What On Earth Is Going On In The Turkish Süper Lig?

[@onurerpul6481]

- A couple people pointed this out below but it needs to be emphasized: everything is being poorly managed at the moment. Institutions are crumbling and the Turkish economy is in dire straits. Turkish clubs earn liras but have to spend in euros and dollars. This is a fundamental problem and the reason why the top three teams have lost their edge. Common Turks don't have enough money to afford to go to games either. I don't have any love for Bein, but they don't conspire against specific Turkish teams. However, because of Turkey's currency fluctuations, and Bein's intransigence, Turkish clubs are underpaid at the end of each season since they are paid in previously agreed-upon exchange rates -The security issues, while severe, are not as pronounced as before due to the implementation of the Pasolig security system, but this has also led to duller spectacles, or simply made it difficult for people to attend games. - The Turkish government is actively involved in Turkish sports in a way that raises too many concerns. Just because people have unqualified conspiratorial thoughts does not mean that there is no political engineering in Turkish football. Should we start with government/public funded teams like Başakşehir, or the questionable connections between Turkey's governing elite and Trabzonspor? Given the state of Turkey more generally, and past corruption/match-fixing scandals (as alluded to later in the video), we cannot confidently dismiss anything as a conspiracy theory. - The most fundamental problem of course is the inability of Turkish clubs to harness youth talent and sell them at a profit on a regular and sustainable basis. I'm glad the video hits this at the end. * Final point: Despite the present difficulties, even an easily resolvable problem seems to linger: lack of elbow grease. There are quantitative studies that explain some cultural and organizational issues too. Turkish football teams do not run as much as their counterparts and are overall lacking in the athletic department. Unfortunately, we do not seem to reward hard work and merit. Hoping to see that at least my club, Beşiktaş, will have solved this issue by next season thanks to squad reengineering under the auspices of a coach like Valerian Ismael.

[@kiriakoz]

That’s good additional context to be fair. Thanks.

[@robert2690]

Public funds for a private business likes sports is a NO NO.

[@shikariE25]

Need to follow Scotland's example in part. Part being that Rangers and Celtic have become selling clubs. Un earthing and finding young talent, then selling on for profit. The bad part is that Rangers and Celtic take too much of the TV money, which creates a further gulf between them and the rest. Resulting in less money due to less competition. Turkish clubs have more competition, so need to focus on re thinking squad structure. For example Rangers easily swept past Galatasaray last season, yet our wage bill is likely a third. The need to buy Golden oldies is un necessary. 30 to 32 maybe but 34 35 year olds with ridiculous wage demands hurt clubs more than anything else.

[@Furkan123Furkan123]

How about the fact that Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a massive Fenerbahçe supporter - even lifting the match-fixing laws within Turkey overnight for them?

[@burningphoneix]

@@robert2690 Ban private business from sport. All sport should be publically run.

[@zweimeterzwerg]

Since my GF is from Turkey and a Galatasaray supporter, I was forced to have some closer looks at the Süper Lig. It is absolutely insane and the football tends to be absolutely awful. But at least you usually see at least one brawl per match and on average 2 penalties every 7 minute injurytime-period.

[@cmenomore8119]

My girlfriend is Fener supporter but at least i’m not forced to watch süper lig with her and she’s cool to watch Eintracht games with me.

[@zweimeterzwerg]

@@cmenomore8119 Good luck against Barça tonight. Mine went to Dynamo Dresden with me and was probably the only yellow/black female Turk there. Maybe ever. Even if Dresden is like Galatasaray's season on steroids.

[@cmenomore8119]

@@zweimeterzwerg The game against barca is tomorrow but thx mate we will need it. 🙏🏼 Maybe she was the only one ever but i bet the atmosphere at rudolf-harbig stadion made her feel like watching Galatasaray 😂👌🏽your fans are awesome. Hope to see Dynamo in the Bundesliga at some day german football needs clubs like you. ✌🏽

[@zweimeterzwerg]

@@cmenomore8119 Oh crap it's wednesday still^^

[@gurcuball6193]

@@cmenomore8119 What happened to you two when Eintracht Frankurt played against Fenerbahce in Europe league groups.

[@Marcus-mm8yr]

this will read.sound weird. when I was doing my dissertation, I realized just how in-depth your content is... the way you dig deep, contrast between leagues, draw parallels and site examples, find the stats, stay factual!! honestly your drive for quality content inspired me when I was running out of gas. I wish that you will get the credit and plaudits you deserve for the hard graft that you put into preparing these videos. big up yourself from Zimbabwe.

[@Mustafa-vh9lq]

Half of the fact that channel claim is wrong but you are right it sounds correct :))

[@halilacikgoz7865]

Fener should get more money as it is the most watched team. So kinda BS statements and hate against Turkey. You don't hate on PL for the big spendings. 2faced

[@MenWithVen]

Assuming we blow the playoffs yet again I'd love to see a deep dive into Sunderland's long and drawn out downfall from Premier league regular to league one mainstay

[@shawklan27]

This! This! I remember watching that Sunderland till I die documentary a few years back and I found it to be a fairly interesting albeit sad watch watching a prized premiere league struggle to stay afloat from relegation. Its definitely more interesting to watch than the success of some big club like man city or Tottenham imo

[@cccccccccccccccccc382]

would also be interesting to see one on Ipswich Town. I remember going to see them against Inter in the UEFA cup and now they are in league 1 for a few years. Crazy drop-off, despite at once having an owner who was one of the richest men in the country

[@MenWithVen]

@@shawklan27 I said long and drawn out but we fall very quick and hard at the end, but how we ended up in that weak position goes back to bad management in around 2010

[@chris94kennedy]

@@shawklan27 the success of tottenham what are you smoking!? They don't win anything

[@shawklan27]

@@chris94kennedy ah shit I worded it wrong maybe like a club like Liverpool or Chelsea instead?

