Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium

Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium is a football stadium in the district of Fenerbahçe, in the Kadiköy region of Istanbul, Turkey. It was inaugurated in 1908, renovated between 1999 and 2006 and currently increased in capacity. It is the first stadium in Turkey designed according to official football regulations in standards. It is the home ground of Fenerbahçe S.K.. On October 4, 2006, after numerous inspections by UEFA, Fenerbahçe’s stadium, Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium, was selected to host the 2009 UEFA Cup Final.

The stadium is unique in that most Turkish stadiums have a running track between the pitch and the stands, while here the fans are on top of the action. The Fenerbahçe Sükrü Saracoglu Stadyumu has gone through a complete rebuilding process which involved each stand being destructed and rebuilt after one another. Every one of these stands have been built closer to the pitch, getting the fan closer to the action on the field.

This style of stadium has never before existed in Turkey, as the stands are usually separated from the pitch by a running track. The “Maraton” stand can hold up to 14,500 spectators. This stand includes “Box Offices” which have all been rented out from the club. These Box Offices, equipped with TV`s, Internet, work areas, dining facilities and many other luxuries, are the first of their kind in Turkey. Facing Maraton is the “Fenerium” stand with its 15,000 seats capacity and its equally luxurious “1907″ zone. With each remaining stands (namely “Migros” and “Telsim”) having a 10,500 capacity, the total capacity of the stadium is 55,000.

History

When Sükrü Saracoglu Stadyumu was first built it was not used by the Fenerbahçe SK but another football club, Union Club. It was built on a land leased from the Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid II for 30 ottoman gold coins a year. The construction costs were 3000 Ottoman gold coins.

However, Union Club could not afford to pay the lease amount so in 1909 the stadium was leased to Fenerbahçe SK for one year. Later in 1915, during the World War I, Union Club was split and changed name to Ittihat Spor Kulübü. It was the primary football venue in Istanbul in all the years until the bigger Taksim Stadium is built, and after that it has lost its importance until Fenerbahçe SK had shown interest to the stadium one more time in 1929 and renamed the stadium Fenerbahçe Stadium (In history the stadium is also known as Papazin Çayiri or Ittihat Spor Sahasi).

In 1933, during the club presidency of Sükrü Saracoglu, Fenerbahçe bought the stadium from the government for 9000 TL. This had made Fenerbahçe SK the first football club in Turkey to own its stadium. During the following years Fenerbahçe SK had renovated and increased the seating capacity of the stadium by financing the construction through internal resources like organizing lotteries and/or debt financing. By year 1949 Sükrü Saracoglu Stadium was the biggest stadium in Turkey with seating capacity of 25,000.

The latest round of renovations and capacity increase projects started in 1999 and ended in 2006. The four sides of the stadium were torn down one at a time as the normal league season progress. The stadium now has a seating capacity of 50,509.

(source .. wikipedia) reproduced under GFDL

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