Fenerbahce

23rd February 2017. By Danni Biggs. 
The Turkey Football Federation Chief Yildirim Demiroren told reporters at their headquarters "This time it is our right to host the championships." Brushing the threats and concerns over security and infrastructure Turkey confirms interest to host the 2024 European Championships. On the 15th February the TFF announced their ambitions bid to be the host nation of this much-loved tournament.

The Turkish Football Federation announce being candidates to host the 2024 Euros. After losing out to stage the finals in 2008, 2012 and 2016 as well as disappointingly missing out on hosting the 2020 Summer Olympics to Tokyo, Turkey deserved to be announced as hosts, but is it the right decision?

So, can Turkey host the 17^th edition of the UEFA European Championship? When announcing an end to its pursuit of 2020 the TFF said "We believe Turkey

5th April 2016.
Turkish football fans have been hit with one piece of bad news after another, as of late. First, a February 21^st Super Lig match between Galatasaray and Trabzonspor became global news, after referee Deniz Ates Bitnel red-carded not one, not two, but four Trabzonspor players in the space of the second half. Then, Galatasaray received a two-year ban from UEFA competitions for violating Financial Fair Play rules. Next, on March 25^th, Fenerbahce became the last Turkish soccer club to exit the 2015/16 Europa League, losing 1-4 in their second-leg round of 16 match against Braga. Finally, Turkish soccer authorities were forced to cancel a March 20^th derby between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce, due to a threat that reportedly came from ISIS.

Of course, not all of these stumbles and woes have been related in the slightest, beyond the fact that they all involved Turkish soccer. However, all four incidents do amount to what has

Galatasaray SK may be the reigning champions in the Turkish Super Lig, but the football club had to come from behind to draw with rivals Fenerbahce on Sunday. The two teams are trailing in second and third place, respectively, in this year's Super Lig, as Besiktas look poised to run the table for the year. A win for either squad on Sunday would have helped level the playing field a bit. Instead, though, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce draw, leaving Besiktas four points ahead after nine weeks of competitive play.

A Long-Standing Rivalry

The Intercontinental Derby matches are always among the most anticipated games (if not the most
anticipated games) of any given Super Lig season. The rivalry dates back to January 1909 when the two football clubs met for the first time.

In the years since, Fenerbahce and Galatasaray have played one another 361 times, with the stats for the rivalry remarkably even in their split.

Only five teams have ever won the English Premier League title, but that has to do more with the relative brevity of the division's existence (the Premier League was founded in 1992) than it does with long-standing club dominance. The Turkish Super Lig, on the other hand, also has seen only five different champions, but the difference is that the Turkish football division has been going since 1959. That means the soccer league has split 57 titles five different ways. So does that make the first eight weeks of 2015/16 Turkish Super Lig play predictable?

The Turkish Super Lig is one of the more predictable competitions in European club football. The proceedings are made even more predictable by the fact that one of the five teams, Trabzonspor, hasn't won a title since 1984, while another, Bursaspor,

Galatasaray will have to pick things up in September if they are going to defend their 2014 2015 Turkish Super Lig title. After the first month of the 2015 - 2016 Turkish Super Lig campaign, the reigning league champs are in ninth place, with only one win under their belt. Fenerbahce-2014's title winners and last season's number two team-have taken up residence at the top of the standings table instead.

A Close Race

Not that Fenerbahce have been dominant so far. The Yellow Canaries were off to a good season start in the first week of competition, donning the Fenerbahce home shirt 2015 2016 to score a 2-0 win against Eski?ehirspor. But Fenerbahce settled for a lukewarm draw in week two (1-1, with Rizespor), and have since collected a pair of one-point victories against Antalyaspor and Kas?mpa?a, respectively.

That record, of three wins and one draw, earns the Yellow Canaries a point total of 10 in the standings. That's