Eskişehirspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club located in

Eskişehir Eskişehir ( , ; from "old" and "city") is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. The urban population of the city is 898,369 with a metropolitan population of 797,708. The city is located on the banks of the ...

. Eskisehirspor has a total of six trophies, making them the sixth most trophies holders in Turkey. Founded in 1965, Eskişehirspor competed in the top division of Turkish football for 16 years until they were relegated. After being out of the

Süper Lig The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), officially known as Spor Toto Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional league for association football clubs. It is the top-flight of the Turkish football league system and is run by the ...

for 12 years the club won the

TFF First League The TFF 1. Lig, officially known as Spor Toto 1. Lig for sponsorship reasons, is the second level of the Turkish football league system. The league was founded in 2001 as the ''Turkish Second League Category A'' after the reorganization of the ...

playoffs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

and were promoted in May 2008. Since being relegated from the Süper Lig in 2016 they have competed in lower leagues.

History

Early years

Eskişehirspor was founded by merging the regional teams of İdman Yurdu, Akademi Gençlik and Yıldıztepe and was admitted to the Second League in the 1965–1966 season. The team was promoted to the First League in its first professional season. Eskişehirspor became one of the better historically rich

Anatolia Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The re ...

n clubs despite having never won the

between 1968 and 1975. They were runners-up in 1968–1969, 1969–1970, and 1971–1972 seasons. Eskişehirspor won the

Turkish Cup The Turkish Cup ( Turkish: ''Türkiye Kupası'') is a football cup competition in Turkish football, run by the Turkish Football Federation since 1962. During a brief sponsorship period with Fortis, its sponsored name was ''Fortis Türkiye Kupası ...

in the 1969–1970 season by beating Bursaspor by 4–3 (1–2, 3–1) aggregate and a year after that in 1970–1971 season they lifted the Cumhurbaskanligi Kupasi ( President Cup) by beating Galatasaray once again by the same scoreline 3–2 with all goals coming from the Eskişehirspor legend himself Fethi Heper.

Unforgettable match

One of Eskişehirspor's greatest matches took place in the 1970–71

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...

against

Sevilla FC Sevilla Fútbol Club () is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville, the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. It plays in Spanish football's top flight, La Liga. Sevilla have won the UEFA Euro ...

. Eskişehirspor lost the away leg 1–0, but

Fethi Heper Fethi Heper (born 3 February 1944 in Eskişehir) is a retired Turkish professional footballer who was the top goal scorer of Eskişehirspor. Following retirement, he became a university finance professor. Heper scored many goals during his ca ...

won it for them 3–2, scoring a hat-trick in front of a home crowd with only 10 minutes left to play.

1980s and 1990s

After that, they started to slowly lose their success. Eskişehirspor relegated to Second League in 1981–82 season after an eventful match against Beşiktaş at Round 34, which was also last round. The match was halted at 78th minute due to intemperance of Eskişehirspor's supporters, when after Beşiktaş's midfielder

Ziya Ziya () is a Turkish given name for males and females, it is of Arabic origin, in Turkish ''Ziya'' means ''light''. Given name * Ziya Doğan, Turkish football manager * Ziya Gökalp, Turkish sociologist * Nazmi Ziya Güran, Turkish impressionist ...

's goal at 76th minute, and match score was changed to 2–1 for Beşiktaş. Eskişehirspor was announced 3–0 unanimously lost by TFF and relegated as 1 point behind of

Gaziantepspor Gaziantepspor was a Turkish football club located in the city of Gaziantep. Formed in 1969 and dissolved in 2020, Gaziantepspor were nicknamed the ''Şahinler'' (The Falcons). The club colours were black and red, and they played their home matche ...

. Also, Beşiktaş finished their championship yearning since 1967. Eskişehirspor returned 1st League in 1983–84 season. They reached

Federation Cup Federation Cup or Fed Cup is the former name of the premier world team competition in women's tennis. Federation Cup may also refer to: * Capital Football Federation Cup, an Australian territory-based association football tournament *Federation Cup ...

final in 1986–87 season but lost against Gençlerbirliği by 6–2 aggregate. They won

Chancellor Cup The Prime Minister's Cup ( tr, Başbakanlık Kupası) was a football competition organised by the Turkish Football Federation in Turkey. It began in 1944 and continued until 1950 as a unique kind of super cup competition between the winners of ...

against Beşiktaş after penalty shoots as 4–2, total 6–4. This match was resulted 2–2. They relegated again Second League after 1–0 lost against

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other de ...

