Galatasaray

History
First photo of Galatasaray (1905)
Fenerbahce SK against Galatasaray SK in the 1913–1914 season
The early years

Galatasaray SK was founded during the then Ottoman Empire period, under the Rumi calendar system, on 1 Teşrin-i Evvel 1321, corresponding to 13 October 1905 in the current format of the Gregorian calendar, by Ali Sami Yen and other students of the Galatasaray High School, a secondary school in Istanbul established in 1481, as a football club. The explanation is that the term Teşrin-i Evvel means in Ottoman Turkish Tenth Month, equivalent to the month of October. Adding 12 days and 584 years to this gives the real date in the current Gregorian calendar. However, mistakenly, both the football club and its multi-sport club celebrate completely different anniversary dates. In the case of the football club, it is currently celebrated on 20 October, without taking into account the real Rumi-to-Gregorian conversion calculation mentioned above.

Ali Sami Yen became the first president of Galatasaray SK and received the club membership number "1". The team's first match was against Cadi-Keuy FC and Galatasaray won this match with a score of 2-0. There were discussions about the name of the club, in which some suggested Gloria (victory) and others Audace (courage), but it was decided that its name would be Galatasaray.

The name "Galatasaray" itself comes from the Galatasaray Institute, an acronym of Galata Sarayı Enderûn-u Hümâyûn (Imperial School of the Galata Palace), the name of the original school founded on the site in 1481, which in turn took its name from the nearby medieval Genoese citadel of Galata (the modern district of Karaköy) in the Beyoğlu (Pera) district of Istanbul. Galatasaray literally means "Galata Palace".

According to the researcher Cem Atabeyoğlu, Galatasaray took its name from one of its first matches. In that match, Galatasaray won 2-0 over a local Greek club and the spectators called them Galata Sarayı efendileri (in Spanish: "Palace Gentlemen of Galata"), and, after this incident, they adopted that name and began to call their club Galata Sarayı. In 1905, during the era of the Ottoman Empire, there were no laws for associations, so the club could not be officially registered, but, after the Associations Law of 1912, the club was legally registered.

In 1906 it became one of the participants of the Istanbul League, winning three titles in the first years of its participation (1909, 1910 and 1911). In the mid-1910s it won two more titles (1914 and 1915), and in the following decade it won five more cups.

In the 1930s and 40s, the club went through a championship drought, winning only two regional titles, in addition to having experienced constant changes of presidents.
Professional era
The 1960s and the first national successes

In 1959, after the dissolution of the various regional championships, Galatasaray became one of the participants of the nascent national league. But it would not be until 1962 that it won the league championship for the first time.

In 1963, after winning its second league championship, it also became Turkish cup champion, achieving the traditional double. In the following years, it won three more national cups (1964, 1965 and 1966), and one league title (1969), thus closing a successful decade at domestic level.
The 1970s and 80s: a rocky period

The beginning of the 1970s was fruitful, with three league titles (1971, 1972 and 1973), and two cups (1973 and 1976), but in 1980 the club came close to relegation when it finished in ninth position, two points from the second-bottom team.

The 1980s would also be characterised by the few titles the club won, specifically two cups (1982 and 1985) and one league title (1988). However, in the 1988-89 season, under the technical direction of Mustafa Denizli, Galatasaray reached the semi-finals of the European Cup, falling to the Romanian side Steaua Bucharest.
Golden period
Line-up fielded by Galatasaray in the 2000 UEFA Cup final against Arsenal F.C., 17 May 2000.
Galatasaray line-up in the UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid CF, 25 August 2000.

After the dark period of the 1980s, it was not until 1991 that Galatasaray returned to the path of success. That year it won another cup title, a title it would repeat in 1993. The following year (1994), it won another league title and in 1996 it lifted another Turkish cup. In 1996, Fatih Terim took over on the bench, and successive achievements came with him. At the end of the 1990s, the club won three consecutive league titles and achieved a double in 1999.

