Antalyaspor

Antalyaspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional multi-sport club based in Antalya, southern Turkey. The club's colours are red and white.

The football side play their home matches at the Antalya Stadium. In Turkey, the club won the First League twice in 1982 and 1986 and finished as runners-up for the Turkish Cup of 2000 and 2021.

Founded in 1966, Antalyaspor initially competed in the lower divisions of the Turkish football league system before their first promotion to the Süper Lig in the 1982–83 season. Their first stint in top-flight football lasted two years before relegation in the 1984–85 season. After brief promotions and relegations, they returned to the Süper Lig in the 1993–94 season, where they remained until the 2001–02 season. During this period, the club participated in the UEFA Intertoto Cup twice and the UEFA Cup once, notably defeating Werder Bremen 2–0 in the first leg before losing 6–0 in the second.^[1]

Antalyaspor returned to the Süper Lig after finishing second in the 2005–06 1.Lig. Despite relegation in the 2006–07 season, the club was promoted again the following season and achieved their best Süper Lig finish in the 2009–10 season, ending in ninth place.^[2] In the 2014–15 season, Antalyaspor finished fifth and won promotion through the playoffs, defeating Adana Demirspor in the semifinals and Samsunspor in the final.^[3]

The 2015–16 season saw the club make headlines with the signing of Samuel Eto’o, who scored 20 goals, leading Antalyaspor to a ninth-place finish. They achieved their biggest Süper Lig victory with a 7–0 win over Trabzonspor.^[4] The 2016–17 season marked their most successful campaign, finishing fifth under Rıza Çalımbay. Eto’o scored 18 goals, placing third in the league’s top scorer rankings. However, they were eliminated from the Turkish Cup in the third round.^[5]

In the 2020–21 season, which featured 21 teams, the red-and-white team appointed Ersun Yanal as head coach midway through the season and finished 16th in the league. Their greatest achievement that season was reaching the final of the Turkish Cup for the second time in the club’s history. However, they were defeated 2–0 by Beşiktaş in the final. On 5 January 2022 Antalyaspor also qualified for the 2021 Turkish Super Cup against Beşiktaş, which was held in Doha, the capital of Qatar. The match ended 1–1 after regular and extra time, but Antalyaspor lost 4–2 on penalties, failing to secure their first-ever Super Cup title.

Under player-coach Nuri Şahin in the 2021–22 season, Antalyaspor achieved their highest points total, 59 points, finishing seventh and setting a league record for an unbeaten streak of 16 matches. They were eliminated in the 2021–22 Turkish Cup quarterfinals by Trabzonspor.^[6] In the 2023–24 season, Sergen Yalçın replaced Şahin as head coach, guiding Antalyaspor to a 10th place finish with 49 points. They exited the 2023–24 Turkish Cup in the Round of 16, losing to Beşiktaş. The team also rebranded to Bitexen Antalyaspor after a sponsorship deal with Bitexen.

The meaning of the club’s colors is explained in the Antalyaspor Club Statute as follows: "The white color represents cleanliness and sincerity. Together with red, it embodies our national colors. It also signifies the love among the people of Antalya."^[7] One of the founding teams of Antalyaspor, İlk Işıkspor, was composed of executives from upper-income levels. The İlk Işıkspor group, which also held significant influence in Antalyaspor’s management, insisted on using green and red colors before the meeting to determine the club’s colors.

The club’s first president, Atilla Konuk, was in favor of red and white colors. Atilla Konuk preferred red and white because they were also the colors of the Turkey national team and believed these colors would create sympathy for the team during away matches, as they matched the colors of the military. However, he needed to find a way to convince the board of directors of his idea.

Konuk noticed that red and white were the most commonly used colors among sports clubs in Antalya at the time. During the meeting, President Konuk argued that instead of adopting the colors of İlk Işıkspor, which appealed to a wealthy elite, the club should choose colors representing all of Antalya. He demonstrated that most clubs in Antalya used red and white, proposing these as the team’s colors. The board of directors supported this proposal, and Antalyaspor’s colors were officially decided as red and white.^[8]

The club’s emblem consists of a red frame and lines on a white circular background. The letter A in the emblem represents the word "Antalya", while the letter S stands for "sport". In the center of the letters A and S is a red-lined depiction of the Yivli Minaret, one of the city’s symbols. The three white bands on the Yivli Minaret represent the three teams—İlk Işıkspor, Ferrokromspor, and Yenikapı Suspor—that formed Antalyaspor. Below the Yivli Minaret illustration is the year 1966, which marks the establishment of Antalyaspor.

The creator of Antalyaspor’s emblem is also its first president, Atilla Konuk, who decided the club’s colors. During the management board discussions about the emblem, suggestions included featuring symbolic structures of the city like Aspendos or Hadrian’s Gate. President Atilla Konuk intervened, stating that the emblem should include a structure left by the Turks, not from Ancient Greece.

The first idea that came to mind was the Yivli Minaret, a Seljuk-era structure located in the center of Antalya. Atilla Konuk’s design for an emblem featuring the Yivli Minaret in the center was accepted by the board of directors. Although the emblem has undergone several design changes over the years, its essential elements have remained the same.

Antalya's first stadium was Antalya Atatürk Stadium which fell into disrepair from 2009 onwards. That forced the team to relocate to Akdeniz University Stadium which holds 7,083 spectators. In 2013 Antalyaspor began construction of Antalya Stadium. This stadium, which opened in the summer of 2015, seating 29,307 spectators, is nicknamed 100. Yıl (Centenary), after the major boulevard of the same name, 100. Yıl Bulvarı", which is located directly south of the stadium.

• 1. Lig
  • Winners: 1981–82, 1985–86
  • Runners-up: 2005–06, 2007–08
• Turkish Cup
  • Runners-up: 1999–2000, 2020–21
• Turkish Super Cup
  • Runners-up: 2021

• Süper Lig: 1982–85, 1986–87, 1994–02, 2006–07, 2008–14, 2015–
• TFF First League: 1966–82, 1985–86, 1987–94, 2002–06, 2007–08, 2014–15

As of 28 September 2000

UEFA Ranking history:

As of 2005

As of 1 July 2025

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

National swimmers are:^[14]

• Sevim Eylül Süpürgeci
• Emir Batur Ayyıldız (born 2007)

• Turgut Kabaca (born 1972)

• Official website (in Turkish)
• Antalyaspor on TFF.org