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Turkey national football team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Turkey women's national football team.

Turkey
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)Ay-Yıldızlılar (The Crescent-Stars)[1]
AssociationTürkiye Futbol Federasyonu (TFF)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachMircea Lucescu
CaptainArda Turan
Most capsRüştü Reçber (120)
Top scorerHakan Şükür (51)
FIFA codeTUR[2]
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current38 Steady (20 September 2018)
Highest5 (June 2004)
Lowest67 (October 1993)
First international
 Turkey 2–2 Romania 
(Istanbul, Turkey; 26 October 1923)[3]
Biggest win
 Turkey 7–0 Syria 
(Ankara, Turkey; 20 November 1949)
 Turkey 7–0 South Korea 
(Geneva, Switzerland; 20 June 1954)
 Turkey 7–0 San Marino 
(Istanbul, Turkey; 10 November 1996)
Biggest defeat
 Poland 8–0 Turkey 
(Chorzów, Poland; 24 April 1968)
 Turkey 0–8 England 
(Istanbul, Turkey; 14 November 1984)
 England 8–0 Turkey 
(London, England; 14 October 1987)
World Cup
Appearances2 (first in 1954)
Best resultThird place, 2002
European Championship
Appearances4 (first in 1996)
Best resultSemi-finals, 2008
Confederations Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2003)
Best resultThird place, 2003

The Turkey national football team (Turkish: Türkiye Millî Futbol Takımı) represents Turkey in association football and is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Turkey. They are affiliated with UEFA.

Turkey has qualified three times for the FIFA World Cup, in 1950, 1954, and 2002, although they withdrew from the 1950 event. Turkey has also qualified four times for the UEFA European Championship, in 1996, 2000, 2008, and 2016. They have reached the semi-finals of three major tournaments: the 2002 World Cup, the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, and Euro 2008. After their third-place finish at the 2002 World Cup, which marked a high point in Turkish football history, Turkey occupied a spot in the top ten of the FIFA World Rankings for the first time since the rankings were introduced in December 1992.[4]

History

Further information: History of Turkish football
Turkey against Romania in 1923.

Early years

The Turkey national team played their first ever match against Romania in 1923, drawing 2–2.[5] 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 the 1924 Summer Olympics losing 5–2 to Czechoslovakia.

1950 FIFA World Cup

Although Turkey qualified for the 1950 World Cup, beating Syria 7–0, they were forced to withdraw from the tournament due to financial problems.

1954 FIFA World Cup

Turkey then qualified for the 1954 World Cup after a play-off with Spain. The Turkish team first lost 4–1 to Spain, but a 1–0 win a few days later initiated a replay. On that occasion, they tied 2–2 after, booking their place after a coin toss. Turkey was put in a group along with Hungary and West 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 over South Korea. Turkey lost the play-off to West Germany 7–2. In 1956, however, Turkey did play Hungary in a friendly match in Istanbul, defeating what was one of the strongest teams of the era, 3–1.[6] Lefter Küçükandonyadis, arguably one of the best Turkish players of all-time, scored two goals during the tournament.

Near misses

Despite the introduction of a 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 were retired, and the new generation of players failed to qualify for a major tournament. The 1970s saw Turkey holding back in the World Cup and UEFA European Championship qualifiers, but the team was a point too short to qualify for both UEFA Euro 1972 and Euro 1976. In the 1980s the Turkish team also suffered their worst defeats with 8–0 scorelines against Poland and twice against England. Yet the 1990 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 included Rıdvan Dilmen, Oğuz Çetin, Rıza Çalımbay, Feyyaz Uçar, and European Golden Boot winner Tanju Çolak.

1990–1996

In 1990, German coach Sepp 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 included Bülent Korkmaz, Alpay Özalan, Sergen Yalçın, Rüştü Reçber, and Hakan Şükür) would become the backbone of the national team for many years. Piontek's mission came to an end in 1993, where he was replaced by Fatih Terim, who in turn managed to qualify for Euro 1996. Turkey qualified for its first major tournament since 1954, marking another turning point for Turkish football after having failed to qualify for both Euro 1992 and the 1994 World Cup. The appointment of Piontek was a recommended move by another German coach, Jupp Derwall, who had coached Galatasaray for three seasons. Derwall is regarded as the revolutionizer of Turkish football, since his introduction of modern Western European training techniques and tactical ideas to the Turkish game also heavily influenced the national team.

Euro 1996

Turkey national football team on an Azerbaijan stamp for Euro 1996.

