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Wikipedia

Turkey national football team

The Turkey national football team (Turkish: Türkiye Millî Futbol Takımı; officially recognized as Türkiye by FIFA[5][6]) represents Turkey in men's international football matches. The team is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation (Turkish: Türkiye Futbol Federasyonu), the governing body for football in Turkey, which was founded in 1923 and has been a member of FIFA since 1923 and UEFA since 1962.[7]

Turkey
Nickname(s)Ay-Yıldızlılar
(The Crescent-Stars)[1]
Bizim Çocuklar
(Our Guys)
AssociationTurkish Football Federation (TFF)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachVincenzo Montella
CaptainHakan Çalhanoğlu
Most capsRüştü Reçber (120)
Top scorerHakan Şükür (51)
Home stadiumVarious
FIFA codeTUR[2]
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 37 (21 December 2023)[3]
Highest5 (June 2004)
Lowest67 (October 1993)
First international
 Turkey 2–2 Romania 
(Istanbul, Turkey; 26 October 1923)[a]
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
Appearances6 (first in 1996)
Best resultSemi-finals/Third place (2008)
Olympic Games
Appearances6 (first in 1924)
Best resultQuarter-finals (1948, 1952)
FIFA Confederations Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2003)
Best resultThird place (2003)
Websitetff.org

The team played their first official international game in 1923 and has represented the nation in major competitions since their debut appearance at the 1924 Summer Olympics. They have participated in Summer Olympics a total of six times (1924, 1928, 1936, 1948, 1952 and 1960), and reached the quarter-finals twice, in 1948 and 1952.

The team enjoyed their highest achievements in the 2000s, most notably finishing in third place at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, and reaching the semi-finals at UEFA Euro 2008. They qualified for FIFA World Cup three times (1950,[b] 1954 and 2002) and reached the semi-finals in 2002, winning bronze medals. The team qualified for UEFA European Championships five times. Making their debut at Euro 96, they reached the quarter-finals in Euro 2000 and semi-finals in Euro 2008. In recent years, Turkey qualified to the Euro 2016, Euro 2020 and Euro 2024 championships. Turkey also qualified as a co-host for the Euro 2032 championship.

Since its introduction in 1992, the FIFA World Rankings has ranked the team between 5th and 57th place. Following their success at the 2002 World Cup, Turkey managed to stay in the top 10 in rankings between 2002 and 2004, ranking 5th in June 2004.[10] The team climbed once again up to 10th place in December 2008, following their success at Euro 2008.[11] Turkey achieved their highest victory margin with 7–0 wins over Syria in 1949, South Korea in 1954 and San Marino in 1996,[12] while their biggest losses were 8–0 defeats to Poland in 1968 and England in 1984 and 1987.[13]

As of 2020, the most capped player to play on the national team is Rüştü Reçber with 120 senior international caps between 1994 and 2012, and the most scoring player is Hakan Şükür with 51 goals scored between 1992 and 2007.[14] The longest-serving captain is Turgay Şeren with the captaincy of 35 international encounters from 1950 to 1966.[15]

History edit

Early years edit

 
One of the early formations in 1922.
 
Turkey against Romania in 1923.

The Turkish National Team's first game was against Romania, played on 26 October 1923 at Taksim Stadium in Istanbul, a 2–2 draw.[16] 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 to Czechoslovakia, 5–2. The first two goals in an official game were scored by Bekir Refet.

1950 FIFA World Cup edit

 
Turkey in 1950.

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 edit

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.[17] Lefter Küçükandonyadis, arguably one of the best Turkish strikers of all time, scored two goals during the tournament.

Near misses edit

 
Turkey against Netherlands in 1958.

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.

1990–1997 edit

In 1990, 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, when 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. The appointment of Piontek was a recommended move by another coach, Jupp Derwall, who had coached Galatasaray for three seasons. Derwall is regarded as the revolutionizer of Turkish football since his introduction of training techniques and tactical ideas to the Turkish game also heavily influenced the national team.

Euro 1996 edit

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

Turkey qualified for Euro 1996, defeating both Switzerland and Sweden 2–1 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 edit

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 edit

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

For the 2002 World Cup, Turkey finished second in their qualifying group, despite starting well and being the favorites 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 in the finals. The Turkish team started the 2002 World Cup with a 2–1 defeat against eventual winners Brazil.[18] Turkey qualified from the group stage with a 3–0 win against China PR after drawing 1–1 with Costa Rica.[19][20]

Turkey then faced home team Japan in the second round, winning 1–0.[21] 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.[22][23][24] 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.[25][26] 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.[27] 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 edit

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 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 edit

The Turkish team did not qualify for Euro 2004 after Latvia won the qualification play-offs even after finishing first in their group. This also 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 edit

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.

Euro 2008 edit

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.[28][29][30] Again, Turkey knocked out a host nation – Switzerland – in the group stages for the second time.[31]

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.[32]

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.[33] Both Russia and Turkey were given bronze medals in the dressing rooms after the semi-finals.

 
Turkey against France on 5 June 2009.

2010 FIFA World Cup edit

Turkey was drawn in UEFA Group 5 together with Armenia, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Estonia and Spain. 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.[34]

Euro 2012 edit

 
The Turkish team during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualification.

Turkey was 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 honored. Turkish pop singer Hadise, who wore a national team jersey with the number 500, performed a small concert.[35][36]

2014 FIFA World Cup edit

Turkey was 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 edit

 
Turkey against Austria on 29 March 2016.

Turkey was 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 close 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 edit

Turkey was drawn in UEFA Group I for the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign. together with Croatia, Finland, Iceland, Kosovo and Ukraine. During the qualifiers, head coach Fatih Terim stood down after an off-field incident,[37] 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.

2018–19 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 edit

Turkey was drawn with Russia and Sweden in the 2018–19 UEFA Nations League B and Turkey had a poor performance which led the country to finish bottom. At the first game held at home against 2018 World Cup host and quarter-finalist Russia, Turkey lost 1–2 despite an equalizer by Serdar Aziz. Turkey then put up its best performance in the League, winning 3–2 against Sweden right on Swedish soil. However, Turkey could not capitalize on this opportunity and lost 0–2 to Russia in Sochi before suffering a humiliating 0–1 home loss to Sweden, thus initially sending 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 stage along with the 2018 FIFA World Cup champions France, as well as Iceland, Albania, Moldova, and Andorra. Veteran coach Şenol Güneş revolutionized the team, with many young talents, combining them with experienced players like Burak Yılmaz and Emre Belözoglu. The team restructuring proved to be genius, as Turkey had one of the best campaigns in recent history.

Turkey managed to achieve a 2–0 victory against the group favorites France in Konya and later a 1–1 draw at Stade de France. Turkey struggled against the group underdogs Andorra in their first match against them, winning by an 89th-minute goal at the Vodafone Arena in Istanbul. Turkey's only defeat in the group came against Iceland in Reykjavik, losing 2–1. The defeat came after the ill-treatment of the Turkish group at the Iceland customs, keeping them at the airport for 3 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. In an interview, Turkish Coach Şenol Güneş, said that had come here 40 years ago, nothing had changed about the stadium and the country, except that some Icelandic people had lost the hospitality they had 40 years ago. Turkey entered matchday 9 against Iceland as group leaders with 19 points. Turkey and Iceland were drawn 0–0 at Turk Telekom Arena in Istanbul. Though unable to defeat Iceland and losing the first place to France, a draw was enough to secure Turkey a spot in Euro 2020 finals, ahead of their away match against Andorra.[38]

Turkey had the honor of opening the Euro 2020 Finals but it soon turned out to be a night to forget for the Turkish. Turkey kicked off the European Championship with a 3–0 loss against Italy in Group A at the Olympic Stadium with Ciro Immobile and Lorenzo Insigne on target. 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 from Domenico Berardi flew in off Turkey defender Merih Demiral for an own goal. They went on to lose the next two games from both Switzerland and Wales, losing all three games in a row alongside debutants North Macedonia.

2020–21 UEFA Nations League and 2022 World Cup edit

After qualifying for Euro 2020, Turkey entered with momentum, even though they had to face old foe Russia, alongside Hungary, and Serbia in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League B.

However, despite all these improvements, Turkey performed poorly in their two opening games in September 2020. The first game against Hungary at home saw Turkey suffer a 0–1 loss by a free kick from Dominik Szoboszlai. Going to Belgrade against Serbia, after repeated Serbian pressure, Turkey had a one-man advantage following Aleksandar Kolarov's red card, however, the Turks failed to capitalize and were held goalless. This damaged their chances of qualifying for League A, as their next opponents in October will be Russia (who had had a strong start) and Hungary. The early poor performance could also represent a detrimental effect for Turkey, as this season's Nations League was used for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification process.

