I had never been to Turkey before, but circumstances regarding travel issues for my Russian girlfriend put it firmly on the radar. Visiting a new country is always exciting, especially somewhere as exotic as Turkey, where West meets East. It would be my 52nd country, it wasn’t about to let me down.
My only encounters with Turkish football in any capacity came in the Uk, on the International stage of the Euro 1996 bonanza, where Turkey were making a Finals Group Stage debut at the City Ground, Nottingham. The Turkish fans were buoyant and raucous as you would expect, but the weight of expectation hung heavy on the team, who conceded a late goal by Padova’s Goran Vlaovic, as another debut nation, Croatia won 1,0.
On the fields of club football, my only encounter with Turkish clubs came at the unlikely location of McDiarmid Park, Perth, where Eskisehirspor (a tricky pronounced name, best said with a slice of Sean Connery- Eshki-heri-spor!) came calling from far Eastern Turkey, but bringing with them a very healthy away support, although I suspect many of whom were Uk based fans of other Turkish clubs, with Galatasary flags amongst those in attendance. Ironically St Johnstone played the Istanbul giants last season in arguably the clubs most glamorous ever European fixture, but just weeks after emerging from the worst of the pandemic, I was a little unsure of big crowds still. The away support in Perth that night pulled Galatasary over the line in a very close tie.
The irony of being cautious regarding the virus blew up on me, having tested positive and unable to travel on our original date just the day before travelling, but even more ironic when I knew I caught it a few days earlier going to watch my boys Inverness put on a stirring and brave performance at, yes you guessed it, Perth!
Galatasary of course form one part of the ‘big trio’ from Istanbul, with their main rivals Fenerbache, and the slightly more aloof Besiktas the other sides. That said, just have a look at the end of season table for 21/22 and you will see none of these clubs had an easy ride.
Had our original travel dates stood, pending Turkish TV schedules etc, I might have made the final league game of the the season in Antalya, but that wasn’t going to happen because of Covid, and it may not have happened anyway, as you can’t just pitch up at a stadium and buy a ticket for a domestic game in Turkey these days. A Membership card known as a Passolig is needed to then access buying E tickets for games, but here is the kicker for a groundhopper, the membership is only for one club! If you are going elsewhere you would need to buy another one! For visitors you can get access to a quick hotline for registration, allowing immediate ticket access, but just hope, if your Turkish isn’t great, that the person on the other end can speak English, otherwise it will be hopeless, like a few encounters I had in Antalya.
The Passolig is continuing this season, so if you are headed to Turkey be warned. However, this additional hassle doesn’t extend to European fixtures. Why the Passolig is even in place has two schools of thought; firstly it was seen as a way of curbing violence in the stadium, but a more cynical view sees it as another government monitoring tool. After all, those clubs with perceived anti-governmental ideas can quickly see rival clubs, with no great pedigree pumped full of cash all of a sudden, with stadia filled with fake fans (government employees essentially), where attendance is almost mandatory, creating an illusion of unity. I am sure some of you recall an attempted coup d’etat in Turkey a number of years ago. Its quelling has seen an exponential rise in surveillance, with a football crowd being a potential breeding ground for dissent.
A morsel from the past was an infamous banner at Istanbul airport ‘Welcome to Hell’ as Manchester United arrived to play Galatasary. In many regards that banner reached across an entire Nation’s psyche and set the tone for thoughts of Turkish football for a generation. It was rather taken out of context, as the aim was meant to be more tongue in cheek humour. That said, such words can’t be taken lightly, especially when at that time it came close on the heels of two innocent Leeds fans losing their lives in Istanbul following disturbances ahead of a match with Galatasary. This tragic event should never be forgotten, but while a Turkish atmosphere is fervent, and downright hostile at times, the incidence of violence has diminished, so maybe the Passolig system is making a difference.
I picked up a useful idea that if you tip well you will be well looked after, and if you get a taxi driver you can trust, use them again and again. I ended up embracing both these ideas, and the cab for the holiday inadvertently drove into the airport hotel entrance as early as the first morning for the transfer to our Venetian themed hotel complex on the outskirts of Antalya in Lara. The reception had called a taxi, ‘do you want normal or luxury taxi’?, ‘what prices’, I enquired. ‘Both same price’, and so it was a luxury minicab, a smaller version of stretch limo, with the all important air conditioning that arrived. By the end of our holiday, Ayse, the driver was on first name terms with us, and her help got me access to the Antalyaspor stadium, where my lack of Turkish would have floundered. She also got the crowd photos you see in this article for me to give the whole story some added character, and I thank her greatly for her help.
Antalya is a big city, it has a population of around 2,5 million, and it is the fifth city of Turkey by virtue, but the largest on the Mediterranean. The modern city spreads out along the coast and up into the foothills of the Taurus mountains that spectacularly surround the city in this South Western corner of Anatolia. The road networks with almost motorway-esque access routes to nearby downtown make it relatively easy to get about, as well as the city having an excellent tram system, an alternative and easy to use route to the Antalyaspor stadium for sure.
The real jewel of Antalya is the old town, with its tight walkways helping keep you slightly cooler on a hot day as you can amble all the way from Hadrians Wall to the Old Port, perhaps via the Edinburgh Bar, why not! Hadrians Wall? Yes, the Roman Emperor might merely have visited in the year 130, but he was lauded by the building of a wall. Was this a common theme wherever Hadrian went?! That said, I doubt this wall would have propelled the Scots, as it has big holes in it, easy for exploitation!
