World War II, Prisoner of war, Survival, Teamwork, Underdog story, Sports, Patriotism, Courage, Hope, Nationalism, Brotherhood, Leadership, Perseverance, Military strategy, Deception, Escape, Germany, Soccer
Tone:
serious, dramatic, suspense-driven
Target Audience:
History buffs, Sports enthusiasts, War movie fans, Inspirational movie lovers
Emotional Arc:
Tension → Hope → Triumph

Escape to Victory

1981-06-17
Escape to Victory Poster - Find Similar Movies

A group of POWs in a German prison camp during World War II play the German National Soccer Team in this powerful film depicting the role of prisoners during wartime.

Genres
Drama, War
Cast
Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, Max von Sydow, Pelé, Carole Laure, Bobby Moore, Osvaldo Ardiles, Paul Van Himst, Kazimierz Deyna, Mike Summerbee
Crew
John Huston, Yabo Yablonsky, Djordje Milicevic, Jeff Maguire, Evan Jones, Yabo Yablonsky
Rating
6.9(962 votes)
Escape to VictoryEscape to Victory
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The Match
The Match(2021)
6.1

Inspired by true events from the spring of 1944 when the Nazis organized a football match between a team of camp inmates and an elite Nazi team on Adolf Hitler's birthday. A match the prisoners are determined to win, no matter what happens.



The Great Escape
7.9

The Nazis, exasperated at the number of escapes from their prison camps by a relatively small number of Allied prisoners, relocate them to a high-security 'escape-proof' camp to sit out the remainder of the war. Undaunted, the prisoners plan one of the most ambitious escape attempts of World War II. Based on a true story.



Escape to Athena
5.7

During the World War II, the prisoners of a German camp in a Greek island are trying to escape. They not only want their freedom, but also seek an ineffable treasure hidden in a monastery at the summit of the island's mountain.



Behind the Line: Escape to Dunkirk

Occupied France, 1940. A Nazi Commander discovers one of his prisoners, Danny is a champion boxer. He forces him to fight for his company's entertainment. But the POWs realise they can use these contests, as cover for an audacious breakout, before they re sent to Germany, where escape will be almost impossible. Their fate and freedom may all come down to how long Danny can keep fighting.



Escape from Sobibor
7.208

The true story of WWII's notorious Sobibor Nazi death camp, where a courageous inmate orchestrates and leads the escape of over 300 prisoners.



Hart's War
6.4

When Col. William McNamara is stripped of his freedom in a German POW camp, he's determined to keep on fighting even from behind enemy lines. Enlisting the help of a young lieutenant in a brilliant plot against his captors, McNamara risks everything on a mission to free his men and change the outcome of the war.



The Colditz Story
6.8

Allied prisoners of various nationalities pool their resources to plan numerous escapes from an "escape-proof" German P.O.W. camp housed in a Medieval castle.



A Man Escaped
7.943

A captured French Resistance fighter during World War II engineers a daunting escape from prison.



The Game of Their Lives

During the 1950 World Cup, the hastily assembled U.S. soccer team enters as heavy underdogs when matched up against the highest-ranked team in competition — England.



The Miracle of Bern

The movie deals with the championship-winning German soccer team of 1954. Its story is linked with two others: The family of a young boy is split due to the events in World War II, and the father returns from Russia after eleven years. The second story is about a reporter and his wife reporting from the tournament.



Operation Dunkirk

A band of soldiers tasked with staying behind during the Battle of Dunkirk to rescue a scientist with information that could turn the tide of the war must battle their way through dangerous Nazi territory to complete their mission.



Prisoner of War
7.163

British RAF Wing Commander James Wright is captured by the Japanese during WWII and forced to fight in brutal hand-to-hand combat. The Japanese soldiers get more than they bargained for when Wright’s years of martial arts training in Hong Kong prove him to be a formidable opponent.



Rescue Dawn
6.957

A US Fighter pilot's epic struggle of survival after being shot down on a mission over Laos during the Vietnam War.



The Team
The Team(2014)
6.6

Documentary about the victorious German national football team - called "Die Mannschaft" - and their journey to the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.



The Wild Soccer Bunch 2

An unsupervised junior soccer team loses its ace player to the leader of a rival gang. Since only an entire team can win, they must have her back to be able to win the game against the national team. The existence of The Wild Soccer Bunch is at stake ...



