Turkey

Turkey's national team, known as the 'Crescent-Stars' (Ay-Yıldızlılar), is one of European football's most passionately supported programs, backed by a fervent home following at packed Istanbul stadiums. The team has produced flashes of major tournament brilliance, most memorably a run to the semifinals of the FIFA World Cup and, years later, a run to the semifinals of the European Championship. Turkey's style blends physical resilience with moments of individual flair, and the team remains a fixture of UEFA qualifying campaigns. The program continues to chase its first major international trophy.

Turkey played its first official international on October 26, 1923, a 2-2 draw with Romania, and has been a FIFA member since that year, later joining UEFA in 1962. The team's greatest World Cup run came in 2002, reaching the semifinals and finishing third, one of the great surprise runs of that tournament. Turkey matched that achievement in European competition at UEFA Euro 2008, advancing to the semifinals with a string of dramatic late goals before falling to eventual champion Germany. Despite these deep tournament runs, Turkey has yet to win a major international title, and its supporters remain among the most fervent in world football.