The following campaign, 1999-2000, would be one of the most unforgettable in the history of the club. After the failure in that season's Champions League -it finished third in the group stage-, the club took part in the UEFA Cup, starting from the round of 32. After eliminating, round by round, clubs such as Bologna, Borussia Dortmund, Mallorca and Leeds United, in the final in Copenhagen (played at the Parken Stadium) it faced the English side Arsenal. After 120 minutes without goals, the title was decided by a penalty shoot-out, with the Turkish team emerging victorious, achieving its first continental title, and being the only one from its country to do so. That campaign it won three titles (League, Cup and UEFA Cup), something unprecedented for a Turkish club.

In mid-2000, it also won the European Super Cup, against Real Madrid, played in Monaco. With this title, Galatasaray won four titles in the year.
The 21st century and the period after the UEFA Cup

After the successes obtained by Terim in 2000, Galatasaray did not win a league title again in the 2000-01 season. It would be in 2002 when it won it again in a close head-to-head with Fenerbahçe.

In 2005, coinciding with the 100th anniversary of its foundation, the team celebrated the centenary by winning the Turkish Cup against its most bitter rival (Fenerbahçe), inflicting a historic 5-1 defeat on it, played at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium.
Fatih Terim, the man who guided Galatasaray to a string of successes, and to the first UEFA Cup in its history
Name

Galatasaray is a neighbourhood of Karaköy in the Beyoğlu District of Istanbul, located on the northern shore of the Golden Horn. Its name comes from the Galata Tower, which in turn may have derived from Galatai (meaning the "Galatians"), since it was thought that Celtic tribes had camped in Galata during the Hellenistic period. Galatasaray translates directly as "Galata Palace". Galatasaray is a compound word and is pronounced as such, with a very brief pause between the two words.
Kit
For a full account see History of the Galatasaray Spor Kulübü kit

Current sportswear brand: Puma
Home kit: Red shirt with orange, red shorts and red socks.
Away kit: Black shirt with red details, black shorts and black socks.
Third kit: Yellow shirt with orange, black shorts and orange socks.

First

(See evolution)

