The Season Comes to An End: Championships, Cups, Changes
- saslihan27
- 3 days ago
- 4 min read
Another intense week in Turkish football has passed and was marked by the crowning of league and cup champions and a leadership issue in one of the country’s biggest clubs. As the Turkish Super League season wraps up, fans were once again experiencing drama, celebration, and controversy.
Leadership changes in Fenerbahçe? A decision for early congress.
Fenerbahçe has announced that it will hold an early congress in September 2025. This announcement brought up differing reactions from the fans. Koç’s declaration that he would still run for reelection intensified the criticism, and even the fans who were once positive about his vision and plans for one of the biggest clubs of Türkiye were disillusioned with the failures and unfulfilled promises. Thus, fans usually met at a similar spot, and this decision is probably much needed for a more hopeful future for Fenerbahçe.
Many of the supporters of Fenerbahçe are not happy with the current president, Ali Koç, and his decisions while leading the club. For example, the team not being able to become the champion of the Super League this year was tied to the high expectations from the well-known football manager, Jose Mourinho. The “yearning for championship” of Fenerbahçe since 2014 continued for one more year, especially in a year with some high-profile players like Edin Dzeko, Youssef En-Nesyri, Milan Skriniar, and many more names under the lead of Mourinho. Supporters of Fenerbahçe express their growing frustration through banners, chants, and campaigns that signify the disconnection between supporters and club management.
Super League Champion: Galatasaray
For the third time in a row and the fifth time in the last ten years, Galatasaray has clinched the Turkish Super League champion title after the win in their match with Kayserispor that took place on May 18 at Rams Park, their stadium.
Throughout the season, Galatasaray was mostly able to secure their place as the first team on the leadership charts, with only one defeat throughout the season. In March, they had their first loss in the derby match that resulted in the 2-1 victory of Beşiktaş at the Tüpraş Stadium. In 34 matches, Galatasaray had 28 victories, whereas their biggest rival for the season, Fenerbahçe, had 25.
Their point difference of 8 being protected with Galatasaray’s win over Kayserispor and Fenerbahçe’s result against Eyüpspor made it certain that Galatasaray is the champion of the league—since only two games remain and the maximum points a team can get in a match is 6, the difference becomes unrecoverable.
A remarkable part of this championship is that it's the 25th one for Galatasaray, meaning that they have become the first Turkish team to ever have 5 stars, as each star is reached through 5 championships. Here, it is critical to note that Fenerbahçe suggests that they have 5 stars as well, and it is a long-lasting debate in Turkish football. In terms of determining the stars, the championships before 1959 are not counted. As a response, Fenerbahçe, due to this fact, decided not to use any stars on their jerseys. Nevertheless, it was later declared that they would count their team to have 5 stars in honor of the championships before 1959.
In a special moment, Galatasaray’s longtime captain and goalkeeper, Fernando Muslera, scored a goal in the game. As he has been a player on the team since 2011 and is leaving the team at the end of the season, the team decided to give the penalty received in the match to him. The fans also chanted his name after the penalty was given to Galatasaray, as a proper goodbye to their captain. The team honored all his wonderful work, time, and character represented through his 14-year-long Galatasaray journey by allowing him to take the penalty, resulting in a memorable farewell goal that is also the second goal of his career.
Some celebration events took place at the stadium after the match came to an end; all the players wore a shirt with the number 25 printed on it. The star player of Galatasaray, who is currently struggling with an ACL tear, Mauro Icardi, was also on the field with them for the celebrations. With this championship, Galatasaray qualifies for the UEFA Champions League in the 2025/26 season.
As the season came to an end, the scoreboard could change for the teams Samsunspor, Beşiktaş, Başakşehir, Eyüpspor, and Trabzonspor. They are all competing for a spot in the top five to qualify either for the European League—through play-offs for the third and fourth place teams—or the Conference League, where the fifth-place team will enter the play-offs.The result is certain for Fenerbahçe as well; it will play in the play-off rounds of the Champions League to seek a chance to be a part of the most well-known teams in football.
Turkish Cup
The Turkish Cup’s final match was also this week, and the champion was Galatasaray, marking their 19th Turkish Cup. Galatasaray secured a 3–0 victory over Trabzonspor in the final held in Gaziantep, with goals from Victor Osimhen and Barış Alper Yılmaz.
The April semi-finals saw Galatasaray defeat Tümosan Konyaspor 5–1, while Trabzonspor beat Göztepe 2–0.
Edited by: Yağmur Ece Nisanoğlu, Ömer Gökce
