Türkiye - Estonia national match and Türk Telekom Arena stadium

The Turkey-Estonia national match was played today at the Türk Telekom Arena stadium. Turkey took the lead in the 8th minute when Emre converted a penalty after being brought down in the penalty area. In the 28th minute, Kazım scored from outside the penalty area to the right corner, and in the 35th minute, he scored again from outside the penalty area to the left corner. The Turkish national team, which started the second half with numerous substitutions, failed to score in that half and won the match 3-0.

The events before and after the match demonstrate that we still lack the ability to organize large-scale events.

PRE-MATCH

Many sports and football enthusiasts flocked to this national team match, which coincided with Ramadan due to the low prices offered for match tickets. Yes, the stadium wasn’t completely full, but many people, perhaps bringing their spouses, daughters, and girlfriends, had come to watch a match for the first time. Özden, for example, was about to watch a football match from the stadium for the first time.

Since we bought our tickets on match day, we learned that there were still tickets left behind the goalposts and in the east and west stands. The staff at the Cevahir Biletix booth told us that all tickets had been sold and that only the sections I just mentioned were left. We purchased our tickets from the west stand, designated 103, paying fifteen lira each. Since we expected the stadium to be completely full, we decided to go early and break our fast inside the stadium with homemade sandwiches. Of course, we knew that bottles of water and canned drinks were not allowed in the stadium. After carefully reading the “Competition-Related Prohibitions” section on the back of our tickets, we thought sandwiches wouldn’t be a problem. I’d like to remind you of these provisions now.

Competition-Related Prohibitions
1. It is prohibited to enter the field of play, bring into the stadium any weapons, sharp or piercing tools, firecrackers, smoke bombs, sound bombs, torches, stones, any hard objects that can be thrown, any other items that could pose a danger or disrupt the match, alcoholic beverages, confetti and similar items that could pollute the environment, 0.5 liter plastic bottles of water, or any metal canned beverages.

2. Banners are prohibited from entering the stadium on the day of the match.

3. Slogans and chants that are derogatory, provocative, or harassing, or that contain foul language directed at the opposing team and its fans, club managers, coaches, athletes, referees, and federation officials are prohibited.

4. Using language that is contrary to sports ethics, provocative, or derogatory, or that discriminates based on language, religion, sect, race, gender, ethnicity, or political affiliation, or bringing posters or banners with such content into the field of play is prohibited.

5. Destroying or damaging any stadium equipment is prohibited.

ENTRY TO THE MATCH

We had our iftar in front of the turnstiles.

An hour before the match, we were in front of the B3 turnstiles, where we would enter. We handed our tickets to the attendant and took turns entering, but the ticket offices didn’t recognize our tickets.