Chronicle of an Escape

The true story of four men who narrowly escaped death at the hands of Argentina's military death squads in 1977. Claudio Tamburrini is a goalie for a minor-league football team when he is abducted by members of the Argentine military police and taken to an unofficial detention center on the false suspicion that he is a terrorist. As he is tortured by intelligence agents looking for information he doesn't have, Tamburrini fully expects to be killed. After many sessions of brutal torture, Tamburrini and his fellow captives Guillermo and Tano are being readied for execution when, in a final desperate act, Tamburrini dives out a window during a rainstorm.



United Passions
3.3

An epic, untold story that brings to life the inspiring saga of the World Cup and the three determined men who created it. Driven by their vision and passion, three men, overcame their doubts and fought obstacles and scandals to make the World Cup a reality. Spanning the tumultuous 20th Century, this timeless saga celebrates the event that became the most popular sporting event in the world.



The One That Got Away

Based on the true story of Oberleutnant Franz von Werra, the only German prisoner of war captured in Britain to escape back to Germany during the Second World War.



The Great Escaper
6.604

In the summer of 2014, a World War II veteran sneaks out of his care home to attend the 70th anniversary commemoration of the D-Day landings in Normandy.



Escape
Escape(2024)
7.4

After completing his required decade of military service and being honored as a hero, a North Korean sergeant makes a sudden shocking attempt to defect to the South, risking life and limb for the chance to finally determine his own destiny.



Mean Machine
6.246

Disgraced ex-England football captain, Danny 'Mean Machine' Meehan, is thrown in jail for assaulting two police officers. He keeps his head down and has the opportunity to forget everything and change the lives of the prisoners. When these prisoners have the chance to put one over the evil guards during a prison football match, Danny takes the lead.



Escape from Pretoria
7.186

South Africa, 1978. Tim Jenkin and Stephen Lee, two white political activists from the African National Congress imprisoned by the apartheid regime, put a plan in motion to escape from the infamous Pretoria Prison.



The Way Back
7

A small band of multicultural convicts stages a daring escape from a WWII-era Siberian gulag, and embarks on a treacherous journey across five countries in a desperate race for freedom and survival.



Von Ryan's Express
7.1

Von Ryan's Express stars Frank Sinatra as a POW colonel who leads a daring escape from WWII Italy by taking over a freight train, but he has to win over the British soldiers he finds himself commanding.



Escape Plan
6.725

Ray Breslin is the world's foremost authority on structural security. After analyzing every high security prison and learning a vast array of survival skills so he can design escape-proof prisons, his skills are put to the test. He's framed and incarcerated in a master prison he designed himself. He needs to escape and find the person who put him behind bars.



Next Goal Wins
7.125

An inspirational story about the power of hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds, and an object lesson in what it really means to be a winner in life.



Triumph of the Spirit
6.553

During World War II, Salamo Arouch, a passionate boxer, is arrested and sent to a concentration camp. Soon, he is forced to box against his fellow prisoners for the sake of entertainment.



T-34
T-34(2018)
7.2

In 1944, a courageous group of Russian soldiers managed to escape from German captivity in a half-destroyed legendary T-34 tank. Those were the times of unforgettable bravery, fierce fighting, unbreakable love, and legendary miracles.



Balloon
Balloon(2018)
7.493

Two families attempt a daredevil plan to escape the GDR with a homemade hot air balloon, but it crashes just before the border. The Stasi finds traces of this attempt to escape and immediately starts investigations, while the two families are forced to build a new escape balloon. With each passing day the Stasi is closer on their heels – a nerve-wracking race against time begins.



SS Experiment Love Camp

Near the end of WW2, prisoners of war are used in experiments to perfect the Arian race.



Next Goal Wins
6.408

Dutch coach Thomas Rongen attempts the nearly impossible task of turning the American Samoa soccer team from perennial losers into winners.



To End All Wars
6.379

Based on a real-life story, this drama focuses on a small group of Allied soldiers in Burma who are held captive by the Japanese. Capt. Ernest Gordon, Lt. Jim Reardon and Maj. Ian Campbell are among the military officers kept imprisoned and routinely beaten and deprived of food. While Campbell wants to rebel and attempt an escape, Gordon tries to take a more stoic approach, an attitude that proves to be surprisingly resonant.