[@goattm2]

That loss against Wales last year in the euros must have been a massive kick in the balls then, especially as their president went to the match as guest of Azerbaijans leader expecting an easy win while trying to score political points.

[@BrianStorm742]

Their 6-1 thrashing at the hands of the Netherlands a few months back was also a massive item.

[@user-te1le7ck6b]

Nothing to do with his visit the team are poor and tactically inept

[@david.crowther6646]

As a Welshman I personally loved that game

[@fxtymz1123]

@@BrianStorm742 we lost 6-1 and beat them 4-2 in the first game and missed like 5 open goals

[@BrianStorm742]

@@fxtymz1123 exactly. That's even worse, you realise that, right?

[@trap9850]

This has been going on for years. Thanks for covering it 🇹🇷🇹🇷

[@krishnasadhanaofficial4292]

Reading the title and description of this video and I was instantly reminded of the likes of Gaziantepspor, Kayseri Erciyesspor, Kardemir Karabukspor, Eskisehirspor...former Super Lig members who have since fallen into hard times due to financial issues. This year alone both Bursaspor and Denizlispor are in the relegation zone of the Turkish 2nd tier!

[@DR3ADER1]

(Not so) Fun fact about Eskisehirspor, when Erdogan F.C.-I mean "Istanbul Başakşehir F.K." relegated them by way of a 2-1 win at ES' old home stadium in May 2016, fans proceeded to burn the entire stadium down. In addition to this, Gaziantepspor collapsed in 2020, Kayseri Erciyesspor fell two years earlier in 2018. This is of course a chilling effect of Turkey losing the Euro 2024 bid to Germany (It's the 5th time they've lost in the bidding process, as they failed in 2008, 2012, 2016 and 2020. It's also one of the main reasons why there's a ton of brand-new sparkling-fresh stadia built by clubs who can't afford the costs. As in preparation for such a tournament, stadiums are either expanded, rennovated, rebuilt or even constructed from scratch)

[@Muradwalis92]

Just one comment on the 19:05 thing - I am a besiktas fan and it’s very common to post things on social media around that time just to stick a jab at one another, the teams were founded on 1903 besiktas, 1905 galatasaray and 1907 fenerbahce. It’s silly but it’s actually done

[@Muradwalis92]

Also, even before social media - In Turkey it was important what the regular media wrote about as well - kids before playing on the streets would pick up the sports papers (including myself as a child) and show off to one another who they transferred or by how many nil did they beat their rivals - as half British and half Turk I am happy to answer anyones questions if they are curious

[@Muradwalis92]

You Highlighted Beyaz sport program, to be fair they are known for the silliness. For example I follow firat gunayer or similar people on KZbin to get my Turkish football news - as they are the ones that actually analys this

[@Muradwalis92]

It is also important to understand especially Erdogan doesn’t like the fanbases of these teams - this is due to the fact that during the Gezi park protests the ones leading the protests were main members of the fanbases - so the dictatorship has decided to weaken the big three for teams like basaksehir (tasaksehir in my dictionary) and Adana Demir spor

[@Muradwalis92]

But at the end of the day I live in London, I get my football entertainment with proper football and if I want to watch something surreal The super lig it is

[@gokselEris]

@@Muradwalis92 abim you don't miss with the facts loved your comments. Saygılar. edit: taşakşehir indeed

[@kiriakoz]

You posted this video at 19:05 in my time zone, which I'm taking as a slight against Fenerbache.

[@emirkaratepe7200]

I wish there was a way to translate this video to turkish so that every turk can watch and get educated why our league is in a downfall. Excellent video man.

[@a.e.a.]

I’d argue that every semi-informed Turkish fan came to same conclusions in the last few years. But we as Turkish people are to passionate and erratic to better ourselves. The best example of this can be observed with Galatasaray, as the youth movement was only supported for half a year before everyone lost their respective shits. Altyapıya ve ücretsiz transferlere yönelmezsek yakın zamanda iflas edeceğiz.

[@benkuru5281]

@@a.e.a. it’s such a shame because the project was scrapped before even having a chance to start. I was so excited to see that the club was gonna work closely with Campos but that looks like it’s coming to an end before we even had a full transfer window with him. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of shit Torrent is receiving from the fans despite him somewhat improving the team physically and tactically. It’s such a shame that such a promising time in our history finished before it had an opportunity to realize jt

[@a.e.a.]

