TheTürkiye national football team (Turkish:Türkiye Millî Futbol Takımı), recognized asTürkiye byFIFA andUEFA,[6][7] representsTurkey in men's internationalfootball matches. The team is controlled by theTurkish Football Federation (Turkish:Türkiye Futbol Federasyonu), the governing body forfootball in Turkey, which was founded in 1923 and has been a member ofFIFA since 1923 andUEFA since 1962.[8]
The team played their first official international game in 1923 and has represented the nation in major competitions since their debut appearance at the1924 Summer Olympics. They have participated in the Summer Olympics a total of six times (1924,1928,1936,1948,1952, and1960), and reached the quarter-finals twice, in 1948 and 1952.
One of the early formations in 1922Turkey againstRomania in 1923
The Turkish national team's first game was againstRomania, played on 26 October 1923 atTaksim Stadium inIstanbul, a 2–2 draw.[11]Zeki Rıza Sporel is considered as the first big star of Turkish football as he scored the first two goals against Romania. Turkey played their first ever official match at the1924 Summer Olympics losing toCzechoslovakia, 5–2. The first two goals in an official game were scored byBekir Refet.
Although Turkey qualified for the1950 World Cup, beatingSyria 7–0, they were forced to withdraw from the tournament due to financial problems.
Turkey then qualified for the1954 World Cup after a play-off withSpain. They first lost 4–1 to Spain, but a 1–0 win a few days later initiated a replay (there was no clause for aggregate results in the rules at the time, which would have qualified Spain). On that occasion, they tied 2–2 after, booking their place after a coin toss. Turkey was grouped along withHungary andWest Germany. The Turks, however, never played Hungary due to the tournament format, and a 4–1 defeat by the Germans was followed by Turkey carrying out a 7–0 win overSouth Korea. Turkey lost the play-off game to West Germany 7–2.
Despite the introduction ofa national league, and showings by Turkish clubs in European competition, the 1960s would be a barren time for the national team. Most players from the 1954 World Cup squad had already retired, and the new generation of players failed to qualify for a major tournament.
Coşkun Özarı coached Turkey in the 1970s and 1980s
In the 1980s the Turks also suffered one of their worst defeats with 8–0 scorelines twice againstEngland. The Turks had suffered an 8–0 defeat before againstPoland in 1968. But the1990 World Cup qualifiers would mark a turning point for Turkish football, with Turkey only missing out on qualification in the final match. Prominent players in this period includedRıdvan Dilmen,Oğuz Çetin,Rıza Çalımbay,Feyyaz Uçar, andEuropean Golden Boot winnerTanju Çolak.
In 1990, coachSepp Piontek was put in charge of the national team. Under his guidance, a group of new players debuted for the national team. Many of these players (which includedBülent Korkmaz,Alpay Özalan,Sergen Yalçın,Rüştü Reçber, andHakan Şükür) would become the backbone of the national team for many years. Piontek's mission came to an end in 1993, when he was replaced byFatih Terim, who in turn managed to qualify forEuro 1996. Turkey qualified for its first major tournament since 1954. The appointment of Piontek was a recommended move by another coach,Jupp Derwall, who had coachedGalatasaray for three seasons.
Turkey qualified for Euro 1996, defeating bothSwitzerland andSweden 2–1 during qualification. Despite a solid performance during thequalifiers, Turkey lost all their matches without scoring a single goal. They did, however, go home with an award: the fair play award, given to Özalan.
Although Turkey failed to qualify for the1998 World Cup, they qualified forEuro 2000 after winning a play-off against theRepublic of Ireland. Turkey lost their first match 2–1 toItaly, then drew their second match againstSweden 0–0, and beat host nationBelgium 2–0, making it the first time in the history of the UEFA European Championship a host nation had been eliminated in the first round. This victory brought Turkey into the quarter-finals of the tournament, where they were beaten 2–0 byPortugal, withArif Erdem missing a penalty.