Turkey continued to find its first win in the Nations League. Against Russia in Moscow, a team which Turkey has failed to win on Russian soil since its last win in 1966 and still finding its first win over the Russians since 1975 in general, Turkey once again failed to register a win, though they got an encouraging 1–1 draw thanked for Kenan Karaman's equalizer. Yet, the Turkish side was disappointed with only a 2–2 draw over Serbia at home soil.[39]

November 2020 proved to be very important as Turkey must gain important wins to stay or even better get the possible promotion. Their first game in this month's Nations League was against Russia, but Denis Cheryshev scored an early lead making the Turkish side look hapless. Yet, a red card to Andrei Semyonov proved to be a game changer, and with a one-man advantage, the Turks turned the deficit to finally break down its winless run against Russia with a 3–2 home win.[40][41][42] The Turks then traveled to Hungary with the hope that a win against the Hungarians could mean possible promotion, at least if Russia lost to Serbia. However, while Russia suffered a humiliating 0–5 defeat away in Belgrade, Turkey failed to gain the advantage and instead lost 2–0 to the Hungarians, despite late pressure to find an equalizer in the second half. 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 to 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C.[43][44][45] Such an outcome also meant Turkey would have to fight to get a direct 2022 FIFA World Cup ticket as play-off qualification appeared to be slim with their relegation, in which the 2022 World Cup qualifiers that started in March 2021.

In the 2022 World Cup qualifiers, Turkey was drawn into Group G with the Netherlands, Norway, Montenegro, Latvia, and Gibraltar. After they finished second in their group behind the Netherlands,[46][47][48] they entered 2022 FIFA World Cup UEFA playoffs against Portugal[49][50] but they lost 3–1 in a game that Burak Yılmaz missed a crucial penalty to equalise and thus failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[51] Afterwards, he announced his international retirement.[52][53]

2022–23 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2024 edit

In the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League C, they were drawn in Group 1 with Luxembourg, the Faroe Islanders, Lithuania. They were promoted to 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B after having 13 points in 6 games. Their Nations League success rewarded them a playoff place should they fail to qualify directly.[54] They were later rewarded with an easier draw in Group D with Croatia, Wales, Armenia, and Latvia. They subsequently qualified directly on 16 October 2023 and finished top on 19 November 2023.[55][56][57]

Euro 2032 edit

On 10 October 2023, Turkey was selected to co-host the UEFA Euro 2032 alongside Italy. They earned an automatic qualification as co-host.[58][59]

Kit suppliers edit

Turkey's kit colors were home red kits and white away kits; they were manufactured by Adidas from 1982 to 2002, and they later announced their manufacturer as Nike in 2003. Starting in 2020, they switched their kit colors so that white is home and red is away.

Kit provider Period
  Adidas 1982–2002
  Nike 2003–present

Rivalries edit

Turkey has developed several notable rivalries, the most well-known being with Croatia,[60] and Greece.

Turkey and Croatia have played each other nine times,[61] with their first encounter at Euro 1996; where both countries made their debuts in the opening match, which Croatia won 1–0.[62] 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.[63] 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.[64][65] 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.[66][67] 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.[68] Exactly one year after this, Turkey won the reverse fixture 1–0 at home, which played a key part in both countries' qualifying campaign, although Turkey would not qualify for World Cup while Croatia would go on to qualify and finish second in that edition.[69][70]

Turkey also has a historical rivalry with Greece. They played a total of 14 times. Among these competitions, Turkey won against Greece 8 times, drew 3 times, and lost only 3 times.[71] Both countries have been described as "punching above their weight"; with Greece winning Euro 2004 despite being classified as underdogs before the competition, and Turkey followed-up their World Cup bronze medal in 2002 by 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.[72]

Results and fixtures edit

The following is a list of match results in the last 8 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023 edit

25 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Armenia   1–2   Turkey Yerevan, Armenia
21:00 AMT (UTC+04:00)
  • Kabak   10' (o.g.)
Report
Stadium: Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium
Attendance: 14,125[73]
Referee: José María Sánchez Martínez (Spain)
28 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Turkey   0–2   Croatia Bursa, Turkey
21:45 TRT (UTC+03:00) Report
Stadium: Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Stadium
Attendance: 37,750[74]
Referee: Andreas Ekberg (Sweden)
16 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Latvia   2–3   Turkey Riga, Latvia
21:45 EEST (UTC+03:00)
Report
Stadium: Skonto Stadium
Attendance: 6,287[75]
Referee: Tamás Bognár (Hungary)
19 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Turkey   2–0   Wales Samsun, Turkey
21:45 TRT (UTC+03:00)
Report Stadium: Samsun 19 Mayıs Stadium
Attendance: 28,766[76]
Referee: Fabio Maresca (Italy)
8 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Turkey   1–1   Armenia Eskişehir, Turkey
21:45 TRT (UTC+03:00)
Report
Stadium: New Eskişehir Stadium
Attendance: 31,740[77]
Referee: Daniele Orsato (Italy)
12 September 2023 Friendly Japan   4–2   Turkey Genk, Belgium
14:20 CEST (UTC+02:00)
Report
Stadium: Cegeka Arena
Attendance: 7,202[78]
Referee: Allard Lindhout (Netherlands)
12 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Croatia   0–1   Turkey Osijek, Croatia
20:45 CEST (UTC+02:00) Report
Stadium: Opus Arena
Attendance: 12,812[79]
Referee: Anthony Taylor (England)
15 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Turkey   4–0   Latvia Konya, Turkey
21:45 TRT (UTC+03:00)
Report Stadium: Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium
Attendance: 35,925[80]
Referee: Enea Jorgji (Albania)
18 November 2023 Friendly Germany   2–3   Turkey Berlin, Germany
20:45 CET (UTC+01:00)
Report
Stadium: Olympiastadion
Attendance: 72,592[81]
Referee: Bartosz Frankowski (Poland)
21 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying Wales   1–1   Turkey Cardiff, Wales
19:45 GMT (UTC+00:00) Report
Stadium: Cardiff City Stadium
Attendance: 32,291[82]
Referee: Matej Jug (Slovenia)

2024 edit

March Friendly Turkey   v   TBC
March Friendly Turkey   v   TBC
18 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F Turkey   v TBD Dortmund, Germany
18:00 CEST (UTC+02:00) Report Stadium: Westfalenstadion
22 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F Turkey   v   Portugal Dortmund, Germany
18:00 CEST (UTC+02:00) Report Stadium: Westfalenstadion
26 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group F Czech Republic   v   Turkey Hamburg, Germany
21:00 CEST (UTC+02:00) Report Stadium: Volksparkstadion

Coaching staff edit

As of 21 September 2023[83]
Position Name
Head coach   Vincenzo Montella
Assistant coaches[84]   Daniele Russo
  Selçuk Şahin
Goalkeeping coaches   Ozan Özerkan
  Emrah Karakovan
Fitness coach   Pierpaolo Polino
  Ömür Serdal Altunsöz
  Vural Durmuş
Match analyst   Massimo Crivellaro
  Okan Aydıner
Team manager[c]   Hamit Altıntop

Players edit

Current squad edit

The following players were called up for the friendly match against Germany on 18 November 2023 and UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match Wales on 21 November 2023.[86]

Caps and goals are correct as of 21 November 2023, after the match against   Wales.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Mert Günok (1989-03-01) 1 March 1989 (age 34) 27 0   Beşiktaş
12 1GK Altay Bayındır (1998-04-14) 14 April 1998 (age 25) 8 0   Manchester United
23 1GK Uğurcan Çakır (1996-04-05) 5 April 1996 (age 27) 26 0   Trabzonspor
1GK Ertaç Özbir (1989-10-25) 25 October 1989 (age 34) 0 0   Adana Demirspor

2 2DF Zeki Çelik (1997-02-17) 17 February 1997 (age 26) 42 2   Roma
3 2DF Samet Akaydin (1994-03-13) 13 March 1994 (age 29) 4 0   Panathinaikos
4 2DF Çağlar Söyüncü (1996-05-23) 23 May 1996 (age 27) 55 2   Atlético Madrid
13 2DF Eren Elmalı (2000-07-07) 7 July 2000 (age 23) 10 0   Trabzonspor
14 2DF Abdülkerim Bardakcı (1994-09-07) 7 September 1994 (age 29) 6 1   Galatasaray
15 2DF Ozan Kabak (2000-03-25) 25 March 2000 (age 23) 24 2   1899 Hoffenheim
20 2DF Ferdi Kadıoğlu (1999-10-07) 7 October 1999 (age 24) 15 1   Fenerbahçe
21 2DF Cenk Özkacar (2000-10-06) 6 October 2000 (age 23) 7 0   Valencia
22 2DF Kaan Ayhan (1994-11-10) 10 November 1994 (age 29) 55 5   Galatasaray
2DF Rıdvan Yılmaz (2001-05-21) 21 May 2001 (age 22) 6 0   Rangers