@@benkuru5281 That’s exactly my opinion man. Torrent is being poorly treated just because he came after Fatih hoca and most likely gone after the next elections. Instead of planning for the long run and investing in young players all every club official and fan thinks about is short-term success

[@idontexist1681]

@@a.e.a. the thing wrong with torrent is that he is just a coach, not a man manager. He can't build a character. He is better off as an assistant. I hope we can sign a disciplinary foreign manager. We have so much potential in our youth ranks

[@caner78bob]

poor fans in Turkey are so delusional they talk their teams up like Barcelona when they perform more like a Faroe island team, imagine having nothing in your life to look forward too other than being passionate about an average mid table team

[@ivonikolov8278]

I have been waiting for this clip form Alfie since last year. Fenehbahce, Besiktas and Galatasaray are dreadful this year, with Galatasaray close to the relegation zone a few months back

[@Muradwalis92]

The problem also is that Turkish teams only train 2 a day for 45 minutes each

[@Muradwalis92]

Guven yalcin for example would joke that he is always 10 minutes late - Dude that means this guy only trains an hour a day… of course they won’t develop

[@senhorstarbucks1895]

Galatasaray manager was Flamengo's manager in 2020, He turn a Libertadores and brazilian champion into a defensive butter. Dome was sacked after humiliating defeats against 4 clubs almost in a sequence. Domenec can't defend even if his life depended on it

[@idontexist1681]

@@senhorstarbucks1895 torrent is just a good coach, but a dreadful leader.

[@nettlecider]

shit you not, I've been to Turkey last year, touristy city, none of the major players and seeing millions on millions of same football club merch in every shops that are not local, I just had to struck a conversation with one of the sellers asking how come there's Barca, Real, Chelsea on every corner yet there's almost nothing with local big teams? The dude LOOKED AROUND and just gave me a warning to keep it low for my own sake, since he found out I'm from Lithuania, he just said I should stick to the basketball small talk to get positivity on the streets, otherwise some maniacs could come for my throat. Whoa, your video explains a lot :DDDD

[@Darwinek]

It's because the Lithuanian flag reminds some in Turkey of a PKK flag.

[@idontexist1681]

@@Darwinek not many turks know about lithuania even existing, they don't even know that the colours are the same

[@canoaslan1011]

LOL wtf I think you dont know what the Local teams merch even look like. they are everywhere.

[@erenakbas1259]

Imo, the problem is, as Turks, we always witchhunt and we do not look to ourselves. If we could overcome that, I think the league will be much better with all of its aspects.

[@erenakbas1259]

@KZY this is true as well.

[@felixwinkler6450]

First step in solving a problem is admitting that there is one. That's why criticism should always be welcome and one should always look at themselves for solutions. Yes, circumstances and outside factors will have an influence; others can be blamed, as well. But one has only so much influence on others and should prefer to invest energy and resources into doing their own part. If everyone was trying to look for problems, work on solutions and did their reasonable best to improve the situation for everyone, all problems could be solved. Sadly, too many never look in the mirror and too many think that criticism is the same as an attack. If you love something, you want it to improve. For that you need to find imperfections to work on. True friends tell each other uncomfortable truths. Find the people in your life that work towards solving problems, sort out those creating them and you'll have a good life. Same is true for football.

[@sidosh2229]

Day 11: Considering that the last player who played in the miracle of Bern died about 5 months ago, I would really like to see a video about the whole story between Germany and Hungary, especially because it meant so much to at least the German population

[@KinnyRiddle]

The fact that your Istanbul Basaksehir video got banned in Turkey means your channel is doing a very good job in your investigative journalism, enough to trigger autocratic despots into feeling threatened by the detailed analysis of your videos.

[@idontexist1681]

It did? I watched it multiple times

[@peasantarcher2486]

@@idontexist1681 Götten salladı mesela

[@trap9850]

The bein sports issues are ridiculous but as a Turkish fan the referee issues are real and corrupt. Already 2 referees have been sacked because of this but us still going on

[@nachoalvarez7171]

Sacking 2 refs is actually a good thing for me

[@politisdimitrios2307]

In Greece, all teams have sole owners and many of them make release announcements like these weekly...

[@hpr3295]

Και πιο συχνα

[@niallfoody97]

Maybe someone been dumping lead into the Aegean sea.

[@MrSmith1984]

When you look at it, there are some great similarities between the Greek & Turkish Leagues.

[@Darwinek]

In Greece it's so bad all games between the biggest rivals must be refereed by foreign referees. Not to mention some occasional stories like the PAOK owner coming to the pitch with a gun.

[@MrSmith1984]

@@Darwinek Honesty, it's got to the stage where UEFA need to get directly involved with the Greek & Turkish Leagues. For example over referee appointments.

[@yutesmoka2374]

As a Turkish guy who’s really into the league, you did your homework fam this is some amazing content

[@Jakenh84]

Used to fall asleep to these vids but the 60000 ads on them means I can’t without skipping 2 minute long ads

[@jordan_roadhouse4798]

Annoying AF isn't it! Always the loudest most obnoxious ads too! 😑

[@christopheichmann1308]

It’s the revenue that makes it the biggest problem. Outside of turkey nobody watches their league. So big companies like Dazn or Sky don’t offer much, because it won’t give them any profit. Turkeys economy is also very poor and bad. That’s all.

[@corvus2512]

Wait wait wait.... Ozil has fallen out with another club?? What on earth has happened to him? I used to be such a fan of his at Madrid and early Arsenal but it seems he just can’t keep his head down and play football anymore... just retire so we don’t have to hear about his drama any more

[@matthewhernandez8342]

He could go to MLS to milk another 2-3 years of football.

[@corvus2512]

@@matthewhernandez8342 that would just be pathetic to see him play in that joke of a league, no he just needs to retire and be done with football. His heart hasn't been in it for years, he doesn't need the money... just bow out with whatever dignity he has left, going to mls would ensure he would have no dignity left.