Papillon
Papillon(1973)
7.828

A man befriends a fellow criminal as the two of them begin serving their sentence on a dreadful prison island, which inspires the man to plot his escape.



Goal!
Goal!(2005)
6.8

Like millions of kids around the world, Santiago harbors the dream of being a professional footballer... However, living in the Barrios section of Los Angeles, he thinks it is only that—a dream. Until one day an extraordinary turn of events has him trying out for Premiership club Newcastle United.



Das Boot
Das Boot(1981)
8.1

A German submarine hunts allied ships during the Second World War, but it soon becomes the hunted. The crew tries to survive below the surface, while stretching both the boat and themselves to their limits.



Escape from the Bronx
4.767

A ragtag group of people have to fight extermination squads amid their ruined city.



Enigma
Enigma(2001)
6.317

The story of the WWII project to crack the code behind the Enigma machine, used by the Germans to encrypt messages sent to their submarines.



Escape Plan 2: Hades

Ray Breslin manages an elite team of security specialists trained in the art of breaking people out of the world's most impenetrable prisons. When his most trusted operative, Shu Ren, is kidnapped and disappears inside the most elaborate prison ever built, Ray must track him down with the help of some of his former friends.



Montevideo, God Bless You!

A story about one team that decides to follow a dream that takes them on a journey to the First World Football Championship in Montevideo, Uruguay in 1930. A dream that allows them to become true stars and living legends.



The Dirty Dozen
7.593

12 American military prisoners in World War II are ordered to infiltrate a well-guarded enemy château and kill the Nazi officers vacationing there. The soldiers, most of whom are facing death sentences for a variety of violent crimes, agree to the mission and the possible commuting of their sentences.



Holy Goalie
5.6

A young priest coaches a team of uncoordinated monks in order to win a soccer tournament and save their monastery from being turned into a hotel.



Pacto de Fuga
7.5

During the last years of Pinochet's military regime, a group of militants from the "Manuel Rodríguez Patriotic Front" plan a prison break of political prisoners, through a tunnel that will take them 18 months to dig.



Miracle
Miracle(2004)
7.114

When college coach Herb Brooks is hired to helm the 1980 U.S. men's Olympic hockey team, he brings a unique and brash style to the ice. After assembling a team of hot-headed college all-stars, who are humiliated in an early match, Brooks unites his squad against a common foe: the heavily-favored Soviet team.



Zamora
Zamora(2024)
7.1

Soccer is an alien world for Walter Vismara, an unfamiliar terrain he's always avoided. But when his job hangs in the balance, he's thrust into the role of goalkeeper by his soccer-obsessed boss. Forced into a relentless routine of practice sessions and taunts, Walter finds himself trapped in a nightmare. His troubles escalate when he discovers his beloved in the arms of his archenemy, adding a personal dimension to his challenges. Determined to prove his worth, Walter devises a plan: to play the fool outwardly while secretly honing his skills. As he navigates this comedic yet challenging journey on the soccer field, will Walter emerge victorious and finally earn the respect he deserves?



The Cow and I
6.7

In 1942, a French prisonner of war in Germany decide to escape to France using a cow hold by a lunge as a decoy. He cross all Germany in this way.



In Hell
In Hell(2003)
6.588

A man must survive a prison where hardened criminals battle to the death for the warden's entertainment.



Where Eagles Dare
7.5

World War II is raging, and an American general has been captured and is being held hostage in the Schloss Adler, a Bavarian castle that's nearly impossible to breach. It's up to a group of skilled Allied soldiers to liberate the general before it's too late.



Goal of the Dead
5.446

For the Olympique de Paris soccer team, this away match scheduled against Caplongue was merely supposed to be one last chore before the end of the professional season. Yet no one could ever have imagined that an unknown rabies-like infection was going to spread like wildfire, turning this small town’s inhabitants into ultra-violent and highly contagious creatures.



Escape
Escape(2024)
5.4

A young man becomes convinced that the solution to all his problems is to live in jail, and he will do whatever it takes to get it.



Back on Track
7.3

A former Olympic champion wants to compete in the Berlin Marathon one last time.