5 3MF Salih Özcan (1998-01-11) 11 January 1998 (age 26) 16 0   Borussia Dortmund
6 3MF Berat Özdemir (1998-05-23) 23 May 1998 (age 25) 3 0   Trabzonspor
10 3MF Abdülkadir Ömür (1999-06-25) 25 June 1999 (age 24) 12 0   Trabzonspor
16 3MF İsmail Yüksek (1999-01-26) 26 January 1999 (age 24) 12 1   Fenerbahçe
18 3MF Berkan Kutlu (1998-01-25) 25 January 1998 (age 25) 8 0   Genoa
3MF Emre Akbaba (1992-10-04) 4 October 1992 (age 31) 6 3   Adana Demirspor

7 4FW Kerem Aktürkoğlu (1998-10-21) 21 October 1998 (age 25) 26 5   Galatasaray
8 4FW İrfan Kahveci (1995-07-15) 15 July 1995 (age 28) 30 2   Fenerbahçe
9 4FW Barış Alper Yılmaz (2000-05-23) 23 May 2000 (age 23) 11 1   Galatasaray
11 4FW Yusuf Yazıcı (1997-01-29) 29 January 1997 (age 26) 41 3   Lille
17 4FW Yusuf Sarı (1998-11-20) 20 November 1998 (age 25) 4 1   Adana Demirspor
19 4FW Kenan Yıldız (2005-05-04) 4 May 2005 (age 18) 3 1   Juventus
4FW Bertuğ Yıldırım (2002-01-12) 12 January 2002 (age 22) 3 2   Rennes

Recent call-ups edit

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

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Doğan Alemdar (2002-10-29) 29 October 2002 (age 21) 2 0   Troyes v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
GK Muhammed Şengezer (1997-01-05) 5 January 1997 (age 27) 0 0   İstanbul Başakşehir v.   Wales, 19 June 2023

DF Merih Demiral (1998-03-05) 5 March 1998 (age 25) 41 2   Al-Ahli v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
DF Rayyan Baniya (1999-02-18) 18 February 1999 (age 24) 0 0   Trabzonspor v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
DF Mert Müldür (1999-04-03) 3 April 1999 (age 24) 19 1   Fenerbahçe v.   Japan, 12 September 2023
DF Onur Bulut (1994-04-16) 16 April 1994 (age 29) 3 0   Beşiktaş v.   Japan, 12 September 2023
DF Kazımcan Karataş (2003-01-16) 16 January 2003 (age 21) 0 0   Galatasaray v.   Japan, 12 September 2023
DF Tayyip Talha Sanuç (1999-12-17) 17 December 1999 (age 24) 1 0   Beşiktaş v.   Croatia, 28 March 2023

MF Hakan ÇalhanoğluINJ (captain) (1994-02-08) 8 February 1994 (age 29) 82 17   Inter Milan v.   Germany, 18 November 2023
MF Orkun Kökçü (2000-12-29) 29 December 2000 (age 23) 24 2   Benfica v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
MF Salih Uçan (1994-01-06) 6 January 1994 (age 30) 2 0   Beşiktaş v.   Japan, 12 September 2023
MF Arda Güler (2005-02-25) 25 February 2005 (age 18) 4 1   Real Madrid v.   Wales, 19 June 2023INJ
MF Mehmet-Can Aydın (2002-02-09) 9 February 2002 (age 21) 0 0   Trabzonspor v.   Croatia, 28 March 2023

FW Cengiz ÜnderINJ (1997-07-14) 14 July 1997 (age 26) 51 16   Fenerbahçe v.   Germany, 18 November 2023
FW Cenk Tosun (1991-06-07) 7 June 1991 (age 32) 50 20   Beşiktaş v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
FW Yunus Akgün (2000-07-07) 7 July 2000 (age 23) 7 2   Leicester City v.   Latvia, 15 October 2023
FW Halil Dervişoğlu (1999-12-08) 8 December 1999 (age 24) 16 6   Galatasaray v.   Japan, 12 September 2023
FW Umut Nayir (1993-06-28) 28 June 1993 (age 30) 4 1   Fenerbahçe v.   Armenia, 8 September 2023INJ
FW Kenan Karaman (1994-03-05) 5 March 1994 (age 29) 31 6   Schalke 04 v.   Wales, 19 June 2023
FW Umut Bozok (1996-09-19) 19 September 1996 (age 27) 1 0   Trabzonspor v.   Latvia, 16 June 2023
FW Enes Ünal (1997-05-10) 10 May 1997 (age 26) 32 3   Getafe v.   Croatia, 28 March 2023INJ

Notes
  • PRE = Preliminary squad/standby.
  • INJ = Not part of the current squad due to injury.
  • SUS = Player is suspended.
  • RET = Retired from international football.

Player records edit

As of 15 October 2023[87]
Players in bold are still active with Turkey.

Most appearances edit

 
Rüştü Reçber is Turkey's most capped player with 120 caps and Turkey's record holder in clean sheets.
Rank Name Caps Goals Career
1 Rüştü Reçber 120 0 1994–2012
2 Hakan Şükür 112 51 1992–2007
3 Bülent Korkmaz 102 2 1990–2005
4 Emre Belözoğlu 101 9 2000–2019
5 Arda Turan 100 17 2006–2017
6 Tugay Kerimoğlu 94 2 1990–2007
7 Alpay Özalan 90 4 1995–2005
8 Hamit Altıntop 82 7 2004–2014
Hakan Çalhanoğlu 82 17 2013–present
10 Mehmet Topal 81 2 2008–2018

Top goalscorers edit

 
Hakan Şükür is Turkey's all-time record goalscorer with 51 goals.
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Hakan Şükür 51 112 0.46 1992–2007
2 Burak Yılmaz 31 77 0.4 2006–2022
3 Tuncay Şanlı 22 80 0.28 2002–2010
4 Lefter Küçükandonyadis 21 46 0.46 1948–1963
5 Cenk Tosun 20 50 0.4 2013–present
6 Metin Oktay 19 36 0.53 1956–1968
Cemil Turan 19 44 0.43 1969–1979
Nihat Kahveci 19 68 0.28 2000–2011
9 Hakan Çalhanoğlu 17 82 0.21 2013–present
Arda Turan 17 100 0.17 2006–2017

Most clean sheets edit

As of 21 November 2023[88]
Players in bold are still available to play in Turkey national team.
Rank Player Clean sheets Caps Ratio Career
1 Rüştü Reçber 58 120 0.48 1994–2012
2 Volkan Demirel 22 63 0.35 2004–2014
3 Turgay Şeren 16 46 0.35 1950–1966
4 Volkan Babacan 15 35 0.43 2014–present
5 Mert Günok 13 27 0.48 2011–present
6 Ömer Çatkıç 10 19 0.53 2000–2005
Engin İpekoğlu 10 32 0.31 1989–1999
8 Uğurcan Çakır 9 26 0.35 2019–present
9 Sabri Dino 7 12 0.58 1969–1975
Sinan Bolat 7 12 0.58 2009–present

Centuriate goals edit

 
Selçuk İnan scored Turkey's 700th overall goal in November 2015

As of 29 September 2020:[89][90]

Rank Date Scorer Opponent Score
1st 26 October 1923 Zeki Rıza Sporel   Romania 2–2
100th 23 June 1954 Mustafa Ertan   West Germany 2–7
200th 14 February 1973 Osman Arpacıoğlu   Algeria 4–0
300th 27 February 1991 Uğur Tütüneker   Yugoslavia 1–1
400th 27 March 1999 Sergen Yalçın   Moldova 2–0
500th 9 October 2004 Fatih Tekke   Kazakhstan 4–0
600th 5 September 2009 Arda Turan   Estonia 4–2
700th 3 September 2015 Selçuk İnan   Latvia 1–1
800th 13 November 2021 Kerem Aktürkoğlu   Gibraltar 6–0

Competitive record edit

FIFA World Cup edit

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Result Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
  1930 Did not enter Did not enter
  1934 Withdrew Withdrew
  1938 Did not enter Did not enter
  1950 Qualified but withdrew 1 1 0 0 7 0
  1954 Group stage 9th 3 1 0 2 10 11 Squad 3 1 1 1 4 6
  1958 Withdrew Withdrew
  1962 Did not qualify 4 2 0 2 4 4
  1966 6 1 0 5 4 19
  1970 4 0 0 4 2 13
  1974 6 2 2 2 5 3
  1978 6 2 1 3 9 5
  1982 8 0 0 8 1 22
  1986 8 0 1 7 2 24
  1990 8 3 1 4 12 10
  1994 10 3 1 6 11 19
  1998 8 4 2 2 21 9
    2002 Third place 3rd 7 4 1 2 10 6 Squad 12 8 3 1 24 8
  2006 Did not qualify 14 7 5 2 27 13
  2010 10 4 3 3 13 10
  2014 10 5 1 4 16 9
  2018 10 4 3 3 14 13
  2022 11 6 3 2 28 19
      2026 To be determined To be determined
      2030
  2034
Total Third place 2/25 10 5 1 4 20 17 139 53 27 59 204 206