Turkey qualified for Euro 1996, defeating both Switzerland and Sweden 2–1 en route during qualification. Despite a solid performance during the qualifiers, Turkey lost all their matches without scoring a single goal. They did, however, go home with an award: the fair-play award, given to Alpay Özalan.

Euro 2000

Although Turkey failed to qualify for the 1998 World Cup, they qualified for Euro 2000 after winning a play-off against the Republic of Ireland. Turkey lost their first match 2–1 to Italy, they drew their second match against Sweden 0–0, and beat host nation Belgium 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 last eight of the tournament, where they were beaten 2–0 by Portugal, with Arif Erdem missing a critical penalty.

2002 FIFA World Cup

For the 2002 World Cup, Turkey finished second in their qualifying group, despite starting well and being the favourites to top the group. They lost 2–1 to Sweden in the crucial match that would decide the top spot. The Turks were forced to play the play-offs against Austria. They defeated the Austrians 6–0 on aggregate and booked their place at the finals. The Turkish team started the 2002 World Cup with a 2–1 defeat against eventual winners Brazil.[7] Turkey qualified from the group stage with a 3–0 win against China PR after drawing 1–1 with Costa Rica.[8][9]

Turkey then faced home team Japan in the second round, winning 1–0.[10] The Turkish team continued their run, as they beat Senegal 1–0 on a golden 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, and a bronze medal was won after a 3–2 victory over co-hosts South Korea.[11][12][13] Hakan Şükür scored Turkey's first goal in 10.8 seconds, even when the South Koreans kicked off first. It was the fastest goal in World Cup history.[14] Tens of thousands of flag-waving Turkish fans greeted the World Cup squad on their return to Istanbul, where they joined a massive street party at Taksim Square.[15] Rüştü Reçber, Alpay Özalan and Hasan Şaş were all included in the All-Star Team, with Reçber also being voted as the best goalkeeper in the UEFA Team of the Year 2002, while Şenol Güneş was being voted as the best manager.

2003 FIFA Confederations Cup

In the summer of 2003, Turkey reached third place at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. In the group stages, Turkey defeated the United States 2–1 before losing to Cameroon 0–1. In their final group match, Turkey drew 2–2 against Brazil, eliminating them from the tournament. Turkey lost to eventual tournament winners France 3–2 in the semi-final match. Turkey then defeated Colombia 2–1 to win the bronze medal. Tuncay Şanlı scored three goals and made an assist, which won him the Silver Shoe Award and the Silver Ball Award for the second best player of the tournament.

Euro 2004

The Turkish team failed to qualify for Euro 2004 on play-offs due to a loss to Latvia after finishing second in their group. This marked a turning point for the national team as new players were introduced to the national team to create a new generation.

2006 FIFA World Cup

The Turkish team once again narrowly missed out on the World Cup finals after failing to win a play-off, this time on away goals against Switzerland, again after finishing second in their group. There were scenes of violence after the game on and off the pitch where the Turkish team brawled with Swiss players down the tunnel.

Turkey against France on 5 June 2009.

Euro 2008

Turkey qualified for their first international tournament in six years by finishing second behind Greece in Euro 2008 qualifying Group C to reach the Euro 2008 final stages. They were placed alongside Switzerland, Portugal and the Czech Republic in Group 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 – brought qualification for the knockout stages.[16][17][18] Again, Turkey knocked out a host nation – Switzerland – in the group stages for the second time.[19]

The quarter-final against Croatia was goalless after 90 minutes, and Croatia led 1–0 in the final minute of extra time, but another late Turkish goal by forward Semih Şentürk brought the game to penalties. The goal raised some controversy with Croatia fans and Croatia head coach Slaven 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.[20]

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 by Philipp Lahm.[21] Both Russia and Turkey were given bronze medals in the dressing rooms after the semi-finals.

2010 FIFA World Cup

The Turkish team during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualification.

For the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, 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.[22]

Euro 2012

Turkey were drawn in Group A in qualification for Euro 2012, together with Kazakhstan, Austria, Belgium, Germany and Azerbaijan. The Turkish team reached the play-offs after beating Azerbaijan 1–0 but got eliminated 3–0 on aggregate by Croatia. On 14 November 2012, Turkey celebrated their 500th match in a friendly game played against Denmark at the Türk 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 honoured. Turkish pop singer Hadise, who wore a national team jersey with the number 500, performed a small concert.[23][24]

2014 FIFA World Cup

Turkey against Austria on 29 March 2016.