, which goal scored by Tanju at Round 38, which was also last round in 1988–89 season. Eskişehirspor collected 41 points and remained behind of Altay by average. They relegated to Third League once after finishing third from last at Group A of 2nd League in 1991–92 season. However, they returned to Second League next season after finishing 1st at Group 5 of Third League. Eskişehirspor finished 1st at 3rd Group in Second League and qualified for Promotion Group in 1994–95 season. They finished 3rd and qualified to Extra Playoff. They defeated successively

Erzurumspor Erzurumspor was a sports club located in Erzurum, Turkey. The football club played in the Turkish Regional Amateur League. The club also played in Turkish First League between 1998–2001. It fell into money shortage since 2000 and gradually fel ...

as 2–1,

Adanaspor Adanaspor is a Turkish professional football club based in Adana, currently performing at the TFF First League. The club is founded in 1954 by the middle-class merchants and artisans in response to the alienation within city's then most popular c ...

as 3–2, which after extra time and Aydınspor as 2–1 and returned to First League. Eskişehirspor's new adventure at First League lasted only one season and relegated after 7-1 losing against

Trabzonspor Trabzonspor Kulübü is a Turkish sports club located in the city of Trabzon. Formed in 1967 through a merger of several local clubs, the men's football team has won seven Süper Lig championships. Trabzonspor also have a women's football team, ...

despite a good start against

İstanbulspor İstanbulspor is a Turkish football and sports club founded by Istanbul High School students in 1926. In 2004–05 they were relegated from the Turkish Süper Lig (Super League) to TFF 1. Lig. For many decades it was the fourth most famous and ...

and this match finished 3–1 for Eskişehirspor. Eskişehirspor qualified to Promotion Playoff but didn't return to First League in 1997–98. They escaped from relegation to Third League danger and Petrolofisi relegated in 1998–99 season. Eskişehirspor finally qualified to Second League Category B (later Second League), who is third level of Turkish League, after 2000–2001 season.

Back to the Süper Lig

Eskişehirspor finished 1st in 3rd Group of

Iddaa League B TFF 2. Lig (Turkish Football Federation Second League), is the third level in the Turkish football league system. It was founded in the 2001–02 season with the name of ''Turkish Second League Category B'' as a continuation of the then second lev ...

and played in Promotion Group in 2005–2006 season. They finished 3rd behind of Kasımpaşa and Gençlerbirliği Asaşspor and qualified for Extra Playoff matches. Eskişehirspor's first play off match was against

Kardemir Karabükspor Kardemir Demir Çelik Karabükspor or simply known as Kardemir Karabükspor or Karabükspor is a Turkish sports club based in Karabük. The team was founded in 1969 after a merger between "Karabük Gençlikspor" and "Demir Çelik Spor". The club ...

. After regular and extra time the match ended in a 0–0 draw. Eskişehirspor advanced to quarter final game after beating them 3–1 in the penalty shoot out. They also defeated

Sarıyer Sarıyer () is the northernmost district of Istanbul, Turkey, on the European side of the city. It consists of the neighbourhoods of Rumelifeneri, Tarabya, Yeniköy, İstinye, Emirgan and Rumelihisarı. Sarıyer also administers the Black Sea co ...

after 6–5 in the penalty shoot out. Regular and extra time the match ended in a 0–0 draw before penalty shoot out. They defeated 3–0

Kartalspor Kartalspor is a sports club located in the Kartal district of Istanbul, Turkey. The club's football team plays in the Bank Asya First League after finishing 2nd in the Second League Promotion Group in the 2006–2007 season. Kartal SK started th ...

in semifinal and

Pendikspor Pendikspor is a Turkish sports club based in Pendik, Istanbul. The club's homeground is the ''Pendik Stadium''. The football team is widely known for their upsetting 2-1 victory over Fenerbahçe, in the 3rd round of the Turkish Cup (then Fortis ...

in final and promoted to First League. Eskişehirspor finished 13th in 2006–2007 season. After a successful season in the

Bank Asya First League The TFF 1. Lig, officially known as Spor Toto 1. Lig for sponsorship reasons, is the second level of the Turkish football league system. The league was founded in 2001 as the ''Turkish Second League Category A'' after the reorganization of the ...