The Wild Soccer Bunch 5

"The Wild Soccer Bunch" celebrate their last victory against the "Silver Lights" - and set one record in volley-pass game after another in the forest. But they are not alone: Vampires target the team. To lure them into their bunker, they kidnap Leon. Will Vanessa ever see him again?



Invictus
Invictus(2009)
7.181

Newly elected President Nelson Mandela knows his nation remains racially and economically divided in the wake of apartheid. Believing he can bring his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela rallies South Africa's rugby union team as they make their historic run to the 1995 Rugby World Cup Championship match.



Lessons of a Dream
6.9

An English teacher brings soccer to a German school in the 19th Century.



Tobruk
Tobruk(1967)
6.4

In September 1942, the German Afrika Korps under Rommel have successfully pushed the Allies back into Egypt. A counter-attack is planned, for which the fuel dumps at Tobruk are a critical impediment. In order to aid the attack, a group of British commandos and German Jews make their way undercover through 800 miles of desert, to destroy the fuel dumps starving the Germans of fuel.



Rambo
Rambo(2008)
6.7

In Thailand, ex-Green Beret John James Rambo joins a group of mercenaries to venture into war-torn neighboring Myanmar to rescue a group of Christian aid workers who have been kidnapped by a ruthless local infantry unit.



Play Dirty
6.1

During World War II in North Africa, a group of British commandos disguised as Italian soldiers must travel behind enemy lines and destroy a vital Nazi oil depot.



Jailbreak
Jailbreak(2017)
5.7

What started as a simple escort mission will soon turn to chaos as the prisoners of Koh Kla take over the prison grounds. A special task force gets trapped in the prison will have to fight their way out for survival, to protect a key witness.



The Wild Soccer Bunch

The school year is over and for a diverse group of carefree kids, soccer is king! These kids believe that they are the local gold team and there is nothing they like more than improving their game. "If you want to be cool, you should be wild." However, the relentless rain turns their field into a swamp, so they have to take an unexpected break. And when the sun finally comes, a gang of older, bigger and dumber boys has just taken over the field. They won't give it back unless they lose a match against the kids.



Sobibor
Sobibor(2018)
6.5

The film is based on a real story that happened in 1943 in the Sobibor concentration camp in German-occupied Poland. The main character of the movie is the Soviet-Jewish soldier Alexander Pechersky, who at that time was serving in the Red Army as a lieutenant. In October 1943, he was captured by the Nazis and deported to the Sobibor concentration camp, where Jews were being exterminated in gas chambers. But, in just 3 weeks, Alexander was able to plan an international uprising of prisoners from Poland and Western Europe. This uprising resulted in being the only successful one throughout the war, which led to the largest escape of prisoners from a Nazi concentration camp.



Eastern Condors
7.266

A motley group of Chinese prisoners held in the US is sent on a covert mission with the promise of a pardon: to go deep into Vietnam and destroy a secret depot of missiles that the US left behind during the pull-out.



Ace of Aces
7.063

In this action comedy the French boxer Jo Cavalier is charmed on the train to Berlin for the Olympics in Hitler's Germany by the little boy Simon Rosenblum who asks his autograph; when it turns out his adorable young fan is a Jewish orphan in danger of persecution, he risks his one shot at Olympic glory to save Simon and his family, helped only by a German officer-gentleman who became his friend in World War I, by an adventurous escape to Switzerland, Nazi troops on their heals and braving impossible odds in roller coaster-style.



As Far As My Feet Will Carry Me

The German soldier Clemens Forel - determined to be reunited with his beloved family - makes a dramatic escape through bitter cold winters, desolate landscapes, and life threatening ventures from a Siberian labor camp after World War II. 8000 miles and three endless years of uncertainty later, he is finally about to reach his destination... An edge of your seat drama that celebrates the power of the human spirit and the force of will, while inspired and impowered by love.



Prisoners of the Sun

A multinational expedition discovers a lost city beneath a pyramid, where they must stop the reawakened gods of ancient Egypt from initiating the apocalypse



The Desert Rats
6.3

In North Africa, German Field Marshal Rommel and his troops have successfully fended off British forces, and now intend to take Tobruk, an important port city. A ramshackle group of Australian reinforcements sent to combat the Germans is put under the command of British Captain MacRoberts. The unruly Aussies immediately clash with MacRoberts, a gruff, strict disciplinarian, however this unorthodox team must band together to protect Tobruk from the German forces.