Turkey were drawn in Group D in qualification for the 2014 World Cup, together with Andorra, Estonia, Hungary, the Netherlands and Romania, finishing fourth. Turkey began to lose critical points during qualification and 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.

Euro 2016

Turkey were drawn in Group A in the qualification campaign for the Euro 2016, together with Iceland, Latvia, Kazakhstan, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. The Turkish team qualified for their first major tournament in eight years as the best third-placed team after beating Iceland 1–0, with Selçuk İnan netting a free kick in the 89th minute. After over 18 months 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 were minutes away from reaching 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. Despite elimination, youngster Emre Mor's skillful display and assist during the game revealed a hopeful future for Turkish football.

2018 FIFA World Cup

Turkey were drawn in UEFA Group I for the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign. During the qualifiers, head coach Fatih Terim stood down after an off-field incident,[25] and 72-year-old former Romania manager Mircea Lucescu took over. After eight games, Turkey stood a strong chance of qualifying for the tournament, but a 0–3 defeat against Iceland at home ended automatic qualification hopes. After a 2–2 draw against Finland the team finished fourth in Group I.

Fixtures and results

Main article: Turkey national football team results

2017

2 September 2018 FIFA WC Q Ukraine  2–0  Turkey Kharkiv, Ukraine
20:45
(21:45 (UTC+3)		 Yarmolenko 18', 42' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Stadium: Metalist Stadium
Attendance: 36,796
Referee: David Fernández Borbalán (Spain)
5 September 2018 FIFA WC Q Turkey  1–0  Croatia Eskişehir, Turkey
20:45
(21:45 (UTC+3)		 Tosun 75' Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Stadium: New Eskişehir Stadium
Attendance: 28,600
Referee: Viktor Kassai (Hungary)
6 October 2018 FIFA WC Q Turkey  0–3  Iceland Eskişehir, Turkey
20:45
(21:45 (UTC+3)		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Guðmundsson 32'
Bjarnason 39'
Árnason 50'		 Stadium: New Eskişehir Stadium
Referee: Szymon Marciniak (Poland)
9 October 2018 FIFA WC Q Finland  2–2  Turkey Turku, Finland
20:45
(21:45 (UTC+3)		 Arajuuri 76'
Pohjanpalo 88'		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Tosun 57', 83' Stadium: Veritas Stadion
Referee: Benoît Bastien (France)
9 November Friendly Romania  2–0  Turkey Cluj-Napoca, Romania
21:15 (UTC+3) Grozav 42' 69' Report Stadium: Stadionul Dr. Constantin Rădulescu
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Tiago Martins (Portugal)
13 November Friendly Turkey  2–3  Albania Antalya, Turkey
20:30 (UTC+3)
Report
Stadium: New Antalya Stadium
Referee: Georgi Kabakov (Bulgaria)

2018

23 March Friendly Turkey  1–0  Republic of Ireland Antalya, Turkey
18:30 (UTC+2) Topal 52' Report Stadium: Antalya Arena
Attendance: 32,000
Referee: Slavko Vinčić (Slovenia)
27 March Friendly Montenegro  2–2  Turkey Podgorica, Montenegro
19:10 (UTC+2) Ivanić 45'
Mugoša 87'		 Report Ünder 11'
Yokuşlu 23'		 Stadium: Podgorica City Stadium
Attendance: 6,000
Referee: Milorad Mažić (Serbia)
28 May Friendly Turkey  2–1  Iran Istanbul, Turkey
21:15 (UTC+3) Tosun 6', 50' Report Dejagah 90+2' (pen.) Stadium: Başakşehir Fatih Terim Stadium
Referee: Valentin Kovalenko (Uzbekistan)
1 June Friendly Tunisia  2–2  Turkey Geneva, Switzerland
20:15 (UTC+2) Badri 56'
Sassi 79'		 Report Tosun 54' (pen.)
Söyüncü 90'		 Stadium: Stade de Genève
Attendance: 12,000
Referee: Fedayi San (Switzerland)
5 June Friendly Russia  1–1  Turkey Moscow, Russia
19:00 (UTC+3) Samedov 35' Report Mallı 59' Stadium: VEB Arena
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Ovidiu Hațegan (Romania)
7 September 2018–19 UEFA Nations League Turkey  1–2  Russia Trabzon, Turkey
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)		 Aziz 41' Report Cheryshev 13'
Dzyuba 49'		 Stadium: Şenol Güneş Stadium
Attendance: 29,702
Referee: Artur Soares Dias (Portugal)
10 September 2018–19 UEFA Nations League Sweden  2–3  Turkey Solna, Sweden
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)		 Kiese Thelin 35'
Claesson 49'		 Report Çalhanoğlu 51'
Akbaba 88', 90+2'		 Stadium: Friends Arena
Attendance: 21,832
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano (Spain)
11 October Friendly Turkey  0–0  Bosnia and Herzegovina Rize, Turkey
20:30 (UTC+3) Report Stadium: Yeni Rize Şehir Stadium
Referee: Sergei Karasev (Russia)
14 October 2018–19 UEFA Nations League Russia  2–0  Turkey Sochi, Russia
18:00
(19:00 UTC+3)		 Neustädter 20'
Cheryshev 78'		 Report Stadium: Fisht Olympic Stadium
Referee: Paweł Raczkowski (Poland)
17 November 2018–19 UEFA Nations League Turkey  v  Sweden Eskişehir, Turkey
18:00
(20:00 UTC+3)		 Stadium: New Eskişehir Stadium
20 November Friendly Ukraine  v  Turkey Kiev, Ukraine
Stadium: Olympic National Sports Complex