Line-ups for the UEFA Euro 2000 game between Belgium and Turkey at theKing Baudouin Stadium, Brussels on 19 June 2000
For the2002 World Cup, Turkey finished second in their qualifying group, losing to Sweden in the match that would decide the number-one spot. The Turks were forced to play the play-offs againstAustria. They defeated the Austrians 6–0 on aggregate and booked their place in the finals. The Turkish team started the 2002 World Cup with a 2–1 defeat againsteventual winnersBrazil.[13] Turkey qualified from the group stage with a 3–0 win againstChina PR after drawing 1–1 withCosta Rica.[14][15] Turkey then faced co-hostsJapan in the second round, winning 1–0.[16] The Turkish team continued their run, as they beatSenegal 1–0 on agolden goal to book their place in the semi-finals, where a 1–0 defeat against eventual tournament winners Brazil forced them to play the third-place match. The Turks won the bronze medal after a 3–2 victory over co-hosts South Korea.[17][18][19] Hakan Şükür scored Turkey's first goal in 10.8 seconds, despite the South Koreans kicking off first. It was the fastest goal in World Cup history.[20][21]Tens of thousands of flag-waving Turkish fans greeted the World Cup squad on their return toIstanbul, where they joined a massive street party atTaksim Square.[22] Rüştü Reçber, Alpay Özalan andHasan Şaş were all included in theAll-Star Team, with Reçber also being voted as the best goalkeeper in theUEFA Team of the Year 2002, whileŞenol Güneş was being voted as the best manager.
In 2003, Turkey finished third at theFIFA Confederations Cup. In the group stage, Turkey defeated theUnited States 2–1 before losing toCameroon 1–0. In their final group match, Turkey drew 2–2 against Brazil, eliminating them from the tournament. Turkey lost to eventual tournament winnersFrance 3–2 in the semi-finals, and then defeatedColombia 2–1 in the third-place match.Tuncay scored three goals and an assist, which won him the Silver Shoe Award and the Silver Ball Award for the second-best player of the tournament.
The Turks failed to qualify forEuro 2004 afterLatvia won the qualification play-offs. They also missed out on the2006 World Cup after failing to win the play-offs, this time on away goals against Switzerland, again after finishing second in their group.
Turkey qualified for their first international tournament in six years by finishing second behindGreece inEuro 2008 qualifying Group C to reachthe tournament. They were placed alongside Switzerland, Portugal, and theCzech Republic inGroup A. In their first match, they played Portugal and were beaten 2–0, but wins over Switzerland (2–1) and the Czech Republic (3–2) – both secured by late goals – meant qualification for the knockout stages.[23][24][25] Turkey knocked out a host nation – Switzerland – in the group stages for the second time.[26]
The quarter-final againstCroatia was goalless after 90 minutes, and Croatia led 1–0 in the final minute of extra time, but another late Turkish goal by forwardSemih Şentürk brought the game to penalties. The goal raised some controversy with Croatia fans and Croatia head coachSlaven Bilić, who claimed that the goal had been scored after extra time had elapsed. This complaint, however, was overruled, and the game went into penalties. Turkey defeated Croatia in penalties, 3–1.[27]
Line-ups for the UEFA Euro 2008 match between Germany and Turkey on 25 June 2008 atSt. Jakob-Park, Basel
Turkey went into the semi-final against Germany with just 14 outfield players available as a result of injuries and suspensions but scored first and were drawing 2–2. But they finished third by default after losing 3–2 with a last-minute goal byPhilipp Lahm.[28]
Turkey was drawn inUEFA Group 5 together withArmenia,Belgium,Bosnia and Herzegovina,Estonia andSpain. Turkey had a mixed qualifying campaign, finishing with 15 points and missing out on a play-off place to Bosnia and Herzegovina with 19 points. Spain topped the group to qualify, winning every game in the process. Coach Fatih Terim announced he would be resigning his post following their failure to qualify.[29]
The Turks during Euro 2012 qualification
Turkey was drawn inGroup A inqualification forEuro 2012, together withKazakhstan, Austria, Belgium, Germany andAzerbaijan. The Turks reached the play-offs after beating Azerbaijan 1–0 but were eliminated 3–0 on aggregate by Croatia.
On 14 November 2012, Turkey celebrated their 500th match in a friendly game played againstDenmark at theTürk Telekom Arena, Istanbul, which ended in a 1–1 draw. Before the match, footballers and coaches, who contributed to the national team's success in the past, were honored. Turkish pop singerHadise, who wore a national team jersey with the number 500, performed a small concert.[30][31]
Turkey was drawn inGroup D inqualification for the2014 World Cup, together withAndorra, Estonia, Hungary, theNetherlands and Romania, finishing fourth.Abdullah Avcı was sacked soon after. Fatih Terim was put in charge for the third time to lead the national team, but a 2–0 defeat against the Netherlands ended hopes of qualification.
