Sport in Turkey

Among all sports in Turkey, the most popular one is football. Turkey's top teams include Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray and Beşiktaş. In 2000, Galatasaray won the UEFA Cup and UEFA Super Cup. Two years later, the Turkish national team finished third in the 2002 FIFA World Cup Finals in Japan and South Korea, while in 2008, the national team reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Euro 2008 competition. The Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul hosted the 2005 UEFA Champions League Final, while the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in Istanbul hosted the 2009 UEFA Cup Final.

Other popular mainstream sports include basketball and volleyball. Turkey hosted the Finals of EuroBasket 2001 and the 2010 FIBA World Championship, with the men's national team finishing second in both events. The national team also reached the quarter-finals of the 2006 World Championship. At club level, Anadolu Efes (then known as Efes Pilsen) won the Korać Cup in 1996, finished second in the Saporta Cup of 1993, and made it to the Final Four of Euroleague and Suproleague in 2000 and 2001. Also, Beşiktaş have come out as the winners of Eurochallenge in 2012-2013 season with only a single defeat, all stages of the tournament included. For the same season, Beşiktaş dominated all national competitions as well, relying upon NBA veterans including Carlos Arroyo, Pops Mensah-Bonsu, and Adam Morrison as well as Deron Williams for a short spell. Turkish basketball players such as Mehmet Okur, Hidayet Türkoğlu and Ersan İlyasova have also been successful in the NBA.