[@alexsayshi6782]

@@corvus2512 mls is getting better what??

[@matthewhernandez8342]

@@corvus2512 So do Beckham, Rooney, Pirlo, David Villa, Chicharito, Carlos Vela, Nani and Kaka have no dignity because they played in the MLS at the end of their career? Nobody has taken Ozil seriously since he started falling off at Arsenal. Also he went to the Turkish league which isn’t as good as it used to be 5-10 years ago. I don’t think he needs the money, I just like to see players who keep playing football and have a long career. Ozil deserves at least another 2 years whether it’s at Fenerbahce or LA Galaxy. Also Insigne is going to Toronto FC from Napoli and he’s not even at the end of his career. MLS is getting better, we produced a great talent like Alphonso Davies who now plays for Bayern Munich.

[@KBox1991]

He’s lazy. Any player who declines before 30 is out of lazyniess.

[@Kuddochan]

I think we need a v2 of this video after all the absurd recent events in Turkey

[@danmorfitt]

Great video, Alfie. Goes a good way to explain why Acun Ilicali has invested in our club rather than the mess of the Turkish Super Lig.

[@MrCalls]

Probably the quickest half an hour of my life! Thanks so much for that, learnt a lot of interesting things that I never knew

[@earlofdrumer1851]

4 things actually - I always recall Trabzonspor being a good side since watching from the early 90's.

[@RS-zp1we]

Alfie, please make a video about 7 national legends that are forgotten internationally. In the Netherlands it would be Willem van Hanegem. By many Dutch people seen as a top 3 all time Dutch player, or at least top 5. He was the best player next to cruijff in the 60s and 70s. But abroad people seem to have forgotten a player who rivals Van Basten and Gullit in terms of skill.

[@kiriakoz]

I've never said this before, but this is actually a good idea and very interesting. I think it'd take a while to research but that's never stopped APH before.

[@mike04574]

jurgen kohler

[@carlosbarton763]

@@mike04574 Didn't he tear a knee ligament like 15 minutes into Euro '96 (Germany winning the whole thing in the end)?

[@rutvikrs]

Harry Maguire

[@Yurg99]

This would be a good video

[@williamlee7672]

I have always wonder why the odds for the big three in Turkey to win was so high this season. Last few seasons their odds were like Man City Vs any small club. Basically little odds. But this season, it has been the opposite.

[@AdminAbuse]

Wondered

[@JerKKeR]

As a Fenerbahçe fan I'd like to provide further insight. We all unanimously hate Ali Koç at this point. His mismanagement of the club is insane and he continues with the whole "the world is against us" thing, with Fenerbahçe now suing the Turkish government for slander and defamation, claiming there is no such proof that they ever did it. When Fenerbahçe lost to dynamo Kyiv and our fans were stupid enough to chant "PUTIN" to anger the Ukrainians, a Ukrainian government official twittered against us and Ali Koç then too demanded an apology from him for doing so. Transfer wise we are not doing well either. We lost our best man - Kim Min-Jae - to Napoli, and wasted the money we got from his release clause. And while Fenerbahçe has currently an average age of 25,5 which is the same as Barcelona, and younger than Real Madrid and Manchester City, most of these people being foreign imports, with 50% of the team being from outside of Turkey. This has gotten so bad that we had to start our reserve players because the number of Turkish players that must be on the pitch according to the TFF's regulations wasn't high enough. We do have some young Turkish Talent in the club such as Çağtay Kurukalip, Arda Güler and İsak Vural. But two of these 3 don't even have the rights to play in the Europa League. I have no idea how we could ever think of even affording 1% of Ronaldo when we were about to sign him at the end of the transfer window.

[@cameronmcdonald487]

My team St johnstone played galatasaray earlier this season and I can confirm Turkish twitter is mental

[@al-hilalgames5708]

Twitter in general is hell, but Turkish twitter is on another level, for sure.

[@drww1]

mental is an understatement, the gala fans still dont like than rangers beat them

[@vaszi101]

i live in turkey and can still watch your Istanbul basaksehir video, just so you know. maybe it’s a regional ban but in istanbul it’s watchable

[@dm9078]

Falling out with teams seems to be an Özil specialty.

[@constablekennedy7705]

This is a Certified Hood Classic …… 🔥. ⚽️

[@ibarboo]

It's truly heartbreaking to see the collapse of beautiful game in Turkey for almost a decade, which most of the sane fans have seen the writing on the wall back in those days. Frankly, it can be said that it has been some sort of a projection of decadence of welfare and economic turmoil.

[@jamesbond4810]

I think it has to do with the economy of your country.

[@ibarboo]

@@jamesbond4810 it definitely does...but you cant separate awful politics and abysmal economy while we live all these troubles,surely.

[@jamesbond4810]

@@ibarboo May I ask you a Political question ? Why Erdogan's son-in-law was appointed as finance minister in your country ? Seems like a corruption scandal of great magnitude is going on in Turkey.

[@robert2690]

Well, what do you expect? Investing in soccer is more expensive than investing in basketball

[@DR3ADER1]

@@robert2690 It's not just that, Turkey is currently experiencing a massive financial crisis after the Turkish Lira collapsed a decade ago. In addition to this, Turkey has submitted bid-after-bid-after-bid-after-bid for the UEFA EUROs and have failed miserably in all of them (most people are predicting that they're set to lose the EURO 2028 bid to Britain and Ireland). Those new stadiums weren't just made because of Turkey's then-booming football rankings in the 2000s, but as an additional compounding result of Turkey's government and FA trying to win ever-expensive bids for National Team tournaments.