Grouped inGroup A in thequalification campaign forEuro 2016, withIceland, Latvia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands, and the Czech Republic, the team qualified for their first major tournament in eight years as the best third-placed team after beating Iceland 1–0, withSelçuk İnan netting a free kick in the 89th minute, along with Kazakhstan beating Latvia 1–0.[32][33][34][35][36] After a year and a half of going unbeaten, a loss to England as a pre-tournament friendly ended the team's winning streak, subsequently leading to back-to-back losses against Croatia and Spain in the tournament. Turkey won their last game against the Czech Republic, 2–0. They nearly reached the last 16 until a late winner for Ireland against Italy meant that the latter instead qualified as one of the best third-placed teams.[37]
Placed with Croatia,Finland, Iceland,Kosovo andUkraine for2018 World Cup qualifying, manager Fatih Terim left after an off-field incident,[38] and 72-year-old former Romania managerMircea Lucescu took over. After eight games, Turkey were in pole position to qualify for the tournament, but a 3–0 defeat to Iceland at home ended automatic qualification hopes. After a 2–2 draw against Finland, the team finished fourth in Group I.
Turkey was drawn withRussia and Sweden in the2018–19 UEFA Nations League B and performed poorly, leading to a bottom finish. In the first game at home against 2018 World Cup host and quarter-finalist Russia, Turkey lost 2–1. Turkey then put up its best performance in the League, winning 3–2 against Sweden on Swedish soil. However, Turkey could not extend their performances and lost to Russia inSochi before suffering a humiliating 1–0 home loss to Sweden, thus initially relegating Turkey to League C. However, UEFA rule changes meant Turkey was allowed to remain in League B.
Turkey was drawn in Group H in the qualifying stages of Euro 2020 along with 2018 World Cup champions France, Iceland,Albania,Moldova, and Andorra. Veteran coachŞenol Güneş revolutionized the team, with many young talents, combining them with experienced players likeBurak Yılmaz andEmre Belözoglu. The team eventually managed to achieve a 2–0 victory against France inKonya and a 1–1 draw at the Stade de France. Turkey then struggled against Andorra in their first match, winning after an 89th-minute goal atVodafone Park in Istanbul. Turkey's only defeat in the group came against Iceland inReykjavík, losing 2–1. The defeat came after the ill-treatment of the Turkish group at the Iceland customs, keeping them at the airport for three hours. This was followed by an Icelandic supporter holding a toilet brush to team captain Emre Belozoglu as a pretend microphone during an interview. The events were heavily criticized by the Turkish and European media. Turkey entered matchday nine as group leaders with 19 points. They and Iceland drew 0–0 atTurk Telekom Arena in Istanbul. After finishing behind France, a draw was enough to secure Turkey a spot inEuro 2020 finals, ahead of their away match against Andorra.[39]
After qualifying for Euro 2020, which would be postponed to June and July 2021 due toCOVID-19, Turkey was drawn against Russia, alongsideHungary, andSerbia in the2020–21 UEFA Nations League B. They performed poorly in their two opening games in September 2020. The first game against Hungary at home saw Turkey suffer a 1–0 defeat courtesy of a free kick fromDominik Szoboszlai. Playing inBelgrade, followingAleksandar Kolarov's red card, the Turks were held goalless against Serbia. This hampered their chances of qualifying for League A, as their next opponents in October would be Russia (a country that Turkey hasn't beaten since 1975) and Hungary.
InMoscow, Turkey drew 1–1 afterKenan Karaman's equalizer. The Turkish side then drew 2–2 against Serbia at home.[40]
Against Russia,Denis Cheryshev scored for the Russians to take an early lead making the Turkish side look hapless. But after Russia's red card reduced the side to ten men, the Turks eventually won 3–2.[41][42][43] The Turks then traveled to Hungary with the hope that a win against the Hungarians could mean possible promotion, if Russia lost to Serbia. While Russia suffered a humiliating 5–0 defeat away in Belgrade, Turkey also lost 2–0 to the Hungarians. That meant Turkey and Serbia were tied on points, but they were relegated after they lost the head-to-head away goals tiebreaker, 2–0.[44][45][46] Such an outcome also meant Turkey would have to fight to get a directQatar 2022 ticket as play-off qualification appeared slim with their relegation, in which the2022 World Cup qualifiers that started in March 2021.