UEFA European Championship edit

UEFA European Championship record Qualification record
Year Result Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
  1960 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 3
  1964 2 0 0 2 0 7
  1968 6 1 2 3 3 8
  1972 6 2 1 3 5 13
  1976 6 2 2 2 5 10
  1980 6 3 1 2 5 5
  1984 8 3 1 4 8 16
  1988 6 0 2 4 2 16
  1992 6 0 0 6 1 14
  1996 Group stage 16th 3 0 0 3 0 5 Squad 8 4 3 1 16 8
    2000 Quarter-finals 6th 4 1 1 2 3 4 Squad 10 5 4 1 16 7
  2004 Did not qualify 10 6 2 2 19 8
    2008 Semi-finals 3rd 5 2 1 2 8 9 Squad 12 7 3 2 25 11
    2012 Did not qualify 12 5 3 4 13 14
  2016 Group stage 17th 3 1 0 2 2 4 Squad 10 5 3 2 14 9
  2020 24th 3 0 0 3 1 8 Squad 10 7 2 1 18 3
  2024 Qualified 8 5 2 1 14 7
    2028 To be determined To be determined
    2032 Qualified as co-host Qualified as co-host
  2036 To be determined To be determined
Total Third place 6/20 18 4 2 12 14 30 128 56 31 41 166 159

UEFA Nations League edit

UEFA Nations League record
Season Division Group Pld W D* L GF GA P/R RK
2018–19 B 2 4 1 0 3 4 7   22nd
2020–21 B 3 6 1 3 2 6 8   29th
2022–23 C 1 6 4 1 1 18 5   35th
2024–25 B To be determined
Total 16 6 4 6 28 20 22nd

FIFA Confederations Cup edit

FIFA Confederations Cup record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
  1992 Did not qualify
  1995
  1997
  1999
    2001
  2003 Third place 3rd 5 2 1 2 8 8 Squad
  2005 Did not qualify
  2009
  2013
  2017
Total Third place 1/10 5 2 1 2 8 8

Olympic Games edit

 
Turkey at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris.
 
Turkey at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.

19681988 see Turkey national amateur football team. Football at the Summer Olympics has been an under-23 tournament since 1992.

Olympic Games record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad
  1924 Round 1 13th 1 0 0 1 2 5 Squad
  1928 14th 1 0 0 1 1 7 Squad
  1936 15th 1 0 0 1 0 1 Squad
  1948 Quarter-finals 6th 2 1 0 1 5 3 Squad
  1952 8th 2 1 0 1 3 8 Squad
  1956 Withdrew
  1960 Round 1 14th 3 0 1 2 3 10 Squad
  1964 Did not qualify
  1968
  1972
  1976
  1980
  1984 Withdrew
  1988 Did not qualify
Since 1992 See Turkey national under-23 football team
Total Quarter-finals 6/14 10 2 1 7 14 34

Mediterranean Games edit

Mediterranean Games record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
  1951 Did not participate
  1955
  1959 Runners-up 2nd 2 1 1 0 7 4
  1963 Runners-up 2nd 5 3 1 1 12 7
  1967 Fourth place 4th 5 2 1 2 5 7
  1971 Third place 3rd 4 3 1 0 4 1
 1975 Group stage 7th 4 0 2 2 1 5
  1979 Group stage 5th 3 1 1 1 2 2
  1983 Runners-up 2nd 4 2 0 2 4 5
  1987 Third place 3rd 5 3 0 2 6 2
1991–present See Turkey national under-20 football team
Total Runners-up 8/10 32 15 7 10 41 33

Mediterranean Cup edit

Mediterranean Cup record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
  1949 Runners-up 2nd 3 2 0 1 7 6
1950–53 Fourth place 4th 3 6 1 1 4 4
1953–58 Fourth place 4th 8 2 3 3 7 7
Total Runners-up 3/3 14 10 4 5 18 17

Balkan Cup edit

Balkan Cup record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
1929–31 Did not participate
  1931 Runners-up 2nd 2 1 0 1 3 5
  1932 Did not participate
  1933
  1934–35
  1935
  1936
  1946
1947
1948
1973–76 Semi-finals 4th 2 1 0 1 6 7
1977–80 Group stage 3rd 4 1 1 2 4 8
Total Runners-up 3/12 8 3 1 4 13 20