[@johneccles97]

Very interesting video , you should do a video on bursaspor , they won the super lig in 2010 and are now fighting to not be relegated from the third tier , they also have a 45,000 seater stadium which is quite cool as it resembles a crocodile

[@ezraezra2928]

Huge shame for Turkish football. 2023 is the country's centenary year and the UCL Final was held there, but NO single Super Lig teams will even play in UCL group stage!

[@turuncusnorlax4762]

Great research on the topic of Turkish football. I'm quite impressed every thing you said was pretty much on point.

[@andrewwall8450]

I've always thought the Turkish league should be stronger at least on level with Belgium and Netherlands.

[@sameerbernard1167]

9th world overall now after the season endedn

[@Finnishkebab]

Finally this kind of video 5/5 content. Turkish league will never be like Bpl, Bundesliga, La liga or Serie a. Which league and clubs should focused and learn from are Belgium, Dutch and Portuguese leagues, how to grow and scout players and sell them and how make your strategy for many years and just for next season like turkish clubs always do. You can see now that Turkish football is complete garbage, take a look national team and especially uefa club & country ranking. As a Beşiktaş fan i rather watch us asskicked with young talent on the field than ex superstars with big wages and lack of attitude.

[@MenWithVen]

It's not technically the Barclays Premier League (BPL) any more

[@Micfri300]

The way we are going we will become Turkey lol. Our best coach de zerbi is coaching in Ukraine that tells you a lot about our backward mentality

[@shawklan27]

@@Micfri300 yikes

[@quocumqueiecerisstabit3772]

You will reach serie a level soon, i found many similarities between how our league is run and how yours is run

[@gurcuball6193]

@@quocumqueiecerisstabit3772 Turkish and Italian football culture actualy preety similar in overall. Except Italy was way much more succesfull than Turkey in all aspects. But both countries football clubs fan's values are so similar. Being so Conservative about managers, being still stuck in the past, Dont giving chances for young footbalers, Payıng huge amount of money for Players and dont get profit from any of them because they are too old,Refusing to develope club's academies. And of course the main reason: Refusing to play Modern football and still trying to play oldschool football. And of course too many corruption and too many scandals is a strawberry on a piece of cake. I hope both of our Leagues and teams come back stronger than ever. Especialy "AC Milan". The best Team in the European history after Real Madrid.

[@rafaelcabete63]

Thank you for covering this, I've been asking for a while :)

[@TheShruik]

I love that opening picture :D Everyone smiles super nicely and then there is that strict looking Besiktas fan.

[@aidygooner]

The stadiums built or redeveloped in Turkey in recent years are worthy of hosting a European Championship or even a World Cup (together with Greece maybe? Controversial I know) but sadly the country is in too much turmoil and instability to host such events. 😔

[@Mustafa-vh9lq]

As a Turkish citizen, I can claim that most of the story is wrong but debth is correct

[@MichaelSmith-lx2dt]

Only just watched this video funny now that these 3 teams are back at the top of the Turkish league

[@yusufkassim8236]

Hey Alfie, could you do a video on the turbulent recent history of Goztepe in the Super Lig? They’re one of the Super Lig’s most well supported clubs (a bit like a Newcastle United, Sunderland or Strasbourg if you may). In the 2001/02 season, they finished seventh in the top flight, however from 2002 to 2008, they were relegated five times in six seasons, due to their inability to reduce their outstanding debt which resulted in the football club being banned from signing new players during that time. In August of 2007, a business based in Istanbul, vowed to take them back to the top flight making them one of the top five clubs in the country, but they were met with lots of suspicions from the fan base, and then they handed over the ownership to another bloke called Mehmet Sepil in 2014. Anyway, they’re back in the Super Lig as a solid mid table/weaker top half team. Why am I bringing all this up? Because apparently Abramovich is looking to possibly buy the club himself, after being sanctioned from the UK. It’s a crazy crazy story and may you could look into this, not to mention, they are not only a rare example of a club that is considered a neighbourhood club, as well as the fact that they’ve played in 3 different stadiums since 2011, but also in 1969, they became the first Turkish football team to play a semi-final of a European competition.

[@bodoor8172]

Göztepe are nowhere near Newcastle, they could be Sunderland but not Newcastle. Göztepe may be an old club but Bursaspor has more participation history in the Süper Lig than Göztepe.

[@Erenali.98]

This is quite a nice video. Unfortunately our football isn't doing well in terms of quality management. I'm glad that Galatasaray finally has management that just focusses on Galatasaray. I could almost believe that they could significantly decrease our depts in a few years.

[@crosscourttennis1796]

My guy Alfie talking about Cyprus, love you man

[@davidpalin1790]

Another brilliant documentary about the issues that football faces

[@Maj1794]

Ozil being linked to hull city?! 😳

[@Iwanek02]

Great video. I was wondering what's going on in Turkey but was too lazy to get into it.

[@JoDyMa]

4:44 I didn't realise Gino Di Campo was in Turkish Football 👀👀👀🤣🤣🤣

[@a0040pc]

We need an update to this video. This is very tame in comparison to what is happening now

[@michaelay4900]

Day 1: 7 fixtures in recent history that favour the “weaker” team. (Eg: Bayern and Monchengladbach)

[@michaelay4900]

Or any better wording for this, if you get what I mean.