Current
Galatasaray kits by Nike.
Suppliers and sponsors
Period Supplier Sponsor (chest)
1977–1978 None Volvo / PeReJa
1978–1979 Çamlıca / Adidas None
1979–1980 Umbro / Adidas Halı Fleks
1980–1981 Puma / Umbro / Adidas Telefunken / Alo / THY
1981–1982 Gola / Adidas Borsaş / Meban
1982–1983 Umbro Meban
1983–1984 None Telefunken
1984–1985 Fatih / Adidas Modells / Denizcilik Bankası
1985–1986 Adidas Denizbank
1986–1991 TürkBank
1991–1992 Umbro ADEC Saat / Show TV
1992–1995 Show TV / Emek Sigorta
1995–1997 Adidas VakıfBank
1997–1998 Bank Ekspres
1998–2000 Marshall Boya
2000–2001 Telsim
2001–2002 Lotto Aria
2002–2004 Umbro
2004–2005 Avea
2005–2009 Adidas
2009–2011 Türk Telekom
2011–2014 Nike
2014–2015 Huawei / Turkish Airlines
2015–2016 Turkish Airlines
2016–2019 Nef / Etihad Airways
2019–2020 Terra Pizza / Turkish Airlines
2020–2024 Sixt / Turkish Airlines
2024- Puma
Players
Main category: Galatasaray Spor Kulübü footballers
2026/27 squad
Galatasaray Spor Kulübü squad for the 2026/2027 season Players Coaching staff Most used tactical formation
No. Nat. Pos. Name Age Previous team INT.
Goalkeepers
1 Flag of Turkey GK Uğurcan Çakir 30 years Trabzonspor Senior
19 Flag of Turkey GK Günay Güvenç 35 years Gaziantep FK Under-23
24 Flag of Turkey GK Jankat Yilmaz 22 years Eyüpspor Under-21
60 Flag of Turkey GK Arda Yilmaz 18 years Youth academy product Under-19
70 Flag of Turkey GK Enes Erme Büyük 20 years Youth academy product Under-19
Defenders
3 Flag of France DF El Chadaille Bitshiabu 21 years Flag of Germany RB Leipzig Under-20
4 Flag of Senegal DF Ismail Jakobs 27 years Flag of Monaco AS Monaco Senior
6 Flag of Colombia DF Davinson Sánchez 30 years Flag of England Tottenham Hotspur FC Senior
7 Flag of Hungary DF Roland Sallai 29 years Flag of Germany SC Freiburg Senior
17 Flag of Turkey DF Eren Elmalı 26 years Trabzonspor Senior
23 Flag of Turkey DF Kaan Ayhan 31 years Flag of Italy US Sassuolo Senior
42 Flag of Turkey DF Abdülkerim Bardakci Captain 32 years Konyaspor Senior
88 Flag of Turkey DF Kazimcan Karataş 23 years İstanbul Başakşehir Senior
90 Flag of Ivory Coast DF Wilfried Singo 25 years Flag of Monaco AS Monaco Senior
91 Flag of Turkey DF Arda Ünyay 19 years Youth academy product Under-19
Midfielders
5 Flag of Turkey MF Eyüp Aydin 22 years Kasimpaşa SK Under-21
8 Flag of Brazil MF Gabriel Sara 27 years Flag of England Norwich City FC Senior
18 Flag of France MF Lesley Ugochukwu 22 years Flag of England Burnley FC Under-23
20 Flag of Germany MF İlkay Gündoğan 35 years Flag of England Manchester City FC Senior
34 Flag of Uruguay MF Lucas Torreira 30 years Flag of England Arsenal FC Senior
74 Flag of Guinea-Bissau MF Renato Nhaga 19 years Flag of Portugal Casa Pia AC Senior
83 Flag of Russia MF Aleksey Batrakov 21 years Flag of Russia Lokomotiv Moscow Senior
99 Flag of Gabon MF Mario Lemina 33 years Flag of England Wolverhampton Wanderers FC Senior
Forwards
10 Flag of Germany FW Leroy Sané 30 years Flag of Germany Bayern Munich Senior
11 Flag of Turkey FW Yunus Akgün 26 years Flag of England Leicester City FC Senior
21 Flag of Turkey FW Deniz Gül 22 years Flag of Portugal FC Porto Senior
27 Flag of Portugal FW Rafael Leão 27 years Flag of Italy AC Milan Senior
29 Flag of Argentina FW Armando Güner 18 years Flag of Germany B. Mönchengladbach U19 Under-20
45 Flag of Nigeria FW Victor Osimhen 27 years Flag of Italy SSC Napoli Senior
53 Flag of Turkey FW Bariş Alper Yilmaz 26 years Keçiörengücü Senior
62 Flag of Turkey FW Ada Yüzgeç 17 years Youth academy product Under-18
73 Flag of Turkey FW Berat Luş 19 years Esenler Erokspor Under-20

Manager(s)
Flag of Turkey Okan Buruk
Assistant(s)
Flag of Turkey İrfan Saraloğlu
Flag of Spain Ismael García Gómez
Goalkeeping coach(es)
Flag of Turkey Can Okuyuku
Flag of Turkey Eray İşcan
Flag of Turkey Fadıl Koşutan

Key

Captain Captain
Injured Injured (long-term)
Club-trained Academy (club-trained)
Youth football Training (association-trained)
Promoted from reserves
European passport European passport
Non-EU / Foreign Non-EU / Foreign
Non-EU without restriction Non-EU without restriction
Loan On loan to the club
Loan On loan to another club
Discarded / Unregistered Discarded / Unregistered

Updated on 9 September 2026


GK


Notable players
Most appearances
# Player Appearances
1st Flag of Turkey Bülent Korkmaz 593
2nd Flag of Uruguay Fernando Muslera 551
3rd Flag of Turkey Hakan Şükür 536
4th Flag of Turkey Cüneyt Tanman 504
5th Flag of Turkey Arif Erdem 485
6th Flag of Turkey Sabri Sarıoğlu 475
7th Flag of Turkey Ergün Penbe 428
8th Flag of Turkey Turgay Şeren 407
9th Flag of Turkey Metin Oktay 406
10th Flag of Turkey Fatih Terim 402
Club top scorers
# Player Goals
1st Flag of Turkey Hakan Şükür 290
2nd Flag of Turkey Metin Oktay 217
3rd Flag of Turkey Gündüz Kılıç 145
4th Flag of Turkey Tanju Çolak 137
5th Flag of Turkey Arif Erdem 134
6th Flag of Turkey Gökmen Özdenak 133
7th Flag of Turkey Ümit Karan 97
8th Flag of Turkey Suat Mamat 95
9th Flag of Turkey Cemil Erlertürk 90
10th Flag of Turkey Burak Yılmaz 82
Managers
Main category: Galatasaray managers