Personnel

Mircea Lucescu, the current manager of the Turkey national football team.

Current technical staff

Position Name
Head coach Romania Mircea Lucescu
Assistant coach(es) Turkey Kerem Yavaş
Turkey Nedim Yiğit
Fitness coach United States Mike Verhoeven
Goalkeeping coach Turkey Eren Aytekin
Nurese Turkey Sarper Çetinkaya

Players

Current squad

The following players have been called up for the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League matches against Bosnia-Herzegovina and Russia in October 2018.
Caps and goals updated as of 11 October 2018 after the match against Bosnia-Herzegovina.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Sinan Bolat (1988-09-03) 3 September 1988 (age 36) 8 0 Belgium Royal Antwerp
1GK Serkan Kırıntılı (1985-02-15) 15 February 1985 (age 39) 3 0 Turkey Konyaspor
1GK Gökhan Akkan (1995-01-01) 1 January 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Turkey Çaykur Rizespor
2DF Hasan Ali Kaldırım (1989-12-09) 9 December 1989 (age 34) 25 0 Turkey Fenerbahçe
2DF Şener Özbayraklı (1990-01-23) 23 January 1990 (age 34) 18 0 Turkey Fenerbahçe
2DF Çağlar Söyüncü (1996-05-23) 23 May 1996 (age 28) 18 1 England Leicester City
2DF Serdar Aziz (1990-10-23) 23 October 1990 (age 34) 15 1 Turkey Galatasaray
2DF Kaan Ayhan (1994-11-10) 10 November 1994 (age 29) 15 0 Germany Fortuna Düsseldorf
2DF Ömer Bayram (1991-07-27) 27 July 1991 (age 33) 4 0 Turkey Galatasaray
2DF Zeki Çelik (1997-02-17) 17 February 1997 (age 27) 2 0 France Lille
2DF Ertuğrul Ersoy (1997-02-13) 13 February 1997 (age 27) 1 0 Turkey Bursaspor
2DF Mert Müldür (1999-04-03) 3 April 1999 (age 25) 1 0 Austria Rapid Wien
3MF Oğuzhan Özyakup (1992-09-23) 23 September 1992 (age 32) 37 1 Turkey Beşiktaş
3MF Hakan Çalhanoğlu (1994-02-08) 8 February 1994 (age 30) 35 9 Italy Milan
3MF Yunus Mallı (1992-02-24) 24 February 1992 (age 32) 20 1 Germany VfL Wolfsburg
3MF Okay Yokuşlu (1994-03-09) 9 March 1994 (age 30) 16 1 Spain Celta
3MF Cengiz Ünder (1997-07-14) 14 July 1997 (age 27) 13 4 Italy Roma
3MF Yusuf Yazıcı (1997-01-29) 29 January 1997 (age 27) 9 0 Turkey Trabzonspor
3MF Serdar Gürler (1991-09-14) 14 September 1991 (age 33) 6 0 Spain Huesca
3MF Mahmut Tekdemir (1988-01-20) 20 January 1988 (age 36) 6 0 Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir
3MF İrfan Kahveci (1995-06-15) 15 June 1995 (age 29) 4 0 Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir
3MF Berkay Özcan (1998-02-15) 15 February 1998 (age 26) 2 0 Germany VfB Stuttgart
3MF Tarkan Serbest (1994-05-02) 2 May 1994 (age 30) 1 0 Turkey Kasımpaşa
4FW Cenk Tosun (1991-06-07) 7 June 1991 (age 33) 31 11 England Everton
4FW Enes Ünal (1997-05-10) 10 May 1997 (age 27) 10 0 Spain Valladolid