, Eskişehirspor finished in 4th place and qualified for the playoffs in 2007–2008 season. The playoffs determine who is going to take the third and final promotion spot for the

. Eskişehirspor's first play off match was against Diyarbakirspor. The match ended 0–0 after regular and extra time, Eskişehirspor won the penalty shoot out, 6–5. The final match against

Boluspor Boluspor is a Turkish professional football club located in the city of Bolu. The clubs plays in red and white kits, and have done so since their formation in 1965.Inonu Stadium in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

. At the end of 90 minutes Eskişehirspor were promoted to the Süper Lig winning 2–0, with goals from Doğa Kaya and Coşkun Birdal. On 3 June 2008, Halil Ünal was elected as the new chairman of Eskişehirspor.

Rıza Çalımbay Rıza Çalımbay (born 2 February 1963) is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and former player who is currently the manager of Sivasspor. He was one of the symbol names of Beşiktaş and was among the best players of his time. Beca ...

was appointed as manager for the 2008–2009 season. Eskişehirspor beat

twice (4–2 at home and 1–0 at away), and draw 2–2 with Fenerbahçe at home in this season and secured Süper Lig status for 2009–2010 season, despite losing 5–2 at home to

on 24 May 2009. The 2009–2010 season was a much more progressive period for ESES. Almost all title chasing clubs were beaten in the Eskisehir Stadium by Kirmizi Simsekler. ESES had a very poor beginning to the 2010–2011 season, losing 6 matches back to back. Rıza Çalımbay was sacked by the board and Bulent Uygun was announced as the new Coach. Within a short time he and his technical staff solved the main problems of the team, and, after 10 matches, almost qualified for the UEFA Cup, but were ranked 7th in the table at end of the season. During the summer break, Bulent Uygun was fired and Michael Skibbe announced as new coach.

Crest and colours

The unmistakable emblem was actually designed by Eskisehirspor's first club chairman Aziz Bolel and perfected by graphic designer Selahattin Vapur, the three stars represent the merger of Akademi Gençlik, İdmanyurdu and Yıldıztepe. The club colours were inspired by French club

Stade Rennais Stade Rennais Football Club (), commonly referred to as Stade Rennais FC, Stade Rennais, Rennes, or simply SRFC, is a French professional football club based in Rennes, Brittany. They compete in Ligue 1, the top tier of French football, and pl ...

' 1964–1965

Coupe De France The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...

win, the board saw Rennes lifting the cup celebrating on the front page of a football magazine and immediately fell in love with the club colours and adopted them as their own believing that it would bring them good luck.

Stadium

Eskişehir Atatürk Stadium

Eskişehir Atatürk Stadium Eskişehir Atatürk Stadium ( tr, Eskişehir Atatürk Stadı) was a multi-purpose stadium in Eskişehir, Turkey. Named after the Turkish people, Turkish statesman Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, it was mostly used for football (soccer), football matches a ...

( tr, Eskişehir Atatürk Stadı) is a

multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used by multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a specific design philosophy tha ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. It was used mostly as Eskişehirspor's home ground. The stadium was built in 1953 and holds 13,520 people. It was named after the Turkish statesman

Mustafa Kemal Atatürk Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, or Mustafa Kemal Pasha until 1921, and Ghazi Mustafa Kemal from 1921 Surname Law (Turkey), until 1934 ( 1881 – 10 November 1938) was a Turkish Mareşal (Turkey), field marshal, Turkish National Movement, re ...

New Eskişehir Stadium

New Eskişehir Stadium The New Eskişehir Atatürk Stadium ( tr, Yeni Eskişehir Atatürk Stadyumu) is a stadium Eskişehir, Turkey. It opened to the public in late 20 November 2016 and has a capacity of 32,500spectators. It is the home ground of Eskişehirspor Esk ...

will be a multi-use

stadium A stadium ( : stadiums or stadia) is a place or venue for (mostly) outdoor sports, concerts, or other events and consists of a field or stage either partly or completely surrounded by a tiered structure designed to allow spectators to stand o ...

in the

Sazova Park Sazova Park, officially ''Sazova Science, Culture and Art Park'' ( tr, Sazova Bilim Kültür ve Sanat Parkı), is a park in Eskişehir, Turkey. It was established by the metropolitan municipality of Eskişehir in 2008. Location The park is in Tep ...

district of (West)

. The all-seated stadium will be totally covered and have a capacity of nearly 32,500 people. It was also one of the 9 candidate host stadiums of the Turkish bid for

EURO 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...