[@toby4784]

Fixtures where the supposed underdog has consistently won?

[@michaelay4900]

@@toby4784 thx, will change accordingly tmr

[@paulocosta637]

This should be the only example needed, for fans to see were they stand on list of importance.

[@ericvance2859]

✌️❤️🥂

[@reddd6916]

Turkish league representation on this channel 👀

[@Drdee1]

Love the "what on earth" videos ...

[@wandilemtambo9962]

7 Greatest Playmakers of all time. (Yes I know you've technically already made this list on The Sportser but I'm assuming you've changed your mind about the certain places of players or not either way I'd like to see it on this channel)

[@gurayyuce1404]

great summary of the situation in Turkey. If a fraction of the Turkish population was aware of what has been explained here, the situation might have been different. One point to add to the whole scheme here is that, in the last 10 years while all football clubs have lost a lot of money with no gains, bet companies as well as agencies have made made huge amount of money in Turkish football market.

[@Abhium24]

Well,I very recently got interested in the turkish league, and I have a feeling I might watch the league but well, I will be keeping these points in my mind for sure.

[@Muradwalis92]

Alfie my man, one of the few positives of Turkish super lig is Atiba Hutchinson - please check him out - the guy is Benjamin button

[@amuginho7535]

Even though I agree, it is actually tragicomic to have Hutchinson, who is at the end of his career, as one of the few positives this league has. Says a lot about Turkish football.

[@dragonheatgaming5005]

As a Leeds fan I'm certainly enjoying gala decline 😂

[@OfficialFingazMC]

F Galatasaray for what they did!

[@gurcuball6193]

Let us See if you survive in Premier League without Bielsa.

[@brothernero6698]

@@gurcuball6193 Bielsayla kume dușeceklerdi sen ne diyorsun orda?

[@gurcuball6193]

@@brothernero6698 Bielsa bir futbol dahisi. Leeds'i kendi elleriyle premier lig'e çıkaran oydu. Leeds ekonomik gücünün yetersizliğinden dolayı küme düşüyor. Senin gibiler bu tür şeyleri anlamaz. 2 mağlubiyet alan teknik direktöre rezil, 2 galibiyet alana imparator der senin gibiler.

[@mikemurphy8996]

How about “the best World Cup managers”, here in Canada we love John Herdman. Also, we are worried a bigger football world power might scoop him away

[@Pulsarnix]

This one is definitely a rough ride, as well as being a new level of crazy

[@waste4245]

The "beIN" company name is so hilariously confusing to us norwegians, as "bein" literally translates to "legs"

[@GamerNintendo25]

What on Earth is going on at Hertha Berlin I beg

[@yankiefrenz1367]

too much money with no plans

[@waterpanda222]

Turkeys #1 export is KZbin barber

[@bruh8285]

Here is something everyone missed in the vid; the kid you see at 13:24 is arda guler who now plays for fenerbahce and is the best wonderkid in the country attracting 40k+ fans each week to the stadium, he holds a 2,5 lira coin because his nickname at his old academy was "the 2 and a half"

[@ericxpenner]

Really good video, Alfie. Nicely done

[@robert2690]

I told you, there’s going to be financial problems. The lack of UCL slots in other leagues compare to premier league where they have 4. You don’t get this problem because basketball is 5v5 and a team can have a total of 15 players. Compare that to this sport where it’s 11v11 and a team can sign 30+ players. The amount of wages between sports is a big gap. To sustain a Basketball league is financially cheaper than funding a soccer league.

[@ibarboo]

Ironically, Turkish basketball has been more succesful than football, whereas, still does not get same interest from the people. Still, Turkish basketball is at slightly better place and earned well deserved popularity in recent years.

[@cdh00000009]

Love these mini documentaries!! Really informative cheers again keep up the good work 👏

[@antoniocristiano4571]

Alfie. Do a video about the rise of Brentford. They will in league 2 in 2010, and had financial issues, then were brought by Benham, and a now on the verge of surviving their first season in the premier league. Also I recommend you to make a what in earth is going on documentary about Birmingham City, there is a lot to talk about in terms of their fall, an owner who has been arrested for money laundering, point deductions, transfer embargos, many relegation battles.

[@ekn_38]

This video will need an update after this season there have been interesting developments

[@awzarn7377]

Altough you are right with 90% of what you have said I don’t necessarily agree with the “aged star players being signed” is a argument thats going to stand too long. With failed major signings like Mesut Ozil for Fenerbahce and Radamel Falcao for Galatasaray, and the most recent pjanic, batshuayi (for loan) and alex teixeira coming on board for besiktas; failing to make an inpact and dismantling a working tactic, the turkish teams have generally dipped to a younger pool of players. One of the main reasons the big 3 have been very unsuccessful this year (apart from Fenerbahce) have been because of rebuilds taking place among these teams, especially galatasaray whom have signed many young players most notably being kerem akturkoglu. Although I beleive the scouting department for these teams can definitely be improved the general mindset has forcibly, and finally, changed. Heck, Fenerbahce (whom has finished 2nd) has the youngest team in super league and have not played any player above the age of 30 (apart from luiz gustavo) in matches consecutively in the second half of the league, with there even being pressure from the fans to play 17 year old wonderkid Arda Guler in every match. Obviously this is just one aspect of millions about turkish football that should be changed but I feel like the unsuccessful nature of the big teams in the last few years has forced a change in the mindset of fans and board directors which is a good thing. Hopefully this is one of many things we as turks improve about our understanding of football and can save ourselves from this terrible state that we call turkish football.