ECO Cup edit

ECO Cup record
Year Result Position Pld W D L GF GA
  1965 Runners-up 2nd 2 1 1 0 3 1
  1967 Champions 1st 4 2 2 0 8 4
turkey, national, football, team, women, team, turkey, women, national, football, team, turkish, türkiye, millî, futbol, takımı, officially, recognized, türkiye, fifa, represents, turkey, international, football, matches, team, controlled, turkish, football, f. For the women s team see Turkey women s national football team The Turkey national football team Turkish Turkiye Milli Futbol Takimi officially recognized as Turkiye by FIFA 5 6 represents Turkey in men s international football matches The team is controlled by the Turkish Football Federation Turkish Turkiye Futbol Federasyonu the governing body for football in Turkey which was founded in 1923 and has been a member of FIFA since 1923 and UEFA since 1962 7 TurkeyNickname s Ay Yildizlilar The Crescent Stars 1 Bizim Cocuklar Our Guys AssociationTurkish Football Federation TFF ConfederationUEFA Europe Head coachVincenzo MontellaCaptainHakan CalhanogluMost capsRustu Recber 120 Top scorerHakan Sukur 51 Home stadiumVariousFIFA codeTUR 2 First coloursSecond coloursFIFA rankingCurrent37 21 December 2023 3 Highest5 June 2004 Lowest67 October 1993 First international Turkey 2 2 Romania Istanbul Turkey 26 October 1923 a 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 Chorzow Poland 24 April 1968 Turkey 0 8 England Istanbul Turkey 14 November 1984 England 8 0 Turkey London England 14 October 1987 World CupAppearances2 first in 1954 Best resultThird place 2002 European ChampionshipAppearances6 first in 1996 Best resultSemi finals Third place 2008 Olympic GamesAppearances6 first in 1924 Best resultQuarter finals 1948 1952 FIFA Confederations CupAppearances1 first in 2003 Best resultThird place 2003 Medal record FIFA World Cup2002 South Korea Japan TeamUEFA European Championship2008 Austria amp Switzerland s f TeamFIFA Confederations Cup2003 France TeamWebsitetff orgThe team played their first official international game in 1923 and has represented the nation in major competitions since their debut appearance at the 1924 Summer Olympics They have participated in Summer Olympics a total of six times 1924 1928 1936 1948 1952 and 1960 and reached the quarter finals twice in 1948 and 1952 The team enjoyed their highest achievements in the 2000s most notably finishing in third place at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup and reaching the semi finals at UEFA Euro 2008 They qualified for FIFA World Cup three times 1950 b 1954 and 2002 and reached the semi finals in 2002 winning bronze medals The team qualified for UEFA European Championships five times Making their debut at Euro 96 they reached the quarter finals in Euro 2000 and semi finals in Euro 2008 In recent years Turkey qualified to the Euro 2016 Euro 2020 and Euro 2024 championships Turkey also qualified as a co host for the Euro 2032 championship Since its introduction in 1992 the FIFA World Rankings has ranked the team between 5th and 57th place Following their success at the 2002 World Cup Turkey managed to stay in the top 10 in rankings between 2002 and 2004 ranking 5th in June 2004 10 The team climbed once again up to 10th place in December 2008 following their success at Euro 2008 11 Turkey achieved their highest victory margin with 7 0 wins over Syria in 1949 South Korea in 1954 and San Marino in 1996 12 while their biggest losses were 8 0 defeats to Poland in 1968 and England in 1984 and 1987 13 As of 2020 update the most capped player to play on the national team is Rustu Recber with 120 senior international caps between 1994 and 2012 and the most scoring player is Hakan Sukur with 51 goals scored between 1992 and 2007 14 The longest serving captain is Turgay Seren with the captaincy of 35 international encounters from 1950 to 1966 15 Contents 1 History 1 1 Early years 1 2 1950 FIFA World Cup 1 3 1954 FIFA World Cup 1 4 Near misses 1 5 1990 1997 1 6 Euro 1996 1 7 Euro 2000 1 8 2002 FIFA World Cup 1 9 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup 1 10 Euro 2004 1 11 2006 FIFA World Cup 1 12 Euro 2008 1 13 2010 FIFA World Cup 1 14 Euro 2012 1 15 2014 FIFA World Cup 1 16 Euro 2016 1 17 2018 FIFA World Cup 1 18 2018 19 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 1 19 2020 21 UEFA Nations League and 2022 World Cup 1 20 2022 23 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2024 1 21 Euro 2032 2 Kit suppliers 3 Rivalries 4 Results and fixtures 4 1 2023 4 2 2024 5 Coaching staff 6 Players 6 1 Current squad 6 2 Recent call ups 7 Player records 7 1 Most appearances 7 2 Top goalscorers 7 3 Most clean sheets 7 4 Centuriate goals 8 Competitive record 8 1 FIFA World Cup 8 2 UEFA European Championship 8 3 UEFA Nations League 8 4 FIFA Confederations Cup 8 5 Olympic Games 8 6 Mediterranean Games 8 7 Mediterranean Cup 8 8 Balkan Cup 8 9 ECO Cup 9 Head to head record 10 Honours 10 1 Decoration 11 See also 12 References 13 External linksHistory editFurther information History of Turkish football Early years edit nbsp One of the early formations in 1922 nbsp Turkey against Romania in 1923 The Turkish National Team s first game was against Romania played on 26 October 1923 at Taksim Stadium in Istanbul a 2 2 draw 16 Zeki Riza 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 to Czechoslovakia 5 2 The first two goals in an official game were scored by Bekir Refet 1950 FIFA World Cup edit nbsp Turkey in 1950 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 edit 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 17 Lefter Kucukandonyadis arguably one of the best Turkish strikers of all time scored two goals during the tournament Near misses edit nbsp Turkey against Netherlands in 1958 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 Ridvan Dilmen Oguz Cetin Riza Calimbay Feyyaz Ucar and European Golden Boot winner Tanju Colak 1990 1997 edit In 1990 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 Bulent Korkmaz Alpay Ozalan Sergen Yalcin Rustu Recber and Hakan Sukur would become the backbone of the national team for many years Piontek s mission came to an end in 1993 when 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 The appointment of Piontek was a recommended move by another coach Jupp Derwall who had coached Galatasaray for three seasons Derwall is regarded as the revolutionizer of Turkish football since his introduction of training techniques and tactical ideas to the Turkish game also heavily influenced the national team Euro 1996 edit nbsp Turkish national football team on an Azerbaijan stamp for Euro 1996 Turkey qualified for Euro 1996 defeating both Switzerland and Sweden 2 1 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 Ozalan Euro 2000 edit 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 edit nbsp Turkish national football team on an Azerbaijan stamp for the 2002 FIFA World Cup For the 2002 World Cup Turkey finished second in their qualifying group despite starting well and being the favorites 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 in the finals The Turkish team started the 2002 World Cup with a 2 1 defeat against eventual winners Brazil 18 Turkey qualified from the group stage with a 3 0 win against China PR after drawing 1 1 with Costa Rica 19 20 Turkey then faced home team Japan in the second round winning 1 0 21 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 22 23 24 Hakan Sukur 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 25 26 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 27 Rustu Recber Alpay Ozalan and Hasan Sas were all included in the All Star Team with Recber also being voted as the best goalkeeper in the UEFA Team of the Year 2002 while Senol Gunes was being voted as the best manager 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup edit 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 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 edit The Turkish team did not qualify for Euro 2004 after Latvia won the qualification play offs even after finishing first in their group This also 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 edit 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 Euro 2008 edit 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 28 29 30 Again Turkey knocked out a host nation Switzerland in the group stages for the second time 31 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 Senturk brought the game to penalties The goal raised some controversy with Croatia fans and Croatia head coach Slaven Bilic 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 32 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 33 Both Russia and Turkey were given bronze medals in the dressing rooms after the semi finals nbsp Turkey against France on 5 June 2009 2010 FIFA World Cup edit Turkey was drawn in UEFA Group 5 together with Armenia Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Estonia and Spain 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 34 Euro 2012 edit nbsp The Turkish team during the UEFA Euro 2012 qualification Turkey was 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 