This morsel of history, coupled with the heat in Turkey (do take care), has reminded me of something from the Viking days. The largest Viking settlement ever found isn’t far from modern day St Petersburg, and these people were largely traders, rather than sea vessel types. They made it as far south as Constantinople (modern day Istanbul), where if you visit the upper level of the Blue Mosque, you will find Runic (Viking script) graffiti on the balcony. The locals used to call the visitors from the North the ‘Rus’ (meaning red faced), because the sun turned their faces crimson very quickly. St Petersburg is of course modern day Rus-sia, land of the red! The Turkish community of yesteryear almost gave the country its name!
The Old Port and surrounding old town are the main tourist hub and here you will find all the necessary alternatives for food, fashion and photography, with many an old galleon being offered up for a trip along the bay, getting closer to those amazing mountains. If you happen to be out at sea as the sun is setting, you are in for a treat. This area is relatively close to the football stadium, not close enough for a high noon hike in the sun, but certainly a smaller distance to keep a cab you might call down to a minimum.
The badge of Antalyaspor suggests 1966 as the start of the club, and to an extent that is true, but football was alive and well prior to that year, albeit it took the merger of three local clubs to really kick start the Antalya football story. Even then, the merger was a slow burner taking 16 years for them to reach the Super Liga. They never settled completely and bounced around between the first and second tier, winning the Second Division title just twice in 1982 and 1986, but also getting promoted on a number of occasions via a play off more recently. The club has reached the Turkish Cup Final twice in 2000 and 2021, coming unstuck versus two of the Istanbul giants, Galatasary and Besiktas respectively in the final. A 7th place finish last season in what can only be described as one of Turkey’s craziest season’s all bodes well for Antalyaspor building on such a lofty finish.
The Scorpions as they are known, have enjoyed three ventures into Europe, twice in the now defunct Interoto and more recently a foray into the UEFA Cup, where a fine first leg 2,0 win over Werder Bremen turned into a nightmare mauling, losing 6,0 in North Germany. I guess in old money a Cup Final loss in 2021 to Besiktas might have brought another European expedition, but now you must win the Cup.
Everywhere you go, construction is big in Turkey. Even just viewing this one corner of such vast land, I could see it for myself. New football stadia are very commonplace too. It creates a feel good factor, a suggestion the authorities are winning, but whether this is true remains uncertain, it could all be just smoke and mirrors. That said, Antalyaspor had a burning need for a new stadium as the previous Antalya Ataturk stadium was in a desperate state of disrepair by 2009 and prior to the 2015 opening of this considerably bigger Antalya Stadium at 33,032 capacity, they even had to debunk the Akdeniz University stadium outside the city, and that only holds 7,083. Those were fractious days for the club.
However, while patience isn’t a virtue held in highest esteem in football, if it finally renders you a stadium to be proud of, it is worthwhile. Getting a flavour of the stadium came courtesy of my taxi driver. The coastal facing main staircase from the Metro to the stadium sees an enormous statue of a Scorpion (although oddly the club badge has an altogether more endearing image of a lighthouse. I never saw one on my travels around Antalya though!). It immediately reminded me of the approach to the Zenit Arena in St Petersburg, albeit this stadium is fully bedecked in red and white, the club colours.
Gaining access needed a little Turkish persuasion and a little chat, but we were in. On the walk up the central seating area, the chap guiding us used Google translate to say that the pitch was being relaid so no photos! I had a cunning plan, having rolled up a few 50 Liga notes for a touristic charm plea! After a few minutes of just soaking in the place, my wish was granted, and I did my best to limit the grass exposure for publication!! My goodness, when this stadium is full it will be absolutely bouncing. Two standard tier of seats on either side give way to three shorter groupings of seats behind each goal creating a caldron effect something you will see more often in South America or Mexico stadia. It might be 7 years old but it still feels shiney and new. I was grateful for the chance to stand there, but I so want to go back and experience a Turkish game, and when that chance comes, it would have to be here as Antalyaspor’s red and white appeals to the Ancona fan in me, as well as having developed a soft spot for the city following Tania and I’s wonderful time here. That wish to follow them will doubtlessly convert into keeping an eye out for the fortunes of the Scorpions from now one. It feels like a club on the up, with a first major honour potentially just around the corner. My clubs rarely ever win anything, so come on Antalyaspor!
There is a club shop as well as bars and shops in the ground level area on the main side of the ground. I also spotted an Antalyaspor shop in the centre too. Both are open regular working hours, with merchandise at jolly reasonable prices. On match day the array of catering in the vicinity won’t be an issue, as well as inside the ground judging from kiosks I saw. Just have the word Passolig in your mind before heading out for a Turkish game, because without it, you can’t see a game, and you want to avoid disappointment like I experienced.
Antalya is well served by package holiday direct flights that might allow quicker access than flying via Istanbul. The IC Hotel near the airport would even provide for a quick day or two stay, with taxi access to the city/stadium if you were just here for a game. That is understandable, but you could also bring the family, leave them enjoying the beaches of nearby Lara and whisk yourself into Antalya for a game, and I genuinely believe, no matter who Antalyaspor play, the atmosphere will be electric. I am sold on the charms of Antalya, I hope you might be too!
Football Adventures with James Rendall 