[@Liverpoolfc9karim]

“HITC Seven videos are a distraction, they are affecting us on the field “ -Ali Koc

[@sameerbernard1167]

This one 😂

[@jimbob-robob]

Good stuff Alfie 👍🏻🖖✊

[@mannyxander4456]

Thank you Alfie for this video, as a foreigner living in Istanbul for the past 6yrs, i can say that you really hit home with your points. In all my years here, i have never been to any games due to fears for my safety, i also know many talented young footballers esp from Africa that come here with hope of making it as footballers, but are not given a chance mainly because they are not Turkish. Other countries give chances to youngsters from anywhere and eventually turn them to citizens of the said nation, but it is never done here. I play with some local teams and i can tell you that the level of these foreign youngsters is far higher than those of their Turkish counterpart, yet only about less than 1% of them get to play in the super league. I love this country so much and it pains me to see how much their football has gone down the drain. The people in general are very nice, friendly and welcoming, but once it comes to football, their fans turn to something else.

[@batuhansahin6757]

This might be because of foreigner limit, a system that values Turkish footballers more than it should be

[@OfficialFingazMC]

Just make sure you don't wear a Leeds shirt!

[@gurcuball6193]

Bro not only foreigners. But literaly all youngsters dont have a chance to show themselves. Turkish or foreign. All in the same box.

[@mannyxander4456]

@@batuhansahin6757 I understand that, but i believe if you are good enough, you should be given an opportunity. Look at France national team, most of their players are from African origins, but the system accepted them and look at the rewards they are reaping. I dont think it has ever been done in Turkish football, for a foreigner or let me say a black person representing the national team ( i might be wrong). Look at neighbouring countries to Turkey, like Ukraine, i think Russia too, Poland etc they all accept foreign players white or black and make them citizens, so as to grow football in their countries, i think Turkey should do the same too.

[@a.e.a.]

@@mannyxander4456 First of all I’d like to apologize as a Turk for any xenophobia you might have experienced. I hope your positive experiences outweigh the negatives. But nevertheless I’d like to correct you on your statement regarding foreign and black players for the national team. Please look up Mehmet Aurelio, Kazım Kazım, and Gökçek Vederson. Unfortunately due to FIFA Rules a player has to have live uninterruptly in a country for a lot of years to be nationalized.

[@rashidadams8327]

Great video, thanks Alfie!

[@tee_brickg3435]

Honestly it is a shame, a country that is so passionate about football truly deserves better.

[@aydin61ts]

Turkey has 81 city but only Trabzon City support their local team. There is an type of idiot football support system. I’m live in İstanbul-Sarıyer, my family from Trabzon. I support Trabzonspor and Sarıyer SK. If you look devoloped country on football you see this like a support system but in Turkey there is no.

[@MjolnirMarks]

I don’t value my time, but if I did, this would be worth it.

[@Kraniumbrud]

I dont know shit about football, but these "what on earth" videos are my jam

[@matthewplunk4928]

Great video! That sub-Saharan Africa club-based Best XI better be coming out soon lol

[@S1lky805]

A couple of years ago an earthquake took place on the eastern end Turkey. Consequently Football Association delayed some of the games, one including Fenerbahce. The psychopathic president of Fenerbahce Ali Koc reacted to delay and stated that the real reason for the delay was to de-rail Fenerbahce.

[@BrunoSantos-li7jz]

Besiktas wasn't the last turkish team reaching the round of 16 in the Europa league. Istambul Basaksehir also did it in 2020

[@bhobg]

One of your best!

[@MsiziNkosi22]

I really hope HITC makes a podcast one day. Sevens not Sport lol, it would be great to be able to get this more long form content on the go

[@mouawyaa]

Wow, I don’t know much about Turkish league, thanks for the info

[@Ukmwpgad]

I’ll probably be bias because I’m a Fenerbahçe fan but I’d argue Fenerbahçe is doing well in terms of young players. Yes buying Mesut Özil was a terrible decision but otherwise we have a back line of 22-25 year old with a single player being 30 in the starting 11. Buying old players like Van Persie, Nani, Soldado or Diego is terrible business and didn’t even work short term. The fight with Beinsports was just pointless but I must say there is something important you missed in this video (understandable with all the shit going on in the league). You missed the „Fetö“ wrongdoings. The long standing president of fenerbahce was thrown into prison for match fixing but it turns out it was a move from the Fetö against Fenerbahce.. same goes for the bus shooting you mentioned. If one of the videos you’re planning on making is about Fenerbahce please look into those things. Yes this might seem like a conspiracy theory but there’s actual proof and court decisions that prove the truth fullness. Otherwise a very good and interesting video. It’s hard to see your club being criticised but it’s sadly the truth. Keep up the great work!

[@chuchonchuchon7640]

Turkish football has turned in to a reality show, unfortunate 😕

[@Furkan123Furkan123]

Yes, it is a conspiracy theory. UEFA and CAS’ final verdict reads that Fenerbahçe match fixed in 2010-2011.

[@Ukmwpgad]

@@Furkan123Furkan123 They went off the verdict of the TFF and the turkish courts. Which both officially changed their minds and found that all the evidence was manipulated. For a court to change their verdict I think things must be very clear.