Recent call-ups

The following players have been called up for the team within the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Harun Tekin (1989-06-17) 17 June 1989 (age 35) 2 0 Turkey Fenerbahçe v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
GK Okan Kocuk WD (1995-07-27) 27 July 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Turkey İstanbulspor v.  Tunisia, 1 June 2018
GK Volkan Babacan INJ (1988-08-11) 11 August 1988 (age 36) 35 0 Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir v.  Iran, 28 May 2018
DF Uğur Demirok (1988-07-08) 8 July 1988 (age 36) 3 0 Turkey Trabzonspor v.  Montenegro, 27 March 2018
DF Ömer Toprak PRE (1989-07-21) 21 July 1989 (age 35) 27 2 Germany Borussia Dortmund v.  Republic of Ireland, 23 March 2018
DF Ozan Tufan (1995-03-23) 23 March 1995 (age 29) 39 4 Turkey Fenerbahçe v.  Albania, 13 November 2017
DF İsmail Köybaşı (1989-07-10) 10 July 1989 (age 35) 28 0 Turkey Fenerbahçe v.  Albania, 13 November 2017
DF Atila Turan (1992-04-10) 10 April 1992 (age 32) 2 0 Turkey Kayserispor v.  Albania, 13 November 2017
DF Barış Yardımcı (1992-08-14) 14 August 1992 (age 32) 2 0 Turkey Bursaspor v.  Albania, 13 November 2017
DF Erol Alkan (1994-02-16) 16 February 1994 (age 30) 0 0 Bulgaria Beroe Stara Zagora v.  Albania, 13 November 2017
MF Emre Akbaba INJ (1992-10-04) 4 October 1992 (age 32) 6 3 Turkey Galatasaray v.  Sweden, 10 September 2018
MF Abdülkadir Ömür (1999-06-25) 25 June 1999 (age 25) 0 0 Turkey Trabzonspor v.  Sweden, 10 September 2018
MF İrfan Kahveci (1995-06-15) 15 June 1995 (age 29) 4 0 Turkey İstanbul Başakşehir v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
MF Kenan Karaman (1994-03-05) 5 March 1994 (age 30) 3 0 Germany Fortuna Düsseldorf v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
MF Mehmet Topal (1986-03-03) 3 March 1986 (age 38) 79 2 Turkey Fenerbahçe v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
MF Deniz Türüç (1993-01-29) 29 January 1993 (age 31) 2 0 Turkey Kayserispor v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
MF Alper Potuk (1991-04-08) 8 April 1991 (age 33) 17 1 Turkey Fenerbahçe v.  Montenegro, 27 March 2018
MF Selçuk İnan (1985-02-10) 10 February 1985 (age 39) 61 8 Turkey Galatasaray v.  Republic of Ireland, 23 March 2018
FW Umut Bulut (1983-03-15) 15 March 1983 (age 41) 39 10 Turkey Kayserispor v.  Russia, 5 June 2018
FW Emre Mor PRE (1997-07-24) 24 July 1997 (age 27) 15 1 Spain Celta v.  Republic of Ireland, 23 March 2018
Notes
  • PRE = Preliminary squad.
  • RET = Retired from international football.
  • WD = Withdrew from the squad.
  • INJ = Withdrew due to an injury.

Previous squads

Rivalries

Stamp of Azerbaijan depicting the Euro 1996 match between Croatia and Turkey.

Turkey has developed several notable rivalries, the most well-known being with Croatia,[26] Greece and Armenia.

Turkey and Croatia have played each other 9 times,[27] with their first encounter at Euro 1996; where both countries made their debuts in the opening match, which Croatia won 1–0.[28] A well-remembered match between them was at Euro 2008, which Turkey won on penalties after a 1–1 deadlock even after extra-time. With the win, Turkey reached the semi-finals in only their third appearance overall at the Euro finals.[29] The two teams faced each other in the 2012 Euro qualifying play-offs, with Croatia winning 3–0 in the first-leg in Istanbul, and advancing to the tournament finals following a 0–0 draw in the second-leg.[30][31] The two teams faced each other once again in a European competition at Euro 2016, playing in the opening match of Group D; with Croatia winning 1–0 through a sensational Luka Modrić volley.[32][33] Only three months after the match at the Euros, the two teams played in their opening match in Group I of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying, which finished 1–1.[34] Exactly one year after this, Turkey won the reverse fixture 1–0 at home, which played a key part in both countries' qualifying campaign.[35][36]