Turk 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 singer Hadise who wore a national team jersey with the number 500 performed a small concert 35 36 2014 FIFA World Cup edit Turkey was 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 Avci 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 edit nbsp Turkey against Austria on 29 March 2016 Turkey was 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 Selcuk Inan 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 close 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 edit Turkey was drawn in UEFA Group I for the 2018 World Cup qualifying campaign together with Croatia Finland Iceland Kosovo and Ukraine During the qualifiers head coach Fatih Terim stood down after an off field incident 37 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 2018 19 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2020 edit Turkey was drawn with Russia and Sweden in the 2018 19 UEFA Nations League B and Turkey had a poor performance which led the country to finish bottom At the first game held at home against 2018 World Cup host and quarter finalist Russia Turkey lost 1 2 despite an equalizer by Serdar Aziz Turkey then put up its best performance in the League winning 3 2 against Sweden right on Swedish soil However Turkey could not capitalize on this opportunity and lost 0 2 to Russia in Sochi before suffering a humiliating 0 1 home loss to Sweden thus initially sending 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 stage along with the 2018 FIFA World Cup champions France as well as Iceland Albania Moldova and Andorra Veteran coach Senol Gunes revolutionized the team with many young talents combining them with experienced players like Burak Yilmaz and Emre Belozoglu The team restructuring proved to be genius as Turkey had one of the best campaigns in recent history Turkey managed to achieve a 2 0 victory against the group favorites France in Konya and later a 1 1 draw at Stade de France Turkey struggled against the group underdogs Andorra in their first match against them winning by an 89th minute goal at the Vodafone Arena in Istanbul Turkey s only defeat in the group came against Iceland in Reykjavik losing 2 1 The defeat came after the ill treatment of the Turkish group at the Iceland customs keeping them at the airport for 3 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 In an interview Turkish Coach Senol Gunes said that had come here 40 years ago nothing had changed about the stadium and the country except that some Icelandic people had lost the hospitality they had 40 years ago Turkey entered matchday 9 against Iceland as group leaders with 19 points Turkey and Iceland were drawn 0 0 at Turk Telekom Arena in Istanbul Though unable to defeat Iceland and losing the first place to France a draw was enough to secure Turkey a spot in Euro 2020 finals ahead of their away match against Andorra 38 Turkey had the honor of opening the Euro 2020 Finals but it soon turned out to be a night to forget for the Turkish Turkey kicked off the European Championship with a 3 0 loss against Italy in Group A at the Olympic Stadium with Ciro Immobile and Lorenzo Insigne on target 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 from Domenico Berardi flew in off Turkey defender Merih Demiral for an own goal They went on to lose the next two games from both Switzerland and Wales losing all three games in a row alongside debutants North Macedonia 2020 21 UEFA Nations League and 2022 World Cup edit After qualifying for Euro 2020 Turkey entered with momentum even though they had to face old foe Russia alongside Hungary and Serbia in the 2020 21 UEFA Nations League B However despite all these improvements Turkey performed poorly in their two opening games in September 2020 The first game against Hungary at home saw Turkey suffer a 0 1 loss by a free kick from Dominik Szoboszlai Going to Belgrade against Serbia after repeated Serbian pressure Turkey had a one man advantage following Aleksandar Kolarov s red card however the Turks failed to capitalize and were held goalless This damaged their chances of qualifying for League A as their next opponents in October will be Russia who had had a strong start and Hungary The early poor performance could also represent a detrimental effect for Turkey as this season s Nations League was used for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification process Turkey continued to find its first win in the Nations League Against Russia in Moscow a team which Turkey has failed to win on Russian soil since its last win in 1966 and still finding its first win over the Russians since 1975 in general Turkey once again failed to register a win though they got an encouraging 1 1 draw thanked for Kenan Karaman s equalizer Yet the Turkish side was disappointed with only a 2 2 draw over Serbia at home soil 39 November 2020 proved to be very important as Turkey must gain important wins to stay or even better get the possible promotion Their first game in this month s Nations League was against Russia but Denis Cheryshev scored an early lead making the Turkish side look hapless Yet a red card to Andrei Semyonov proved to be a game changer and with a one man advantage the Turks turned the deficit to finally break down its winless run against Russia with a 3 2 home win 40 41 42 The Turks then traveled to Hungary with the hope that a win against the Hungarians could mean possible promotion at least if Russia lost to Serbia However while Russia suffered a humiliating 0 5 defeat away in Belgrade Turkey failed to gain the advantage and instead lost 2 0 to the Hungarians despite late pressure to find an equalizer in the second half 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 to 2022 23 UEFA Nations League C 43 44 45 Such an outcome also meant Turkey would have to fight to get a direct 2022 FIFA World Cup ticket as play off qualification appeared to be slim with their relegation in which the 2022 World Cup qualifiers that started in March 2021 In the 2022 World Cup qualifiers Turkey was drawn into Group G with the Netherlands Norway Montenegro Latvia and Gibraltar After they finished second in their group behind the Netherlands 46 47 48 they entered 2022 FIFA World Cup UEFA playoffs against Portugal 49 50 but they lost 3 1 in a game that Burak Yilmaz missed a crucial penalty to equalise and thus failed to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup 51 Afterwards he announced his international retirement 52 53 2022 23 UEFA Nations League and Euro 2024 edit In the 2022 23 UEFA Nations League C they were drawn in Group 1 with Luxembourg the Faroe Islanders Lithuania They were promoted to 2024 25 UEFA Nations League B after having 13 points in 6 games Their Nations League success rewarded them a playoff place should they fail to qualify directly 54 They were later rewarded with an easier draw in Group D with Croatia Wales Armenia and Latvia They subsequently qualified directly on 16 October 2023 and finished top on 19 November 2023 55 56 57 Euro 2032 edit On 10 October 2023 Turkey was selected to co host the UEFA Euro 2032 alongside Italy They earned an automatic qualification as co host 58 59 Kit suppliers edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Turkey national football team kits Turkey s kit colors were home red kits and white away kits they were manufactured by Adidas from 1982 to 2002 and they later announced their manufacturer as Nike in 2003 Starting in 2020 they switched their kit colors so that white is home and red is away Kit provider Period nbsp Adidas 1982 2002 nbsp Nike 2003 presentRivalries editMain article Greece Turkey football rivalry Turkey has developed several notable rivalries the most well known being with Croatia 60 and Greece Turkey and Croatia have played each other nine times 61 with their first encounter at Euro 1996 where both countries made their debuts in the opening match which Croatia won 1 0 62 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 63 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 64 65 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 66 67 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 68 Exactly one year after this Turkey won the reverse fixture 1 0 at home which played a key part in both countries qualifying campaign although Turkey would not qualify for World Cup while Croatia would go on to qualify and finish second in that edition 69 70 Turkey also has a historical rivalry with Greece They played a total of 14 times Among these competitions Turkey won against Greece 8 times drew 3 times and lost only 3 times 71 Both countries have been described as punching above their weight with Greece winning Euro 2004 despite being classified as underdogs before the competition and Turkey followed up their World Cup bronze medal in 2002 by 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 72 Results and fixtures editMain article Turkey national football team results The following is a list of match results in the last 8 months as well as any future matches that have been scheduled Win Draw Loss Fixture 2023 