[@Furkan123Furkan123]

@@Ukmwpgad The Turkish court never changed their verdict though. They acquitted Fenerbahçe based on a lack of evidence. Mind you, there was evidence, but it was obtained illegaly and thus didn’t hold up in court. UEFA and CAS don’t have this binding and thus they banned you after 3 years of investigetion. Also worth noting that UEFA/CAS never changed their verdict and more than likely never will.

[@p0l4k28]

Can you do a What on earth is going on at Levante, Sampdoria or Bordeaux? Saint Etienne is also a video candidate due to their rare raise from the total ashes, similar to Leicester (not as clutch tho, lol)

[@saritanunez2443]

The downfall (or partial in some cases) of Belenenses in Portugal, Aberdeen in Scotland, Standard Liege in Belgium, LASK in Austria, Honved in Hungary, Skenderbeu in Albania or Jablonec in Czech as well... On another level, Ostersunds went down, and I dont know how that could have possibly happened. Also, a great idea would be with historic teams like Hanover (and/or Fortuna Dusseldorf), Nancy Lorraine, Málaga and Crotone, which are going down. P.D: Also also, some great stories would be the rise of Wigan and FC Zurich, which were almost relegated last season and are now about to be champions in their leagues (and about to go up to the championship again in Wigan´s case)

[@animevsirl]

Alfie X The Athletic was a crossover I did not expect

[@friendlybane]

CLUB STATEMENT: This video is very good!

[@aidygooner]

Great to see Trabzonspor take the Turkish Super Lig away from Istanbul at long last. Congrats Trabzonspor!! 👏🏆

[@KDFilms99]

Excellent work.

[@funkmasterdub]

Your videos are fantastic mate, just a bloody shame you're a Hull fan!

[@_mde_88_]

Indonesian football is very similar, I am not indonesian but watch the league regularly would be a cool video idea

[@jackal9247]

As an Indonesian, may I know what makes you interested in our football league?

[@_mde_88_]

@@jackal9247 Well I have Indonesian ancestry, I am from South Africa and I am part of a group of people known as Cape Malays. Malay in this context does not refer to malaysia as during colonialism Indonesia and Malaysia did not exist. It refers to the archipelago which both are a part of as South Africa was colonized by the VOC just like Indonesia and many political prisoners were sent to South Africa such as Sheikh Yusuf of Makassar and Tuan Guru. It helps me connect with my roots in a way

[@jackal9247]

@@_mde_88_ Wow, that’s interesting! It is an honor to meet our long-lost brother from the archipelago 👋 Regarding to the football, many Indonesian clubs that seems to have short-sighted mentality. Almost the entire Liga 1 aim to win the league, urging clubs to spend money on new players and coaches. For example, Persib Bandung sign a new foreign player every season. Rich club with millions of fans, yet don’t even have their own training ground. However, there is a glimpse of hope. Bali United is building a new training ground. Persija Jakarta finished 8th this season, but they fielded many young talents from the academy. PSIS Semarang just released a player to Japanese second division. The current national team coach encourages players to go abroad, seeking better leagues in Asia and Europe. We still have a long way to go.

[@_mde_88_]

@@jackal9247 Very proud of my Indonesian Heritage. True I country like Indo deserves to be among Asia's best and at one point they were and I really hope Bali United succeeds maybe then the rest will work to be better. They are in the AFC Cup and hope they do well and who knows maybe they can win. Persib not having a training ground is shocking. The team is showing promise, in the AFF championship they were runners-up so the future looks bright.

[@jackal9247]

@@_mde_88_ this June we will have AFC Asian Cup qualifier. I hope we can qualify to the tournament next year 🇮🇩

[@clides9942]

Germany has produced/produced more turkish star players than turkey did. while in Germany there are only 4mio turks but in Turkey 80mio. This summarizes everything. And it proves that talent isn't enough although enough talent exists in Turkey.

[@SuperSirianRigel]

I didn't know things were going down the tubes the way they are in Turkey. But I should have known. lol. The last news I heard of from the Super Lig is when Van Persie went to Turkey. I've literally heard nothing that I can remember since then. lol.

[@isogurkan]

All about economics, TL lost value against £ since 2010 around 1000% when I left London back in 2010 £1 was around 2.1TL now £1 is 19.5TL, plus the tax advantages for the football players(in Turkey they only pay 15% whereas in the UK they would pay upwards of 45%.) so this has diminished the economic power of the top 3. Also as you say they are managed like shit!. Aziz Yildirim former FB president was the most corrupt sob and he got away with it but ruined FB. I am a Galatasaray fan this season we stopped watching the games as we play so bad I cannot endure it.

[@SportsSpotlight05]

The weird thing is, I haven’t been watching every game but I’ve seen several games and despite injury problems and not playing for a long time beforehand, Özil has not been bad at all. Maybe not worth as much as he’s being paid but still a good player, and it shouldn’t be a surprise that his stamina isn’t great because he’s older now and his stamina was never great.

[@salcuzzy]

Day 13 of asking awesome person Alfie to make a video on Detroit City FC and to look at a club with partial fan ownership, a historic stadium built during the great depression as part of President Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration, and a rowdy group of supporters known as the Northern Guard who are championing the fight for equality for all minority groups.

[@codeovercode167]

The fact that a video that is based on checkable facts is getting banned is beyond belief.