The most successful Galatasaray manager in terms of trophies won is Fatih Terim, who won eight Süper Lig titles, three Turkish Cups, five Super Cups and one UEFA Europa League in his 11-year period as manager of the club. (caretaker managers are not counted)

Flag of England John Begget (1941-1945)
Flag of Greece Miço Dimitriyadis (1945-1946)
Flag of Hungary Josef Szweng (1946-1947)
Flag of England Pat Molloy (1948-1949)
Flag of England Donald Lockhead (1950-1952)
Flag of Turkey Gündüz Kılıç (1952-1953)
Flag of Hungary László Székely (1953-1954)
Flag of Turkey Gündüz Kılıç (1954-1957)
Flag of Turkey Musa Sezer (1957)
Flag of Scotland George Dick (1957-1959)
Flag of Italy Leandro Remondini (1959-1960)
Flag of Turkey Coşkun Özarı (1960)
Flag of Turkey Gündüz Kılıç (1960-1963)
Flag of Turkey Coşkun Özarı (1964)
Flag of Turkey Gündüz Kılıç (1964-1967)
Flag of Turkey Eşfak Aykaç (1967-1968)
Flag of Yugoslavia Tomislav Kaloperović (1968-1970)
Flag of Turkey Coşkun Özarı (1970-1971)
Flag of England Brian Birch (1971-1974)
Flag of England Jack Mansell (1974-1975)
Flag of England Don Howe (1975-1976)
Flag of England Malcolm Allison (1976-1977)
Flag of Turkey Fethi Demircan (1977-1978)
Flag of Turkey Coşkun Özarı (1978-1979)
Flag of Turkey Turgay Şeren (1979-1980)
Flag of England Brian Birch (1980-1981)
Flag of Turkey Özkan Sümer (1981-1983)
Flag of Croatia Tomislav Ivić (1983-1984)
Flag of Germany Jupp Derwall (1984-1987)
Flag of Turkey Mustafa Denizli (1987-1989)
Flag of Germany Siegfried Held (1989-1990)
Flag of Turkey Mustafa Denizli (1990-1992)
Flag of Germany Karl-Heinz Feldkamp (1992-1993)
Flag of Germany Reiner Hollmann (1993-1994)
Flag of Germany Reinhard Saftig (1994-1995)
Flag of Scotland Graeme Souness (1995-1996)
Flag of Turkey Fatih Terim (1996-2000)
Flag of Romania Mircea Lucescu (2000-2002)
Flag of Turkey Fatih Terim (2003-2004)
Flag of Romania Gheorghe Hagi (2004-2005)
Flag of Belgium Eric Gerets (2005-2007)
Flag of Germany Karl-Heinz Feldkamp (2007-2008)
Flag of Germany Michael Skibbe (2008-2009)
Flag of Turkey Bülent Korkmaz (Feb. 2009 - Jun. 2009)
Flag of the Netherlands Frank Rijkaard (Jun. 2009 - Oct. 2010)
Flag of Romania Gheorghe Hagi (Oct. 2010 - Mar. 2011)
Flag of Turkey Fatih Terim (Apr. 2011 - Sep. 2013)
Flag of Italy Roberto Mancini (Sep. 2013 - Jun. 2014)
Flag of Italy Cesare Prandelli (Jul. 2014 - Nov. 2014)
Flag of Turkey Hamza Hamzaoğlu (Dec. 2014 - Nov. 2015)
Flag of Turkey Mustafa Denizli (Nov. 2015 - Mar. 2016)
Flag of the Netherlands Jan Olde Riekerink (Mar. 2016 - Feb. 2017)
Flag of Croatia Igor Tudor (Feb. 2017 - Dec. 2017)
Flag of Turkey Fatih Terim (Dec. 2017 - Jan. 2022)
Flag of Spain Domènec Torrent (Jan. 2022 - Jun. 2022)
Flag of Turkey Okan Buruk (Jun. 2022 - )

International participation
By competition

Competitions currently active are in bold.