Turkey also has a historical rivalry with Greece; having played them a total of 13 times, winning seven, drawing three and losing three games.[37] Both countries have been described as "punching above their weight"; with Greece winning Euro 2004 despite being classified as underdogs prior to the competition, and Turkey advancing to the semi-finals of Euro 2008, where they were knocked out by Germany. Due to tension between the two countries and the dispute over Cyprus, coupled with several incidents occurring during matches between Turkish and Greek clubs, it has been described as one of the biggest international football rivalries.[38]

Turkey also have a strong rivalry with Armenia, notably when the two teams faced each other in the 2010 World Cup qualifying; several problems and political issues arose prior to the match build-up, particularly as Ankara and Yerevan had not established diplomatic relations since Armenia's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, as well as due to the fact that the border between the two countries has been "firmly shut" for more than a decade-and-a-half, as well as historical issues, particularly considering the Armenian genocide of the late 1910s. Prior to the match, Abdullah Gül, the President of Turkey, was invited by Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan to the match. Gül accepted the invitation, and 5,000 Turkish supporters were allowed to travel to the stadium to watch the game, although the build-up to the match was tense. Several protesters lined the route of Gül's motorcade, but the match ended peacefully, with Turkey winning 2–0. Foreign ministers from the two countries signed an agreement; opening up a path towards full diplomatic relations.[39]

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

Main article: Turkey at the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup record FIFA World Cup qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Did not enter – – – – – –
Italy 1934 Withdrew – – – – – –
France 1938 Did not enter – – – – – –
Brazil 1950 Qualified but withdrew 1 1 0 0 7 0
Switzerland 1954 Group stage 9th 3 1 0 2 10 11 3 1 1 1 4 6
Sweden 1958 Withdrew – – – – – –
Chile 1962 Did not qualify 4 2 0 2 4 4
England 1966 6 1 0 5 4 19
Mexico 1970 4 0 0 4 2 13
West Germany 1974 6 2 2 2 5 3
Argentina 1978 6 2 1 3 9 5
Spain 1982 8 0 0 8 1 22
Mexico 1986 8 0 1 7 2 24
Italy 1990 8 3 1 4 12 10
United States 1994 10 3 1 6 11 19
France 1998 8 4 2 2 21 9
South Korea Japan 2002 Third Place 3rd 7 4 1 2 10 6 12 8 3 1 24 8
Germany 2006 Did not qualify 14 7 5 2 27 13
South Africa 2010 10 4 3 3 13 10
Brazil 2014 10 5 1 4 16 9
Russia 2018 10 4 3 3 14 13
Qatar 2022 To be determined
Canada Mexico United States 2026
Total Third Place 2/23 10 5 1 4 20 17 128 47 24 57 176 187

UEFA European Championship

Main article: Turkey at the UEFA European Football Championship
UEFA European Championship record UEFA European Championship qualifying record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
France 1960 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 3
Spain 1964 2 0 0 2 0 7
Italy 1968 6 1 2 3 3 8
Belgium 1972 6 2 1 3 5 13
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1976 6 2 2 2 5 10
Italy 1980 6 3 1 2 5 5
France 1984 8 3 1 4 8 16
West Germany 1988 6 0 2 4 2 16
Sweden 1992 6 0 0 6 1 14
England 1996 Group stage 16th 3 0 0 3 0 5 8 4 3 1 16 8
Belgium Netherlands 2000 Quarter-finals 6th 4 1 1 2 3 4 10 5 4 1 16 7
Portugal 2004 Did not qualify 10 6 2 2 19 8
Austria Switzerland 2008 Semi-finals 3rd 5 2 1* 2 8 9 12 7 3 2 25 11
Poland Ukraine 2012 Did not qualify 12 5 3 4 13 14
France 2016 Group stage 17th 3 1 0 2 2 4 10 5 3 2 14 9
Europe 2020 To be determined To be determined
Germany 2024
Total Third Place 4/16 15 4 2* 9 13 22 110 44 27 39 134 149
*Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shoot-out.
Turkey at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris.
Turkey at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.

