On the 26 February 2023 a football game of the Turkish Süper Lig between Besiktas from Istanbul and Antalyaspor from Antalya took place in the Vodafone Park in Istanbul.[1] During the match, when the clock showed 4 Minutes and 17 seconds, the fans hurled stuffed toys to the pitch for the children that survived the devastating earthquake from February 2023.[2][3]

Background

On the 6 February 2023, Turkey was struck by a devastating earthquake which caused over 45''000 deaths.[4] The Turkish Government is criticized for its insufficient response to the earthquake by the fans of both the fans of Fenerbahçe S.K. and also Besiktas.[5]

Match stopped at 4:17

The match was stopped when the clock showed 4 Minutes and 17 seconds in memory of the victims of the earthquake on the 6 February 2023, which took place on 4.17am.[3] Following the fans hurled toys, berets and scarves on the football pitch meant to cheer up the children in the earthquake region[3] and on the billboard in the stadium, the names of the affected provinces were displayed.[6] The action was organized by the fans before the match when the toys were distributed among the fans in a coordinated manner. The action would be called "this toy is my friend".[7]

Gürsel Tekin announced he would come up for the membership fees of the cancelling politicians.

Anti-Government protests

The match would also become known due the fans demands for the Turkish Government to resign.[1][8] The crowd protested over the lack of responses the Government gave in the aftermacth of the earthquake.[6] Over a video from the online news portal Haber, it was shown how some protesters were expelled from the tribune by the police.[6]

Devlet Bahçeli, the political ally of the President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan from the right-wing Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), fiercely criticized the fans demand for the Government to resign and canceled his membership in the club.[8] Sermet Ay and Semih Yalçın, both also lawmakers of the MHP then followed suit and also canceled their memberships.[8] From the Justice and Development Party (AKP) Yavuz Subaşı resigned from the club as well.[8] The lawmaker of the Republican Peoples Party (CHP) Gürsel Tekin announced that he would come up for financial losses the clubs faced over the cancelation of the memberships.[8]

See also

Fenerbahçe – Konyaspor match of 2023

References

  1. 1 2 "Besiktas fans throw toys on to pitch for children affected by earthquake". The Guardian. 2023-02-27. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  2. ↑ Burton, Chris (26 February 2023). "WATCH: Besiktas fans throw thousands of stuffed toys onto pitch as donation to children impacted by Turkish earthquakes | Goal.com". Goal. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  3. 1 2 3 "Soccer-Besiktas fans throw toys on field for children affected by earthquake". Swissinfo. Retrieved 2023-03-02.
  4. ↑ "Besiktas fans throw toys onto pitch in support of those affected by earthquakes". ca.sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  5. ↑ Wilks, Andrew (28 February 2023). "Sports stadiums shake as fans bash Turkey's earthquake response - Al-Monitor: Independent, trusted coverage of the Middle East". Al Monitor. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  6. 1 2 3 "Türkische Fußball-Fans protestieren – und fordern Erdogans Rücktritt". Frankfurter Rundschau (in German). Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  7. ↑ "Besiktas fans throw toys onto pitch in support of those affected by earthquakes". ca.sports.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Football clubs, MPs announce support for government after fans' earthquake protests". Bianet. 27 February 2023.
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