Tournament TJ PJ PG PE PP GF GC Diff. Points Titles
UEFA Champions League 30 203 68 47 88 256 321 -65 251 –
UEFA Europa League 21 104 40 36 28 168 141 +27 156 1
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 8 32 12 7 13 42 55 -13 43 –
European Super Cup 1 1 1 0 0 2 1 +1 3 1
Total 60 340 121 90 129 468 518 -50 453 2
Updated to the 2025-26 season.
Honours

National tournaments (62)

Note: competitions currently active are in bold. The tournament record and the shared record are indicated.

Flag of Turkey National competition Titles Runners-up
Turkish Süper Lig (26/11) 1961-62, 1962-63, 1968-69, 1970-71, 1971-72, 1972-73, 1986-87, 1987-88, 1992-93, 1993-94, 1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2001-02, 2005-06, 2007-08, 2011-12, 2012-13, 2014-15, 2017-18, 2018-19, 2022-23, 2023-24, 2024-25, 2025-26. 1959, 1960-61, 1965-66, 1974-75, 1978-79, 1985-86, 1990-91, 2000-01, 2002-03, 2013-14, 2020-21.
Turkish Cup (19/5) 1962-63, 1963-64, 1964-65, 1965-66, 1972-73, 1975-76, 1981-82, 1984-85, 1990-91, 1992-93, 1995-96, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2004-05, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16, 2018-19, 2024-25. 1968-69, 1979-80, 1993-94, 1994-95, 1997-98.
Turkish Super Cup (17/11) 1966, 1969, 1972, 1982, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019, 2023. 1971, 1973, 1976, 1985, 1994, 1998, 2006, 2014, 2018, 2024, 2025

División Nacional (1/5) 1939 1937, 1940, 1941, 1943, 1950
Presidential Cup (5/2) 1975, 1979, 1986, 1990, 1995. 1980, 1989.
Turkish Amateur Championship (0/1) 1949.
Atatürk Cup (0/1) 2000.

International tournaments (2)
International competition Titles Runners-up
UEFA Cup (1/0) 2000.
European Super Cup (1/0) 2000.

FIFA Millennium Cup (1)* 2000.

UEFA Champions League semi-finalist (1): 1989.

*Honorary title that is not counted as a championship title.
Friendly tournaments

Emirates Cup (1): 2013.
Antalya Cup (3): 2001, 2004 and 2014.
Uhren Cup (1): 2016.
Obi Cup (1): 2007
TSYD Cup (12): 1963, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1977, 1981, 1987, 1991, 1992, 1997, 1998, 1999 (shared record)
Runner-up (9): 1965, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1979, 1980, 1986, 1991
50th Anniversary Cup (1): 1973 (record)

Other achievements

Best team in the world according to the IFFHS in August 2000.

Rivalries
Main articles: Turkish football derby and Beşiktaş–Galatasaray rivalry.
References

Melih Şabanoğlu, Galatasaray Historian and Researcher
"First match and foundation". Galatasaray.org. 17 November 2007. Archived from the original on 10 April 2008.
"How Galatasaray Founded". Galatasaray.org. 23 November 2007. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
"History of founding from official site". Galatasaray.org. 22 November 2007. Archived from the original on 10 April 2008.
Tekil, Süleyman (1983). Galatasaray, Dünden Bugüne 1905–1982. İstanbul: Arset Matbaacılık Kollektif Şti. pp. 1-13.
"GALATASARAY.ORG". Galatasaray.org. Retrieved 25 January 2018.

External links

Wikimedia Commons hosts a multimedia category on Galatasaray Spor Kulübü.
Official website (in Turkish) (in English) (in French)
Vamos Cimbom ! - Galatasaray Sudamérica (in Spanish)
Galatasaray Multimedia Archives (in Turkish)
Galatasaray SK on X (formerly Twitter) on Twitter (in Turkish)
Galatasaray Sports Club on Facebook (in Turkish) (in English) (in French)

Authority control

Wikimedia projects Wd Data: Q495299 Commonscat Multimedia: Galatasaray S.K. (football) / Q495299

Identifiers GND: 7860671-8 Film IMDb: nm10166202

Category:

Galatasaray SK (football)

This page was last edited on 10 Sep 2026