Summer Olympics

Olympic Games record
Year Result Position GP W D* L GS GA
France 1924 Round 1 13th 1 0 0 1 2 5
Netherlands 1928 Round 1 14th 1 0 0 1 1 7
Nazi Germany 1936 Round 1 15th 1 0 0 1 0 1
United Kingdom 1948 Quarter-finals 6th 2 1 0 1 5 3
Finland 1952 Quarter-finals 8th 2 1 0 1 3 8
Australia 1956 Withdrew
Italy 1960 Round 1 14th 3 0 1 2 3 10
Japan 1964 Did not qualify
Mexico 1968
West Germany 1972
Canada 1976
Soviet Union 1980
United States 1984 Withdrew
South Korea 1988 Did not qualify
Spain 1992
United States 1996
Australia 2000
Greece 2004
China 2008
United Kingdom 2012
Brazil 2016
Total Quarter-finals 6/23 10 2 1 7 14 34

FIFA Confederations Cup

Main article: Turkey at the FIFA Confederations Cup
FIFA Confederations Cup record
Year Round Position GP W D* L GS GA Squad
Saudi Arabia 1992 Did not qualify
Saudi Arabia 1995
Saudi Arabia 1997
Mexico 1999
South Korea Japan 2001
France 2003 Third Place 3rd 5 2 1 2 8 8 Squad
Germany 2005 Did not qualify
South Africa 2009
Brazil 2013
Russia 2017
Total Third Place 1/10 5 2 1 2 8 8 -

Mediterranean Games record

Turkey B Turkey

Football at the Mediterranean Games
Year Rank GP W D L GS GA
Egypt 1951 - 0 0 0 0 0 0
Spain 1955 - 0 0 0 0 0 0
Lebanon 1959 2 2 1 1 0 7 4
Italy 1963 2 5 3 1 1 12 7
Tunisia 1967 4 5 2 1 2 5 7
Turkey 1971 3 4 3 1 0 4 1
Algeria1975 7 4 0 2 2 1 5
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1979 5 3 1 1 1 2 2
Morocco 1983 2 4 2 0 2 4 5
Syria 1987 3 5 3 0 2 6 2
1991 – present See Turkey national under-20 team
Total 8/10 32 15 7 10 41 33

Honours

Turkey national football team on an Azerbaijan stamp for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Third place (1): 2002

3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Third place (1): 2003

3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Semi-finals (1): 2008

Total results by opponent

The following table shows Turkey's all-time international record, correct as of 5 September 2018.

  1. ^ Includes matches against  Czechoslovakia.
  2. ^ Includes matches against  West Germany.
  3. ^ Includes matches against  Soviet Union.
  4. ^ Includes matches against  Yugoslavia.

Player history

Main article: List of Turkey international footballers

Most capped players

Rüştü Reçber is Turkey's most capped player with 120 caps.

Players in bold are still active, at least at club level.[40] As of June 1, 2018.

# Name Career Caps Goals
1 Rüştü Reçber 1994–2012 120 0
2 Hakan Şükür 1992–2007 112 51
3 Bülent Korkmaz 1990–2005 102 3
4 Arda Turan 2006– 100 17
5 Emre Belözoğlu 2000– 95 9
6 Tugay Kerimoğlu 1990–2007 94 2
7 Alpay Özalan 1995–2005 90 4
8 Hamit Altıntop 2004–2014 82 7
9 Tuncay Şanlı 2002–2010 80 22
10 Mehmet Topal 2008– 77 2

Top goalscorers

Hakan Şükür is Turkey's all-time record goalscorer with 51 goals.

Goalscorers with an equal number of goals are ranked in chronological order of reaching the milestone. Bold indicates still active players.[41] As of October 9, 2017.

# Name Career Goals Caps Rate
1 Hakan Şükür 1992–2007
51
112
0.46
2 Burak Yılmaz 2006–
23
52
0.44
3 Tuncay Şanlı 2003–2010
22
80
0.28
4 Lefter Küçükandonyadis 1948–1963
21
46
0.46
5 Metin Oktay 1956–1968
19
36
0.53
Cemil Turan 1969–1979
19
44
0.43
Nihat Kahveci 2000–2011
19
68
0.28
8 Arda Turan 2006–
17
100
0.17
9 Zeki Rıza Sporel 1923–1932
15
16
0.94
10 Ertuğrul Sağlam 1993–1998
11
26
0.42
Arif Erdem 1993–2004
11
60
0.18
Cenk Tosun 2013–
11
29
0.38

Past managers

Main article: List of Turkey national football team managers

Decoration

In 2002, the national team was honored with the Turkish "State Medal of Distinguished Service" for its third place achievement at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. All the team members, coaches and officials were bestowed by a medal.[42]

