Istanbul Basaksehir
Turkish minnows’ rise to the top is no fairy tale
For only the second time since 1985, Turkey has a league champion from outside the “Big Three” of Besiktas, Fenerbahce and Galatasaray. Unlike Bursaspor’s surprise success in 2009-10, this is more than a one-off. Istanbul Basaksehir are genuine game-changers in Turkey.
Istanbul is a divided city. The so-called “Intercontinental Derby” pits Fenerbahce from the Asian side against Galatasaray in the European side. It is a ludicrously passionate affair, while Besiktas’ clashes against the two sides are equally fiery. Football in the city has often quite literally been a matter of life and death, with fans obsessively devoted to their own club to extreme levels.
The idea of another Istanbul team elbowing their way into top spot ahead of all three seemed inconceivable. In such a tribal city, with the battle lines already so clearly drawn, how could a club like Istanbul Basaksehir – founded as an amateur side in 1990 – attract any fans?
The truth is that they haven’t. Figures vary, but their average attendance during their title-winning season was somewhere between 500 and 2,000, the lowest in the league. When they were drawn against Burnley in the Europa League two years ago, they drew a home crowd of just 4,503, and didn’t sell any tickets for the second leg at Turf Moor. In July the team paraded their league trophy through the city on an open-top bus to virtually empty streets. Lockdown restrictions are in place of course, but it’s unlikely that these would have stopped fans of the Big Three from celebrating.
Yet, although they have very little support, this is not a team that has been built on a shoestring budget. They have several big names in the autumn of their careers (far from a new phenomenon in Turkish football), with former Premier League stars Martin Skrtel, Gael Clichy, Gokhan Inler, Robinho and Demba Ba all appearing for them last season, while the likes of Emre Belozoglu and Emmanuel Adebayor have signed in the past.
In addition, they have a relatively new ground, the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium. Built in 2014 and named after the current Galatasaray coach, it has a capacity of just over 17,000, but is yet to sell out.
A clue to their success can be found in the exhibition match that took place when the ground was opened. Amongst the stars on show that day was Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. After scoring a hat-trick, the No.12 shirt that he was wearing was officially retired by the club, and his portrait was hung up at the training ground.
Shortly before the new ground was opened, they announced new sponsors Medipol, a network of health clinics, founded by Erdogan’s health minister Fahrettin Koca. The club president at the time, Goksel Gumusdag, is married to one of Erdogan’s wife’s nieces. The district of Basaksehir itself was built by Erdogan during his time as mayor of Istanbul, and is populated by many of his supporters. Even the club colours of orange and blue are those of the country’s ruling party, the AKP.
Erdogan’s patronage explains the club’s sponsorship from Turkish Airlines and DenizBank, one of the country’s largest private banks. With such backing, more investment is sure to follow. Arsenal outcast and known Erdogan supporter Mesut Ozil is among those linked with the club, although whether this will be enough to attract more fans remains to be seen.
Sooner or later, Basaksehir will need to attract bigger crowds if they are to continue growing and avoid scrutiny from UEFA. In June, Trabzonspor became the latest Turkish side to fall foul of FFP regulations, and were handed a one-year ban from European competition. If it hasn’t already, the regulators’ gaze will soon be turning to the Turkish champions in an empty stadium from an Istanbul suburb.
Then again, with such friends in high places, the club may not need to worry.
Erdogan’s patronage explains the club’s sponsorship from Turkish Airlines and DenizBank