Women in Cages
4.992

Carol Jeffries is a naive American woman staying in the Philippines. She is given ten years in prison after being set up by her drug-dealer boyfriend, Rudy. She endures the harsh conditions, sadistic head matron and attempts on her life, then convinces her cell-mates to try to escape with her through the jungle, in spite of the knowledge that ruthless trackers will be sent out after them.



The Wild Soccer Bunch 3

After Leon left his team in the historic 25-1 defeat against the national team, Die wilden Kerle broke up. Only the little Nerv still believes in his old heroes and tries to bring the grown-up guys back together with the help of his dreaded side puller. Leon's former best friend Fabi has meanwhile founded his own team, the girls' team, "The Beastly Beasts", and challenges "The Wild Soccer Bunch" to a duel in the Nattern Cave.



Rocky IV
Rocky IV(1985)
7.077

Rocky Balboa holds the world heavyweight championship, but a new challenger has stepped forward: Drago, a six-foot-four, 261-pound fighter who has the backing of the Soviet Union. This time, Rocky's training regimen takes him to Siberia, where he prepares for a globally televised match in the heart of Moscow. But nothing can truly prepare him for what he's about to face – a fight to the finish, in which he must defend not only himself, but also the honor of his country!



To Be or Not to Be
6.701

A bad Polish actor is just trying to make a living when Poland is invaded by the Germans in World War II. His wife has the habit of entertaining young Polish officers while he's on stage, which is also a source of depression to him. When one of her officers comes back on a Secret Mission, the actor takes charge and comes up with a plan for them to escape.



Rambo III
Rambo III(1988)
6.195

Combat has taken its toll on Rambo, but he's finally begun to find inner peace in a monastery. When Rambo's friend and mentor Col. Trautman asks for his help on a top secret mission to Afghanistan, Rambo declines but must reconsider when Trautman is captured.



Andrés Iniesta: The Unexpected Hero

This is the story of a normal person who does extraordinary things. Someone who pursues and achieves triumphs through taking care of the small details, because these are, after all, the ones that make him a different soccer player.



Runaway Train
7

A hardened convict and a younger prisoner escape from a brutal prison in the middle of winter only to find themselves on an out-of-control train with a female railway worker while being pursued by the vengeful head of security.



Valkyrie
Valkyrie(2008)
6.9

Wounded in Africa during World War II, Nazi Col. Claus von Stauffenberg returns to his native Germany and joins the Resistance in a daring plan to create a shadow government and assassinate Adolf Hitler. When events unfold so that he becomes a central player, he finds himself tasked with both leading the coup and personally killing the Führer.



The Keeper
7.434

The story of a man whose love for football, for England and for the love of his life, Margaret, saw him rise from Nazi 'villain' to British hero. Bert Trautmann, the German goalkeeper won over even his harshest opponents by winning the FA Cup Final for Manchester City in 1956 - playing on with a broken neck to secure victory.



The Dream Team
5.028

A former footballer living in Brittany enlists his old teammates to help the local fisherman to win some games in order to raise money and save jobs.



Uncommon Valor
6.245

A group of Vietnam War veterans re-unite to rescue one of their own left behind and taken prisoner by the Vietnamese.



Rocky III
Rocky III(1982)
6.894

Following Rocky Balboa's intense battle with his most powerful adversary yet – the ferocious Clubber Lang – Rocky joins forces with former rival Apollo Creed in an effort to get back his fighting spirit.



Rocky II
Rocky II(1979)
7.283

After Rocky goes the distance with champ Apollo Creed, both try to put the fight behind them and move on. Rocky settles down with Adrian but can't put his life together outside the ring, while Creed seeks a rematch to restore his reputation. Soon enough, the "Master of Disaster" and the "Italian Stallion" are set on a collision course for a climactic battle that is brutal and unforgettable.



Escape from New York
7.054

In a world ravaged by crime, the entire island of Manhattan has been converted into a walled prison where brutal prisoners roam free. After the US president crash-lands inside, war hero Snake Plissken has 24 hours to bring him back.