. Despite losing the election, the Chairman of TFF said "we have to work on these stadiums like a winner of the election; I'm going to talk about it with the Prime Minister". The New Eskişehir Stadium will be the centrepiece for the development of a new sports, business and university park, planned by the City of Eskişehir on the northern periphery of the town. Eskişehir is famous for Sepiolite (Meerschaum) mining which has left a distinct signature on the landscape and inspired the façade of the stadium. The inner walls will be constructed partially with serigraphic glass to provide maximum transparency from the inside and to emphasise its open character at night. A newly planned tram will connect the New Eskişehir Stadium with the city centre, the airport and the university. This new public transport will accelerate the development of the new sports, leisure and business area. A new express ring road around the city will also pass just south of the stadium providing excellent access. On 7 January 2010, the Eskişehirspor president, Halil Ünal, Eskişehir mayor, Prof. Dr. Yılmaz Büyükerşen and Eskişehir governor, Mehmet Kılıçlar, signed the agreement to construct the new stadium in Muttalip. The stadium will also replace the

, current home ground of Eskişehirspor.

Supporters

The supporters create a great atmosphere during the season with their Band Team (known a
BandoESES
. Besides BandoESES, there is another supporter group (known a
KoreoESES
, who create very different and unique shows, with some beautiful choreographies for every match, at the stadium and on the road. Eskisehirspor supporters are really different than others when it comes to supporting their club through 2nd and even 3rd divisions. They regard their old fashioned stadium as holy grounds and reject the idea that it be moved to the outskirts of the city for the modern one. Because of their passionate, obsessive and dominant atmosphere during matches, they are the envy of many other team's supporters. They have gained recognition and respect as one of the fiercest fanbases in Turkey and are known as a "phenomenon" of Turkish football.

Bando ESES

Founded in 2006 in the 'Samba Bar',

, what started as a group of friends has grown into one of the most well known and respect supporter groups in Turkey. Bando-ESES currently has 23 active musicians playing instruments ranging from

Trumpets The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard B ...

to traditions Turkish

davul The davul, dhol, tapan, atabal or tabl is a large double-headed drum that is played with mallets. It has many names depending on the country and region. These drums are commonly used in the music of the Middle East and the Balkans. These drums ...

drums. They are accompanied by loyal backing members who also help out. The group bring a change to the usual chanting and really liven games up turning matches into a carnival atmosphere. They can help to control the tempo of the game and have a range of musical styles. The group are well organised and are constantly growing.

Controversy

On 14 May 2016, after losing 1–2 to İstanbul BB, by a late winning goal in the 93rd minute, Eskişehirspor, after all the effort to stay, were relegated from the Süper Lig. Fans of the club, the Eskişehirspor Ultras, upset with this, set fire to their own stadium. The stadium was never used again.

Honours

**Runners-up (3): 1968–69, 1969–70, 1971–72 *

**Winners (1): 1970–71 **Runners-up (3): 1969–70, 1986–87, 2013–14 *

Turkish Super Cup The Turkish Super Cup ( Turkish: ''TFF Süper Kupa''), as it is currently known, is the annual super cup football match contested between the previous season's Süper Lig champions and the Turkish Cup winners in Turkey. It was originally known ...

**Winners (1): 1970–71 *

Prime Minister's Cup The Prime Minister's Cup ( tr, Başbakanlık Kupası) was a association football, football competition organised by the Turkish Football Federation in Turkey. It began in 1944 and continued until 1950 as a unique kind of super cup competition bet ...

: **Winners (3): 1966, 1972, 1987 * Balkans Cup: **Runners-up (1): 1975

League participations

: 1966–82, 1984–89, 1995–96, 2008–2016 *

: 1965–66, 1982–84, 1989–92, 1993–95, 1996–01, 2006–08, 2016–2021 *

TFF Second League TFF 2. Lig (Turkish Football Federation Second League), is the third level in the Turkish football league system. It was founded in the 2001–02 season with the name of ''Turkish Second League Category B'' as a continuation of the then second lev ...

: 1992–93, 2001–06, 2021–

Competition history

European record

UEFA club ranking

Players

Current squad

Other players under contract

Managers

* Abdullah Matay (1965–66) *

Cihat Arman Cihat Arman (1915 in Istanbul – May 14, 1994 in Istanbul), was a Turkish football goalkeeper and manager. He represented Turkey at the 1936 Summer Olympics and the 1948 Summer Olympics. Biography Arman started playing club football at t ...

(1966–67) * Abdulah Gegić (1 July 1967 – 30 June 1971) * Abdullah Matay (1971–72) *

Tomislav Kaloperović Tomislav Kaloperović (; 31 January 1932 – 15 January 2002) was a Yugoslav and Serbian footballer and coach. External links * Tomislav Kaloperovićat the Serbia national football team The Serbia national football team ( sr, Фудба ...

