Istanbul Professional League was a Turkish football league that operated in Istanbul, Turkey.
The league formed after professional football in the country began in 1952. There were initially 10 teams. It was also known as Istanbul Professional League 1, after Istanbul Professional League 2 was formed in the 1956-57 season. The team who finished the Istanbul Professional League 2 in second place was promoted to PL1, while the PL1 team who finished in last place moved to PL2. Istanbul Professional League was later replaced by Istanbul Local League.
The Turkey national football team, recognized as Türkiye by FIFA, represents Turkey in men's international football matches. The team is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey, which was founded in 1923 and has been a member of FIFA since 1923 and UEFA since 1962.
Beşiktaş Jimnastik Kulübü, abbreviated as BJK, is a Turkish professional sports club founded in 1903 that is based in the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul. The club's football team is one of the Big Three in Turkey and one of the most successful teams in the country, having never been relegated to a lower division. It was the first registered sports club in the country and one of the few that acquired the right to bear the Turkish flag on its crest.
The Süper Lig, officially known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the Turkish Football Federation. In the 2023-2024 season, twenty clubs compete, where a champion is decided and three clubs are promoted from, and another four relegated to the 1. Lig. The season runs from August to May, with each club playing 38 matches. Matches are played Friday through Monday.
İstanbulspor Kulübü is a Turkish football and sports club founded by Istanbul High School students in 1926. In 2004–05, they were relegated from the Turkish Süper Lig to the TFF First League. For many decades, it was the fourth most famous and well-developed professional football club in Istanbul, coming after Beşiktaş, Galatasaray, and Fenerbahçe. After being bought by the Uzan family in 1990, it has been repossessed by the government and resold to third parties.
Arif Erdem is a Turkish retired football manager and former professional player who played in the forward position. Starting out with local club Zeytinburnuspor in 1990, Erdem had a decorated 15-year professional career. He scored 106 goals in 341 league matches and finished joint top scorer of the Süper Lig with İlhan Mansız at the conclusion of the 2001–02 season.
MKE Ankaragücü or fully Makina ve Kimya Endüstrisi Ankaragücü, is a Turkish professional sports club located in the city of Ankara. The football team wears a yellow and navy kit and plays its home matches at Eryaman Stadium following the closure of the Ankara 19 Mayıs Stadium.
Konyaspor Kulübü, known as TÜMOSAN Konyaspor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional football club based in Konya. They are better known as Konyaspor. In 1922 Konyaspor were founded with the name Konya Gençlerbirliği and have played at their current home stadium, Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium, since 2014. Konyaspor currently play in the Süper Lig, the top tier of Turkish football. The club colours are green and white.
Samsunspor is a Turkish professional multi-sports club based in the city of Samsun, best known for its football department. The club was formed through a merger of five clubs: 19 Mayıs, Akınspor, Fener Gençlik, Samsunspor, and Samsunspor Galatasaray. The club colours are red and white, and they play their home matches at Samsun 19 Mayıs Stadium.
Adana Demirspor Kulübü is a multi-sports club based in Adana, Turkey. The football department is the most popular department which secured 4th place at the 2022–23 Süper Lig and qualified for European competitions for the first time in their history. The club also competes in rowing, table tennis, taekwondo and volleyball. Founded by railway workers of Turkish State Railways (TCDD) in 1940, The football team's success at the Adana League and the water polo team's unbeaten National League titles in the club's first three decades built a large worker fan base in the city. Some supporters who are unhappy with the management of the club, founded Adanaspor in 1954 and competition among the two clubs for the citywide support and domination since then, created one of the fiercest rivalries of Turkish football which continues to this day as the Adana derby. From the 1970s to the late 2010s, the club had less success than their archrival, did not win a major title and had not participated in any European competitions, though it continued to gain wider support than Adanaspor and became one of the most supported clubs in Turkey. The club's recent success at the Super Lig and qualification for the UEFA Conference League and Adanaspor's decline is widening the gap between two clubs further in terms of fan support and club value.
Ertuğrul Sağlam is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and former player who is the current manager of Kocaelispor.
Vefa SK is a football club in Vefa, neighborhood of the Fatih district of Istanbul. The team currently competing at Bölgesel Amatör Lig 1st Grup which is 5th level of Turkish leagues. Vefa SK is the first and only Turkish club coached by a female manager, Özgür Gözüaçık Akyıldız.
Abdullah Mucib Avcı is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and a former professional footballer. He is the former manager of Trabzonspor. He has also managed the Turkey national team.
İstanbul Başakşehir Futbol Kulübü, or due to sponsorship reasons Rams Başakşehir is a Turkish professional football club based in the Başakşehir district of Istanbul. The club is better known simply as Başakşehir. The club was founded in 1990 as İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediyespor. They first reached the highest level in Turkish Football in 2007–08. They play their home games at the Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium in Istanbul.
Bucaspor was a professional Turkish football club based in Buca, İzmir. Formed in 1928, Bucaspor were nicknamed Fırtına (Storm). The club colours were yellow and navy. It was dissolved in 2020.
The history of Galatasaray S.K. covers over 100 years of the sports from the club based in Istanbul, Turkey. Established in 1905, the club became the most successful club in the history of Turkish football.
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü, more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray and also known as Galatasaray AŞ or Gala in UEFA competitions, is a Turkish professional football club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul. It is the association football branch of the larger Galatasaray Sports Club of the same name, itself a part of the Galatasaray Community Cooperation Committee which includes Galatasaray High School where the football club was founded in October 1905 consisting entirely of student members. The team traditionally play in dark shades of red and yellow at home, with the shirts split down the middle between the two colours.
Ahmed Şerafettin, colloquially known as Şeref Bey, was a Turkish football player and manager.
Fenerbahçe Spor Kulübü, commonly known simply as Fenerbahçe or colloquially as Fener, is a professional football club based in Kadıköy, Istanbul, Turkey. They represent the men's football department of the Fenerbahçe S.K. sports club and compete in the Süper Lig, the top flight of Turkish football. In domestic football, Fenerbahçe have won a record 28 national championship titles and seven Turkish Cups. In international football, the club has won the Balkans Cup, which was the first non-domestic trophy won by a Turkish club.
Mersin İdman Yurdu was a Turkish sports club from Mersin, Turkey in the eastern Mediterranean Region. The team played in the Turkish first division for 15 seasons, and after the 1983–84 season the football team played in the Turkish second and third divisions. The team was promoted to the Turkish second level division after the 2008–09 season. MİY became the champions of the Turkish second division during the 2010–11 season and earned promotion to the Turkish Süper Lig during the 2011–12 season. Tevfik Sırrı Gür Stadium was the previous ground of the team with a capacity of 10,125. In 2013, their new 25,534 person capacity stadium, Mersin Arena, was inaugurated on 23 March 2013 with a TFF First League match against Gaziantep Büyükşehir Belediyespor. Their main rivals were Adana Demirspor, Adanaspor and Tarsus İdman Yurdu, and were friendly with Bucaspor.
Rah Ahan Sports Club, commonly known as Rah Ahan Football Club, is an Iranian professional football club based in Tehran. They currently play in the Azadegan League. Rah Ahan is one of the oldest Iranian football clubs.