Notes

References

  1. ^ "Turkey sneak through as best third-placed team". UEFA. 14 October 2015. Retrieved 13 March 2015. {{cite news}}: |archive-date= requires |archive-url= (help); Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  2. ^ Jeffree, Iain (6 August 2015). "FIFA Country Codes". RSSSF. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  3. ^ Since the Republic was not formally declared by the time of the event, the game was played between Romania and TFF. The city also was not consistently known as Istanbul in the English speaking world until 1930
  4. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking - Associations - Turkey - Men's - FIFA.com". FIFA.com. FIFA. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  5. ^ Erdinç, Sivritepe. "Turkey 2–2 Romania". Turkey international football matches. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
  6. ^ "Magical Magyars beating". Retrieved 16 September 2010.
  7. ^ "Brazil beat brave Turks". BBC Sport. 3 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  8. ^ "Parks strike denies Turkey". BBC Sport. 14 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  9. ^ "Turkey reach last 16". BBC Sport. 13 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  10. ^ "Turkey end Japan's dream". BBC Sport. 18 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  11. ^ "Turkey's golden delight". BBC Sport. 22 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  12. ^ "Brazil stride into final". BBC Sport. 26 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  13. ^ "Turkey finish in style". BBC Sport. 29 June 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  14. ^ Fastest Goals in WC History
  15. ^ "Turkey heroes return home". BBC Sport. 1 July 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  16. ^ "Portugal 2–0 Turkey". BBC Sport. 7 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  17. ^ "Switzerland 1–2 Turkey". BBC Sport. 11 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  18. ^ "Turkey 3–2 Czech R & Switzerland 2–0 Portugal". BBC Sport. 15 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  19. ^ "Turkey edge out Czechs in thriller". FIFA.com. FIFA. 15 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  20. ^ "Croatia 1–1 Turkey (1–3 pens)". BBC Sport. 20 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  21. ^ "Germany 3–2 Turkey". BBC Sport. 25 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  22. ^ "Terim Resignation". Guardian Sport. 7 June 2008. Retrieved 20 August 2009.
  23. ^ "Turkey marks 500th match". Hürriyet Daily News. 14 November 2012. Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  24. ^ Er, İsmail (15 November 2012). "Türkiye 1–1 Danimarka". Hürriyet Spor (in Turkish). Retrieved 15 November 2012.
  25. ^ "Terim leaves Turkey role after brawl". goal.com. Goal. 26 July 2017. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
  26. ^ "Croatia and Turkey resume old European rivalry in Paris". AP News. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  27. ^ "Croatia national football team: record v Turkey". www.11v11.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018. {{cite web}}: horizontal tab character in |title= at position 18 (help)
  28. ^ uefa.com (6 October 2003). "UEFA EURO 1996 - History - Turkey-Croatia – UEFA.com". Uefa.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  29. ^ uefa.com (20 June 2008). "UEFA EURO 2008 - History - Croatia-Turkey – UEFA.com". Uefa.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  30. ^ uefa.com (11 November 2011). "UEFA EURO 2012 - History - Turkey-Croatia – UEFA.com". Uefa.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  31. ^ uefa.com (15 November 2011). "UEFA EURO 2012 - History - Croatia-Turkey – UEFA.com". Uefa.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  32. ^ "Turkey 0-1 Croatia". BBC Sport. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  33. ^ "[VIDEO] Modrić golčinom srušio žestoke Turke!". Hrvatska radiotelevizija. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  34. ^ FIFA.com. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - Matches - Croatia-Turkey - FIFA.com". FIFA.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  35. ^ FIFA.com. "2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™ - Matches - Turkey-Croatia - FIFA.com". FIFA.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  36. ^ "[VIDEO] Hrvatska izgubila u Eskisehiru, Turci slavili 1:0". Hrvatska radiotelevizija. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  37. ^ "Turkey national football team: record v Greece". www.11v11.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018. {{cite web}}: horizontal tab character in |title= at position 17 (help)
  38. ^ CNN, By Greg Duke For. "Top 10 international rivalries - CNN.com". edition.cnn.com. Retrieved 2 July 2018. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  39. ^ "Football's Greatest Rivalries: Turkey v Armenia". World Soccer. 1 January 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2018.
  40. ^ "A Milli Takım En Fazla Milli Olan Oyuncularımız TFF". Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  41. ^ "Türkiye Futbol Federasyonu Ana Sayfa TFF". tff.org. Turkish Football Federation. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
  42. ^ "Hata Sayfası". Retrieved 29 October 2016.
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