15 Terrific Türkiye Football Facts!

Here’s some awesome facts about the Türkiye national football teams!

Türkiye – the country formerly known as Turkey – are just one of the 24 teams who participated in the excellent Euros 2024 football tournament in Germany. Here’s everything you need to know about the team, who crashed out in the quarter-finals following a defeat by the Netherlands!

1. They played their first game in 1923

Türkiye played their first-ever international match on home soil in Istanbul on October 26, 1923. They faced Romania and the game ended in a 2-2 draw.

2. Their badge features a crescent moon and a star

The Türkiye football badge is simply the country’s flag which is known as al bayrak, meaning ‘the red flag’. It features a crescent moon and one star, which also appeared on the 19th-century Ottoman flag.

3. They play most of their home games in Istanbul

The team play the majority of their home fixtures at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in the country’s capital of Istanbul. The ground’s construction was completed in 2002 and has a capacity of 76,092, making it the biggest stadium in Türkiye.

4. Their captain is Hakan Çalhanoğlu

The Inter Milan midfielder made his international debut in 2013 in a game against Andorra. Their World Cup qualifier ended in a 5-0 win. He was made captain in 2022, after Burak Yılmaz announced his retirement. He has appeared in three European Championships.

5. They’ve got two nicknames

Türkiye fans call their national side either Ay-Yıldızlılar (The Crescent-Stars) or Bizim Çocuklar (Our Boys), and are very passionate about their team.

6. Their main rivals are Croatia and Greece

Türkiye have faced Croatia 9 times, the first being in 1996 as part of the Euros in England, but lost 1-0. It’s their rivalry with Greece which makes for a very loud, competitive atmosphere during their matches, due to their partitioning of the island of Cyprus. Türkiye have only lost 3 of their 14 matches against Greece.

7. Rüştü Reçber is their most-capped player

The Korkuteli-born goalkeeper was called up to the squad in 1994 and was part of the national side until 2012. During that time, he earned 120 caps. During his club career, he played for teams like Fenerbahçe and Barcelona and retired while at Turkish club Beşiktaş in 2012.

8. Hakan Şükür is the team’s highest goal scorer

Born in Sapanca, Hakan Şükür was nicknamed ‘King’ and spent his club career at teams like Galatasaray, Inter Milan and Blackburn Rovers. He made his international debut in 1992 and represented the team for 15 years, making 112 appearances and scoring 51 times.

9. They’re placed 42nd in the FIFA World Rankings

A man counting things in a football stadium

The team are placed 42nd in the FIFA ranking system, but were once as high as 5 in 2004. Their lowest ranking was in 1993, where they were ranked as the 67th best international men’s football team in the world.

10. They’ve enjoyed three 7-0 wins

When it comes to thrill-a-minute international ties, Türkiye have won a few games by 7 goals to 0. Those teams were Syria (1949), South Korea (1954) and San Marino (1996).

11. They’ve been beaten by England by 8 goals… twice

Türkiye have been beaten by England by 8 goals to 0 on two seperate occasions. The first defeat happened in Istanbul in 1984, and it happened again three years later at Wembley. Poland have also beaten Türkiye 8-0, in the Polish city of Chorzów in 1968.

12. Their head coach is Vincenzo Montella

The former Italian international spent his club career at Empoli, Genoa, Sampdoria, Roma and was on loan to Fulham for a short spell. His managerial career took him to the hot seat at Catania, Fiorentina, Sampdoria, AC Milan, Sevilla, Fiorentina and Turkish side Adana Demirspor before being made Türkiye’s head coach in 2023.

13. Hakan Şükür scored their fastest ever goal

At the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, Hakan Şükür scored a goal in 10.8 seconds against the Korean hosts in a third-place play off. They went on to win 3-2.

14. They’re yet to win a major trophy

Despite not filling their trophy cabinet with any silverware, Türkiye have a decent record in major tournaments. They were third at the 2002 World Cup, reached the semi-finals in the 2008 European Championships and were twice quarter-finalists at the Olympics (1948 and 1952). In the FIFA Confederations Cup, they were placed third in 2003.