edit Armenia nbsp v nbsp Turkey 25 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingArmenia nbsp 1 2 nbsp TurkeyYerevan Armenia21 00 AMT UTC 04 00 Kabak nbsp 10 o g Report Kokcu nbsp 35 Akturkoglu nbsp 64 Stadium Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium Attendance 14 125 73 Referee Jose Maria Sanchez Martinez Spain Turkey nbsp v nbsp Croatia 28 March 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingTurkey nbsp 0 2 nbsp CroatiaBursa Turkey21 45 TRT UTC 03 00 Report Kovacic nbsp 20 45 4 Stadium Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Stadium Attendance 37 750 74 Referee Andreas Ekberg Sweden Latvia nbsp v nbsp Turkey 16 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingLatvia nbsp 2 3 nbsp TurkeyRiga Latvia21 45 EEST UTC 03 00 Emsis nbsp 51 Tobers nbsp 90 4 Report Bardakci nbsp 23 Under nbsp 61 Kahveci nbsp 90 5 Stadium Skonto Stadium Attendance 6 287 75 Referee Tamas Bognar Hungary Turkey nbsp v nbsp Wales 19 June 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingTurkey nbsp 2 0 nbsp WalesSamsun Turkey21 45 TRT UTC 03 00 Nayir nbsp 72 Guler nbsp 80 Report Stadium Samsun 19 Mayis Stadium Attendance 28 766 76 Referee Fabio Maresca Italy Turkey nbsp v nbsp Armenia 8 September 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingTurkey nbsp 1 1 nbsp ArmeniaEskisehir Turkey21 45 TRT UTC 03 00 Yildirim nbsp 88 Report Dashyan nbsp 49 Stadium New Eskisehir Stadium Attendance 31 740 77 Referee Daniele Orsato Italy Japan nbsp v nbsp Turkey 12 September 2023 FriendlyJapan nbsp 4 2 nbsp TurkeyGenk Belgium14 20 CEST UTC 02 00 A Ito nbsp 15 Nakamura nbsp 28 36 J Ito nbsp 78 Report Kabak nbsp 44 Yildirim nbsp 61 Stadium Cegeka Arena Attendance 7 202 78 Referee Allard Lindhout Netherlands Croatia nbsp v nbsp Turkey 12 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingCroatia nbsp 0 1 nbsp TurkeyOsijek Croatia20 45 CEST UTC 02 00 Report Yilmaz nbsp 30 Stadium Opus Arena Attendance 12 812 79 Referee Anthony Taylor England Turkey nbsp v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingTurkey nbsp 4 0 nbsp LatviaKonya Turkey21 45 TRT UTC 03 00 Akgun nbsp 58 Tosun nbsp 83 90 2 Akturkoglu nbsp 87 Report Stadium Konya Metropolitan Municipality Stadium Attendance 35 925 80 Referee Enea Jorgji Albania Germany nbsp v nbsp Turkey 18 November 2023 FriendlyGermany nbsp 2 3 nbsp TurkeyBerlin Germany20 45 CET UTC 01 00 Havertz nbsp 5 Fullkrug nbsp 48 Report Kadioglu nbsp 38 Yildiz nbsp 45 2 Sari nbsp 70 pen Stadium Olympiastadion Attendance 72 592 81 Referee Bartosz Frankowski Poland Wales nbsp v nbsp Turkey 21 November 2023 UEFA Euro 2024 qualifyingWales nbsp 1 1 nbsp TurkeyCardiff Wales19 45 GMT UTC 00 00 N Williams nbsp 7 Report Yazici nbsp 70 pen Stadium Cardiff City Stadium Attendance 32 291 82 Referee Matej Jug Slovenia 2024 edit Turkey nbsp v nbsp TBC March FriendlyTurkey nbsp v nbsp TBC Turkey nbsp v nbsp TBC March FriendlyTurkey nbsp v nbsp TBC Turkey nbsp v TBD 18 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group FTurkey nbsp vTBDDortmund Germany18 00 CEST UTC 02 00 Report Stadium Westfalenstadion Turkey nbsp v nbsp Portugal 22 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group FTurkey nbsp v nbsp PortugalDortmund Germany18 00 CEST UTC 02 00 Report Stadium Westfalenstadion Czech Republic nbsp v nbsp Turkey 26 June 2024 UEFA Euro 2024 Group FCzech Republic nbsp v nbsp TurkeyHamburg Germany21 00 CEST UTC 02 00 Report Stadium VolksparkstadionCoaching staff editMain article List of Turkey national football team managers As of 21 September 2023 83 Position NameHead coach nbsp Vincenzo MontellaAssistant coaches 84 nbsp Daniele Russo nbsp Selcuk SahinGoalkeeping coaches nbsp Ozan Ozerkan nbsp Emrah KarakovanFitness coach nbsp Pierpaolo Polino nbsp Omur Serdal Altunsoz nbsp Vural DurmusMatch analyst nbsp Massimo Crivellaro nbsp Okan AydinerTeam manager c nbsp Hamit AltintopPlayers editCurrent squad edit The following players were called up for the friendly match against Germany on 18 November 2023 and UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying match Wales on 21 November 2023 86 Caps and goals are correct as of 21 November 2023 after the match against nbsp Wales No Pos Player Date of birth age Caps Goals Club1 1 GK Mert Gunok 1989 03 01 1 March 1989 age 34 27 0 nbsp Besiktas12 1 GK Altay Bayindir 1998 04 14 14 April 1998 age 25 8 0 nbsp Manchester United23 1 GK Ugurcan Cakir 1996 04 05 5 April 1996 age 27 26 0 nbsp Trabzonspor1 GK Ertac Ozbir 1989 10 25 25 October 1989 age 34 0 0 nbsp Adana Demirspor2 2 DF Zeki Celik 1997 02 17 17 February 1997 age 26 42 2 nbsp Roma3 2 DF Samet Akaydin 1994 03 13 13 March 1994 age 29 4 0 nbsp Panathinaikos4 2 DF Caglar Soyuncu 1996 05 23 23 May 1996 age 27 55 2 nbsp Atletico Madrid13 2 DF Eren Elmali 2000 07 07 7 July 2000 age 23 10 0 nbsp Trabzonspor14 2 DF Abdulkerim Bardakci 1994 09 07 7 September 1994 age 29 6 1 nbsp Galatasaray15 2 DF Ozan Kabak 2000 03 25 25 March 2000 age 23 24 2 nbsp 1899 Hoffenheim20 2 DF Ferdi Kadioglu 1999 10 07 7 October 1999 age 24 15 1 nbsp Fenerbahce21 2 DF Cenk Ozkacar 2000 10 06 6 October 2000 age 23 7 0 nbsp Valencia22 2 DF Kaan Ayhan 1994 11 10 10 November 1994 age 29 55 5 nbsp Galatasaray2 DF Ridvan Yilmaz 2001 05 21 21 May 2001 age 22 6 0 nbsp Rangers5 3 MF Salih Ozcan 1998 01 11 11 January 1998 age 26 16 0 nbsp Borussia Dortmund6 3 MF Berat Ozdemir 1998 05 23 23 May 1998 age 25 3 0 nbsp Trabzonspor10 3 MF Abdulkadir Omur 1999 06 25 25 June 1999 age 24 12 0 nbsp Trabzonspor16 3 MF Ismail Yuksek 1999 01 26 26 January 1999 age 24 12 1 nbsp Fenerbahce18 3 MF Berkan Kutlu 1998 01 25 25 January 1998 age 25 8 0 nbsp Genoa3 MF Emre Akbaba 1992 10 04 4 October 1992 age 31 6 3 nbsp Adana Demirspor7 4 FW Kerem Akturkoglu 1998 10 21 21 October 1998 age 25 26 5 nbsp Galatasaray8 4 FW Irfan Kahveci 1995 07 15 15 July 1995 age 28 30 2 nbsp Fenerbahce9 4 FW Baris Alper Yilmaz 2000 05 23 23 May 2000 age 23 11 1 nbsp Galatasaray11 4 FW Yusuf Yazici 1997 01 29 29 January 1997 age 26 41 3 nbsp Lille17 4 FW Yusuf Sari 1998 11 20 20 November 1998 age 25 4 1 nbsp Adana Demirspor19 4 FW Kenan Yildiz 2005 05 04 4 May 2005 age 18 3 1 nbsp Juventus4 FW Bertug Yildirim 2002 01 12 12 January 2002 age 22 3 2 nbsp RennesRecent call ups edit The following players have been called up for the team within the last twelve months Pos Player Date of birth age Caps Goals Club Latest call upGK Dogan Alemdar 2002 10 29 29 October 2002 age 21 2 0 nbsp Troyes v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023GK Muhammed Sengezer 1997 01 05 5 January 1997 age 27 0 0 nbsp Istanbul Basaksehir v nbsp Wales 19 June 2023DF Merih Demiral 1998 03 05 5 March 1998 age 25 41 2 nbsp Al Ahli v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023DF Rayyan Baniya 1999 02 18 18 February 1999 age 24 0 0 nbsp Trabzonspor v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023DF Mert Muldur 1999 04 03 3 April 1999 age 24 19 1 nbsp Fenerbahce v nbsp Japan 12 September 2023DF Onur Bulut 1994 04 16 16 April 1994 age 29 3 0 nbsp Besiktas v nbsp Japan 12 September 2023DF Kazimcan Karatas 2003 01 16 16 January 2003 age 21 0 0 nbsp Galatasaray v nbsp Japan 12 September 2023DF Tayyip Talha Sanuc 1999 12 17 17 December 1999 age 24 1 0 nbsp Besiktas v nbsp Croatia 28 March 2023MF Hakan CalhanogluINJ captain 1994 02 08 8 February 1994 age 29 82 17 nbsp Inter Milan v nbsp Germany 18 November 2023MF Orkun Kokcu 2000 12 29 29 December 2000 age 23 24 2 nbsp Benfica v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023MF Salih Ucan 1994 01 06 6 January 1994 age 30 2 0 nbsp Besiktas v nbsp Japan 12 September 2023MF Arda Guler 2005 02 25 25 February 2005 age 18 4 1 nbsp Real Madrid v nbsp Wales 19 June 2023INJMF Mehmet Can Aydin 2002 02 09 9 February 2002 age 21 0 0 nbsp Trabzonspor v nbsp Croatia 28 March 2023FW Cengiz UnderINJ 1997 07 14 14 July 1997 age 26 51 16 nbsp Fenerbahce v nbsp Germany 18 November 2023FW Cenk Tosun 1991 06 07 7 June 1991 age 32 50 20 nbsp Besiktas v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023FW Yunus Akgun 2000 07 07 7 July 2000 age 23 7 2 nbsp Leicester City v nbsp Latvia 15 October 2023FW Halil Dervisoglu 1999 12 08 8 December 1999 age 24 16 6 nbsp Galatasaray v nbsp Japan 12 September 2023FW Umut Nayir 1993 06 28 28 June 1993 age 30 4 1 nbsp Fenerbahce v nbsp Armenia 8 September 2023INJFW Kenan Karaman 1994 03 05 5 March 1994 age 29 31 6 nbsp Schalke 04 v nbsp Wales 19 June 2023FW Umut Bozok 1996 09 19 19 September 1996 age 27 1 0 nbsp Trabzonspor v nbsp Latvia 16 June 2023FW Enes Unal 1997 05 10 10 May 1997 age 26 32 3 nbsp Getafe v nbsp Croatia 28 March 2023INJNotesPRE Preliminary squad standby INJ Not part of the current squad due to injury SUS Player is suspended RET Retired from international football Player records editMain article List of Turkey international footballers Main article Turkey national football team records and statistics As of 15 October 2023 87 Players in bold are still active with Turkey Most appearances edit nbsp Rustu Recber is Turkey s most capped player with 120 caps and Turkey s record holder in clean sheets Rank Name Caps Goals Career1 Rustu