Turkey had the honor of opening the Euro 2021 finals, but withCiro Immobile andLorenzo Insigne scoring, Turkey fell 3–0 to Italy.Roberto Mancini's side had been frustrated by Turkey's defensive approach in the first half but broke through in the 53rd minute when a hard-hit cross fromDomenico Berardi flew in off Turkish defenderMerih Demiral for an own goal. They went on to lose the next two games to bothSwitzerland andWales, losing all three games alongside debutantsNorth Macedonia.
In2022–23 UEFA Nations League C, they were drawn in Group 1 withLuxembourg,the Faroe Islanders,Lithuania. They were promoted toLeague B after recording 13 points in six games. Their Nations League success not only rewarded them a playoff place should they fail to qualify directly,[55] but also an easier draw in Group D with Croatia, Wales,Armenia, andLatvia. They subsequently qualified directly on 16 October 2023 and finished first on 19 November 2023.[56][57][58]
Turkey took part inEuro 2024 Group F together withPortugal,Czech Republic and play-off winnerGeorgia and finished the group in 2nd place. The team reached the quarter-finals by beatingAustria 2–1, then lost to theNetherlands 2–1 and finished the tournament in 5th place.[59]
Turkey is set to take part of theUEFA Euro 2032 having automatically qualified as co-host along with Italy who also automatically qualified as co-host.
Turkey's kit colors were home red kits and white away kits, manufactured byAdidas, from 1983 to 2002.Nike became the manufacturer in 2003. 17 years later, they switched their kit colors to white for home kits and red as the away color.
Turkey has developed several notable rivalries, the most well-known beingCroatia[60] andGreece.
Turkey and Croatia have played each other nine times,[61] with their first encounter atEuro 1996; where both countries made their debuts in the opening match, which Croatia won 1–0.[62] InEuro 2008, Turkey won on penalties after a 1–1 deadlock. The two teams faced each other in the2012 Euro qualifying play-offs, with Croatia winning 3–0 in the first-leg inIstanbul, and advancing to the tournament finals following a 0–0 draw in the second-leg.[63][64] The two teams faced each other once again in a European competition atEuro 2016, playing in the opening match ofGroup D, with Croatia winning 1–0.[65][66] Only three months after the Euros, the two teams played in their opening match inGroup I of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying, which finished 1–1.[67] Exactly one year later, Turkey won the reverse fixture 1–0 at home, which played a key part in both countries' qualifying campaigns, although Turkey would not qualify for the World Cup while Croatia would finish runners-up behind France.[68][69] Turkey and Croatia would again face each other during theUEFA Euro 2024 qualifying campaign, where Turkey managed to shock Croatia with a 1–0 win away as the Turks managed to top the table of a qualification group for the first time in their history, whereas Croatia, despite a 2–0 away win earlier to Turkey, had struggled with a rather poor performance and only managed to qualify at the last hurdle.[70][71]
Turkey also has a historical rivalry with Greece. Playing 13 times, Turkey won eight matches, drew thrice, and lost only three games.[72] Both countries have been described as "punching above their weight", with Greece winningEuro 2004 after being classified as underdogs before the competition, and Turkey advancing to the semi-finals ofEuro 2008, where they were knocked out byGermany. Due to tension between the two countries and the dispute overCyprus, coupled with several incidents occurring during matches between Turkish and Greek clubs, it has been described as one of the biggest international football rivalries.[73]
^Since the Republic was not formally declared by the time of the event, the game was played between Romania andTFF. The city also was not consistently known as Istanbul in the English-speaking world until 1930.
^Although there was nothird-place play-off match, UEFA decided to award the defeated semi-finalists of Euro 2008 with bronze medals.[4]
^The official title held by Altıntop is "Executive Board Member, about National Team, "Hope" U-21 National Teams and Junior National Teams Manager.[86]
^Although there was nothird-place play-off match, UEFA decided to award the defeated semi-finalists of Euro 2008 with bronze medals.[93]
^"Hata Sayfası".tccb.gov.tr.Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved29 October 2016.
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