(1973) * Abdullah Matay (1973–74) * Octavian Popescu (1974–75) * Abdullah Matay (1976) * Abdulah Gegić (1977–78) * Abdullah Matay (1981–82) * Milorad Mitrović (1981–83) * Abdulah Gegić (1983) * Milorad Mitrović (1985–86) *

Ender Konca Ender Konca (born 22 October 1947) is a former footballer who played for Kasımpaşa, İstanbulspor, Eskişehirspor, Eintracht Frankfurt, Fenerbahçe and Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiy ...

(1986) *

Đorđe Gerum Đorđe Gerum (, born in 1940) is a football manager and former player who played for Partizan and has managed Sloboda Tuzla, Budućnost Podgorica and Eskişehirspor to name a few. Career Born in Pančevo, SFR Yugoslavia, Gerum began playi ...

(1986–87) * Abdullah Matay (1986–87) * Milorad Mitrović (1988–89) *

(1990) *

Ilie Datcu Ilie Datcu (born 20 July 1937), also known as İlyas Datça is a Romanian former Association football, football Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper and coach. Club career Ilie Datcu was born on 20 July 1937 in Bucharest, Kingdom of Ro ...

(1991) * Abdullah Matay (1993–94) *

Yılmaz Vural Yılmaz Vural (born 1 January 1953) is a Turkish football manager and former player. He played as a midfielder for Hacettepe and Sivasspor in the 1970s. Career He is most known for his aggressive coaching style. Vural managed most of the clubs ...

(23 May 1995 – 14 Dec 1995) *

Güvenç Kurtar Güvenç Kurtar (born 25 July 1959) is a Turkish football manager and former forward who most recently worked as head coach for Gümüşhanespor. Career Born in Uşak, Kurtar began playing football with Beşiktaş J.K. He played at Mersin Id ...

(1996) * Akif Başaran (20 Nov 1998 – 30 June 1999) * Buran Beadini (1999), (1999–00), (2001) * Yavuz İncedal (2006–07) *

Metin Diyadin Metin Diyadin (born 16 February 1968) is a Turkish football manager and retired player. He last managed Süper Lig club MKE Ankaragücü. Football career Born in Trabzon, Turkey on 16 February 1968. He started football (soccer) at his hometown ...

(4 April 2007 – 30 June 2008) * Nenad Bijedić (21 March 2008 – 1 June 2008) *

(4 July 2008 – 30 June 2011) *

Bülent Uygun Bülent Uygun (born 1 August 1971) is a Turkish football manager and former player. He played as an attacking midfielder after starting his career as a striker, and was the captain of Fenerbahçe. His nickname is ''The Soldier''. Playing career ...

(6 Oct 2010 – 7 July 2011) *

Michael Skibbe Michael Heinz Skibbe (born 4 August 1965) is a German former football player and current manager of Japanese club Sanfrecce Hiroshima. Club career In his youth, Skibbe played for SG Wattenscheid 09, then moved to the professional team of FC Sc ...

(18 July 2011 – 21 Dec 2011) *

Ersun Yanal Kazım Ersun Yanal (, born 17 December 1961) is a Turkish football coach who last managed Süper Lig club Antalyaspor. His style has always been attacking football doubled up with tactics unprecedented in Turkish Football, featuring a new scient ...

(26 Dec 2011 – 25 June 2013) *

Ertuğrul Sağlam Ertuğrul Sağlam (born 19 November 1969) is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and former player. Playing career As a player, he scored 11 goals in 30 appearances for Turkey, and was selected for the Euro 1996 squad. He began his ...

(28 June 2013 – 5 Jan 2015) *

(8 Jan 2015 – 10 Oct 2015) * Ismail Kartal (11 Oct 2015 – 12 Nov 2015) *

Samet Aybaba Samet Aybaba (born 3 February 1955, in Osmaniye) is a UEFA Pro Licensed Turkish football manager and former player. Career He was born 2 March 1955 in Adana. He began a football career in İskenderunspor. He transferred to Beşiktaş JK in 1 ...

(17 Nov 2015 – 19 May 2016) *

Alpay Özalan Fehmi Alpay Özalan (born 29 May 1973) is a Turkish former professional footballer, football manager and politician. He last worked as the manager of Samsunspor. He played 90 international games for Turkey between 1995 and 2005, making him Turk ...

(23 Jun 2016 – )

References

External links

Official websiteEskişehirspor on Turkish Football Federation.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eskisehirspor Association football clubs established in 1965 Sport in Eskişehir Football clubs in Turkey 1965 establishments in Turkey Süper Lig clubs