Recber 120 0 1994 20122 Hakan Sukur 112 51 1992 20073 Bulent Korkmaz 102 2 1990 20054 Emre Belozoglu 101 9 2000 20195 Arda Turan 100 17 2006 20176 Tugay Kerimoglu 94 2 1990 20077 Alpay Ozalan 90 4 1995 20058 Hamit Altintop 82 7 2004 2014Hakan Calhanoglu 82 17 2013 present10 Mehmet Topal 81 2 2008 2018Top goalscorers edit nbsp Hakan Sukur is Turkey s all time record goalscorer with 51 goals Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career1 Hakan Sukur 51 112 0 46 1992 20072 Burak Yilmaz 31 77 0 4 2006 20223 Tuncay Sanli 22 80 0 28 2002 20104 Lefter Kucukandonyadis 21 46 0 46 1948 19635 Cenk Tosun 20 50 0 4 2013 present6 Metin Oktay 19 36 0 53 1956 1968Cemil Turan 19 44 0 43 1969 1979Nihat Kahveci 19 68 0 28 2000 20119 Hakan Calhanoglu 17 82 0 21 2013 presentArda Turan 17 100 0 17 2006 2017Most clean sheets edit As of 21 November 2023 88 Players in bold are still available to play in Turkey national team Rank Player Clean sheets Caps Ratio Career1 Rustu Recber 58 120 0 48 1994 20122 Volkan Demirel 22 63 0 35 2004 20143 Turgay Seren 16 46 0 35 1950 19664 Volkan Babacan 15 35 0 43 2014 present5 Mert Gunok 13 27 0 48 2011 present6 Omer Catkic 10 19 0 53 2000 2005Engin Ipekoglu 10 32 0 31 1989 19998 Ugurcan Cakir 9 26 0 35 2019 present9 Sabri Dino 7 12 0 58 1969 1975Sinan Bolat 7 12 0 58 2009 presentCenturiate goals edit nbsp Selcuk Inan scored Turkey s 700th overall goal in November 2015As of 29 September 2020 89 90 Rank Date Scorer Opponent Score1st 26 October 1923 Zeki Riza Sporel nbsp Romania 2 2100th 23 June 1954 Mustafa Ertan nbsp West Germany 2 7200th 14 February 1973 Osman Arpacioglu nbsp Algeria 4 0300th 27 February 1991 Ugur Tutuneker nbsp Yugoslavia 1 1400th 27 March 1999 Sergen Yalcin nbsp Moldova 2 0500th 9 October 2004 Fatih Tekke nbsp Kazakhstan 4 0600th 5 September 2009 Arda Turan nbsp Estonia 4 2700th 3 September 2015 Selcuk Inan nbsp Latvia 1 1800th 13 November 2021 Kerem Akturkoglu nbsp Gibraltar 6 0Competitive record editFIFA World Cup edit Main article Turkey at the FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup record Qualification recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA nbsp 1930 Did not enter Did not enter nbsp 1934 Withdrew Withdrew nbsp 1938 Did not enter Did not enter nbsp 1950 Qualified but withdrew 1 1 0 0 7 0 nbsp 1954 Group stage 9th 3 1 0 2 10 11 Squad 3 1 1 1 4 6 nbsp 1958 Withdrew Withdrew nbsp 1962 Did not qualify 4 2 0 2 4 4 nbsp 1966 6 1 0 5 4 19 nbsp 1970 4 0 0 4 2 13 nbsp 1974 6 2 2 2 5 3 nbsp 1978 6 2 1 3 9 5 nbsp 1982 8 0 0 8 1 22 nbsp 1986 8 0 1 7 2 24 nbsp 1990 8 3 1 4 12 10 nbsp 1994 10 3 1 6 11 19 nbsp 1998 8 4 2 2 21 9 nbsp nbsp 2002 Third place 3rd 7 4 1 2 10 6 Squad 12 8 3 1 24 8 nbsp 2006 Did not qualify 14 7 5 2 27 13 nbsp 2010 10 4 3 3 13 10 nbsp 2014 10 5 1 4 16 9 nbsp 2018 10 4 3 3 14 13 nbsp 2022 11 6 3 2 28 19 nbsp nbsp nbsp 2026 To be determined To be determined nbsp nbsp nbsp 2030 nbsp 2034Total Third place 2 25 10 5 1 4 20 17 139 53 27 59 204 206Turkey s FIFA World Cup historyYear Round Score Result Date Venue1954 Group 2 nbsp Turkey 1 4 nbsp West Germany Loss 17 June 1954 Bern Switzerland nbsp Turkey 7 0 nbsp South Korea Win 20 June 1954 Geneva Switzerland nbsp Turkey 2 7 nbsp West Germany Loss 23 June 1954 Zurich Switzerland2002 Group C nbsp Turkey 1 2 nbsp Brazil Loss 3 June 2002 Ulsan South Korea nbsp Turkey 1 1 nbsp Costa Rica Draw 9 June 2002 Incheon South Korea nbsp Turkey 3 0 nbsp China Win 13 June 2002 Seoul South KoreaRound of 16 nbsp Turkey 1 0 nbsp Japan Win 18 June 2002 Rifu JapanQuarter final nbsp Turkey 1 0 nbsp Senegal Win 22 June 2002 Osaka JapanSemi final nbsp Turkey 0 1 nbsp Brazil Loss 26 June 2002 Saitama JapanThird place play off nbsp Turkey 3 2 nbsp South Korea Win 29 June 2002 Daegu South KoreaUEFA European Championship edit Main article Turkey at the UEFA European Championship UEFA European Championship record Qualification recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA nbsp 1960 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 3 nbsp 1964 2 0 0 2 0 7 nbsp 1968 6 1 2 3 3 8 nbsp 1972 6 2 1 3 5 13 nbsp 1976 6 2 2 2 5 10 nbsp 1980 6 3 1 2 5 5 nbsp 1984 8 3 1 4 8 16 nbsp 1988 6 0 2 4 2 16 nbsp 1992 6 0 0 6 1 14 nbsp 1996 Group stage 16th 3 0 0 3 0 5 Squad 8 4 3 1 16 8 nbsp nbsp 2000 Quarter finals 6th 4 1 1 2 3 4 Squad 10 5 4 1 16 7 nbsp 2004 Did not qualify 10 6 2 2 19 8 nbsp nbsp 2008 Semi finals 3rd 5 2 1 2 8 9 Squad 12 7 3 2 25 11 nbsp nbsp 2012 Did not qualify 12 5 3 4 13 14 nbsp 2016 Group stage 17th 3 1 0 2 2 4 Squad 10 5 3 2 14 9 nbsp 2020 24th 3 0 0 3 1 8 Squad 10 7 2 1 18 3 nbsp 2024 Qualified 8 5 2 1 14 7 nbsp nbsp 2028 To be determined To be determined nbsp nbsp 2032 Qualified as co host Qualified as co host nbsp 2036 To be determined To be determinedTotal Third place 6 20 18 4 2 12 14 30 128 56 31 41 166 159Turkey s UEFA European Championship historyYear Round Score Result Date Venue1996 Group D nbsp Turkey 0 1 nbsp Croatia Loss 11 June 1996 Nottingham England nbsp Turkey 0 1 nbsp Portugal Loss 14 June 1996 Nottingham England nbsp Turkey 0 3 nbsp Denmark Loss 19 June 1996 Sheffield England2000 Group B nbsp Turkey 1 2 nbsp Italy Loss 11 June 2000 Arnhem Netherlands nbsp Turkey 0 0 nbsp Sweden Draw 15 June 2000 Eindhoven Netherlands nbsp Turkey 2 0 nbsp Belgium Win 19 June 2000 Brussels BelgiumQuarter final nbsp Turkey 0 2 nbsp Portugal Loss 24 June 2000 Amsterdam Netherlands2008 Group A nbsp Turkey 0 2 nbsp Portugal Loss 7 June 2008 Geneva Switzerland nbsp Turkey 2 1 nbsp Switzerland Win 11 June 2008 Basel Switzerland nbsp Turkey 3 2 nbsp Czech Republic Win 15 June 2008 Geneva SwitzerlandQuarter final nbsp Turkey 1 1 pen 3 1 nbsp Croatia Draw 20 June 2008 Wien AustriaSemi final nbsp Turkey 2 3 nbsp Germany Loss 25 June 2008 Basel Switzerland2016 Group D nbsp Turkey 0 1 nbsp Croatia Loss 12 June 2016 Paris France nbsp Turkey 0 3 nbsp Spain Loss 17 June 2016 Nice France nbsp Turkey 2 0 nbsp Czech Republic Win 21 June 2016 Lens France2020 Group A nbsp Turkey 0 3 nbsp Italy Loss 11 June 2021 Rome Italy nbsp Turkey 0 2 nbsp Wales Loss 16 June 2021 Baku Azerbaijan nbsp Turkey 1 3 nbsp Switzerland Loss 20 June 2021 Baku AzerbaijanUEFA Nations League edit UEFA Nations League recordSeason Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P R RK2018 19 B 2 4 1 0 3 4 7 nbsp 22nd2020 21 B 3 6 1 3 2 6 8 nbsp 29th2022 23 C 1 6 4 1 1 18 5 nbsp 35th2024 25 B To be determinedTotal 16 6 4 6 28 20 22ndFIFA Confederations Cup edit Main article Turkey at the FIFA Confederations Cup FIFA Confederations Cup recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad nbsp 1992 Did not qualify nbsp 1995 nbsp 1997 nbsp 1999 nbsp nbsp 2001 nbsp 2003 Third place 3rd 5 2 1 2 8 8 Squad nbsp 2005 Did not qualify nbsp 2009 nbsp 2013 nbsp 2017Total Third place 1 10 5 2 1 2 8 8 Olympic Games edit Main article Football at the Summer Olympics nbsp Turkey at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris nbsp Turkey at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam 1968 1988 see Turkey national amateur football team Football at the Summer Olympics has been an under 23 tournament since 1992 Olympic Games recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA Squad nbsp 1924 Round 1 13th 1 0 0 1 2 5 Squad nbsp 1928 14th 1 0 0 1 1 7 Squad nbsp 1936 15th 1 0 0 1 0 1 Squad nbsp 1948 Quarter finals 6th 2 1 0 1 5 3 Squad nbsp 1952 8th 2 1 0 1 3 8 Squad nbsp 1956 Withdrew nbsp 1960 Round 1 14th 3 0 1 2 3 10 Squad nbsp 1964 Did not qualify nbsp 1968 nbsp 1972 nbsp 1976 nbsp 1980 nbsp 1984 Withdrew nbsp 1988 Did not qualifySince 1992 See Turkey national under 23 football teamTotal Quarter finals 6 14 10 2 1 7 14 34 Mediterranean Games edit Main article Turkey national football B team Mediterranean Games recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA nbsp 1951 Did not participate nbsp 1955 nbsp 1959 Runners up 2nd 2 1 1 0 7 4 nbsp 1963 Runners up 2nd 5 3 1 1 12 7 nbsp 1967 Fourth place 4th 5 2 1 2 5 7 nbsp 1971 Third place 3rd 4 3 1 0 4 1 nbsp 1975 Group stage 7th 4 0 2 2 1 5 nbsp 1979 Group stage 5th 3 1 1 1 2 2 nbsp 1983 Runners up 2nd 4 2 0 2 4 5 nbsp 1987 Third place 3rd 5 3 0 2 6 21991 present See Turkey national under 20 football teamTotal Runners up 8 10 32 15 7 10 41 33Mediterranean Cup edit Main article Mediterranean Cup Mediterranean Cup recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA nbsp 1949 Runners up 2nd 3 2 0 1 7 61950 53 Fourth place 4th 3 6 1 1 4 41953 58 Fourth place 4th 8 2 3 3 7 7Total Runners up 3 3 14 10 4 5 18 17Balkan Cup edit Main article Balkan Cup Balkan Cup recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA1929 31 Did not participate nbsp 1931 Runners up 2nd 2 1 0 1 3 5 nbsp 1932 Did not participate nbsp 1933 nbsp 1934 35 nbsp 1935 nbsp 1936 nbsp 1946194719481973 76 Semi finals 4th 2 1 0 1 6 71977 80 Group stage 3rd 4 1 1 2 4 8Total Runners up 3 12 8 3 1 4 13 20ECO Cup edit Main article ECO Cup ECO Cup recordYear Result Position Pld W D L GF GA nbsp 1965 Runners up 2nd 2 1 1 0 3 1 nbsp 1967 Champions 1st 4 2 2 0 8 4 span, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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