19.03.2025 14:00
The "Big Four," which have transferred dozens of players and coaches and spent millions of euros, have played a total of 18 matches in UEFA Champions League, Europe's number one tournament, over the last 6 seasons, managing to secure only 1 victory. The giants of Turkish football have paid a total of 2.12 billion euros (85 billion lira) in transfer fees and player-coach earnings from the 2019-2020 season to the halfway point of the 2024-2025 season.
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In the UEFA Champions League, considered the most important showcase of European football, Turkish teams have been virtually absent for the last 6 seasons. Despite transferring dozens of players and spending millions of euros each year, Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, and Trabzonspor, which are described as the locomotive of Turkish football, have played almost "nonexistent" roles in the Champions League. During this period, the 4 Big Teams transferred a total of 376 players and worked with 26 coaches. The clubs spent a total of 2.12 billion euros (equivalent to 85 billion lira at current exchange rates) on transfer fees, player, and coach earnings, managing to secure only 1 victory in the Champions League.
376 PLAYERS TRANSFERRED
The 4 Big Teams have signed contracts with a total of 376 players since the 2019-20 season. Trabzonspor was the team that made the most transfers with 105 players. Fenerbahçe signed 100 players, while Galatasaray added 92 and Beşiktaş brought in 79 players to their squad.
26 COACHES HAVE SERVED
To achieve success, the clubs that transfer dozens of players each season could not rely on their coaches either. Between 2019 and 2025, the 4 Big Teams worked with a total of 26 coaches, 23 of whom were different. Şenol Güneş served once at Beşiktaş and Trabzonspor, while Fenerbahçe entrusted İsmail Kartal and Trabzonspor entrusted Abdullah Avcı twice. In the last 6 seasons, Beşiktaş and Trabzonspor had 8 coaches each, Fenerbahçe had 7, and Galatasaray had 3 coaches.
TRANSFER COSTS OF 2.12 BILLION EUROS
According to their notifications to the Public Disclosure Platform (KAP), the 4 Big Teams paid a total of 2.12 billion euros for transfer fees and player-coach earnings from the 2019-20 season until the halfway point of the 2024-25 season.
In these categories, Galatasaray spent 640.3 million euros, Fenerbahçe 621.5 million euros, Beşiktaş 473.9 million euros, and Trabzonspor 389 million euros. Meanwhile, the clubs' expenditures during the winter transfer period of this season (2024-25) and the player/coach salaries in the second half of the season will be clarified with year-end balances.
1 VICTORY IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
Although the 4 Big Teams made numerous transfers and spent millions of euros to compete with Europe, the calculations at home did not match the market. In the most prestigious tournament in Europe, the UEFA Champions League, in the last 6 seasons, Galatasaray appeared twice and Beşiktaş once. The yellow-red team and the black-and-white team managed to secure only 1 victory out of a total of 18 matches, with 13 losses and 4 draws.
6 TIMES THEY FAILED TO PASS THE QUALIFIERS IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
The 4 Big Teams failed to pass the Champions League qualifying rounds 6 times. Galatasaray in 2021-22 and 2024-25, Fenerbahçe in 2022-23 and 2024-25, Trabzonspor in 2022-23, and Beşiktaş in 2020-21 bowed to their opponents, losing the chance to showcase themselves in the Champions League. The teams that did not allow the 4 Big Teams to pass were D.Kiev, Lille, PSV, Young Boys, Copenhagen, and PAOK.
BEST ACHIEVEMENT: QUARTER-FINAL IN THE CONFERENCE LEAGUE
In contrast to the exorbitant number of transfers and spending, Fenerbahçe and Trabzonspor could not participate in European cups for 2 seasons, while Beşiktaş and Galatasaray could not participate for 1 season each. Unable to compete in the Champions League, the 4 Big Teams also failed to go beyond the Round of 16 in the second-tier tournament, the Europa League. The teams' greatest success came in the Conference League, which started 4 seasons ago and features relatively weaker opponents. In UEFA's third tournament, Fenerbahçe reached the quarter-finals in the 2023-24 season but was eliminated by the Greek team Olympiakos in that round.
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