Football in Turkey from 1960 to Present Day: Unpreventable Violence

Abstract

This study seeks to investigate the issue of violence in football in Turkey from 1960 up to present day along with incidents, riots and stampedes that occurred related to violence in football. The study was conducted considering three main periods, which are from 1960 to 1980,    1980 to 2000 and finally 2000 and today. The reason why these particular periods were chosen was that each period had its own characteristics related to football-related violence and other aspects that affected it. To collect data, 15 members of fan groups were interviewed related to the football-related violence. Furthermore, the study took into account not only physical aspect of violence but also social and psychological aspect of it. Findings revealed that Turkey has been a country where football-related violence has never been completely prevented due to reasons such as coups, coup attempts, political issues, social behaviors shaped by these political issues, regulations and media considering these periods. And based on the participant opinions, it was found that main actors responsible for the violence are top officials in the football federation, politicians and media. As a result, football-related violence remains to be a major problem in football games not only on the pitch but also off the pitch.