Dream
Dream(2023)
6.9

With hard work and dedication on lock, a group of homeless men trains to compete in a global tournament — despite a cranky coach.



Felon
Felon(2008)
7.1

A family man convicted of killing an intruder must cope with life afterward in the violent penal system.



Race
Race(2016)
7.254

Based on the story of Jesse Owens, the athlete whose quest to become the greatest track and field athlete in history thrusts him onto the world stage of the 1936 Olympics, where he faces off against Adolf Hitler's vision of Aryan supremacy.



Sixty Minutes
6.762

Desperate to keep custody of his daughter, a mixed martial arts fighter abandons a big match and races across Berlin to attend her birthday party.



The Chase
The Chase(1994)
5.8

Jack Hammond is sentenced to life in prison, but manages to escape. To get away from the police he takes a girl as hostage and drives off in her car. The girl happens to be the only daughter of one of the richest men in the state. In a while the car chase is being broadcast live on every TV-channel.



Diamonds of the Night

Two Jewish boys escape from a train transporting them from one concentration camp to another. Ultimately, they are hunted down by a group of old, armed home-guardists.



The Young Lions
6.8

The lives of three young men, a German and two Americans, during WWII.



Rocky
Rocky(1976)
7.792

Rocky Balboa is a Philadelphia club fighter who seems to be going nowhere. But when a stroke of fate puts him in the ring with a world heavyweight champion, Rocky knows that it's his one shot at the big time — a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to go the distance and come out a winner!



Playing for Keeps
5.656

A former sports star who's fallen on hard times starts coaching his son's soccer team in an attempt to get his life together.



36 Hours
36 Hours(1964)
7

Germans kidnap an American major and try to convince him that World War II is over, so that they can get details about the Allied invasion of Europe out of him.



The Match
The Match(2020)
5.693

One football match on a dirt pitch near Rome becomes a day of reckoning as a young player, his coach and their team's owner wrestle internal demons.



Stalag 17
Stalag 17(1953)
7.694

It's a dreary Christmas 1944 for the American POWs in Stalag 17 and the men in Barracks 4, all sergeants, have to deal with a grave problem—there seems to be a security leak.



Lock Up
Lock Up(1989)
6.815

Frank Leone is nearing the end of his prison term for a relatively minor crime. Just before he is paroled, however, Warden Drumgoole takes charge. Drumgoole was assigned to a hell-hole prison after his administration was publicly humiliated by Leone, and has now arrived on the scene to ensure that Leone never sees the light of day.



Battle of the Bulge

In the winter of 1944, the Allied Armies stand ready to invade Germany at the coming of a New Year. To prevent it, Hitler orders an all-out offensive to re-take French territory and capture the major port city of Antwerp.



Escape from the Planet of the Apes

The world is shocked by the appearance of three talking chimpanzees, who arrived mysteriously in a spacecraft. Intrigued by their intelligence, humans use them for research - until the apes attempt to escape.



The Passage
6.108

During WW 2, a Basque shepherd is approached by the underground, who wants him to lead a scientist and his family across the Pyrenees. While being pursued by a sadistic German.



Retirement Home
5.9

A story of friendship between a young convict who is forced to work in a retirement home and a group of crazy old people. Together they organize their escape.



99 Women
99 Women(1969)
5.3

Female prisoners endure the horrors of drug abuse, prostitution and rampant sadism at an island prison. When an escape attempt goes awry, the fugitives discover that escaping can be as dangerous as remaining in the prison.



King Rat
King Rat(1965)
7.1

When Singapore surrendered to the Japanese in 1942, the Allied POWs, mostly British but including a few Americans, were incarcerated in Changi prison. Among the American prisoners is Cpl. King, a wheeler-dealer who has managed to establish a pretty good life for himself in the camp. King soon forms a friendship with an upper-class British officer who is fascinated with King's enthusiastic approach to life.



The Truce
The Truce(1997)
6.1

After the liberation of Auschwitz, an Italian prisoner of War begins a torturous voyage home to Turin, through a Europe caught between war and peace.



North Face
7.2

North Face tells the story of two German climbers Toni Kurz and Andreas Hinterstoisser and their attempt to scale the deadly North Face of the Eiger.

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