Antalya, which is among the destinations with a high potential for sports tourism with its favorable climate and facilities, has become the camp address of many foreign football clubs during the break between leagues due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Antalya, which hosts millions of tourists due to its sea, sand, sun, historical buildings and luxury facilities in the summer, also spends active days with sports tourism in the winter months. Antalya stands out as the camp center of football clubs from many countries during the break due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Crystal Palace from the English Premier League, Napoli, which is the leader in the Italian 1st Football League (Serie A), became the first teams to camp in Antalya from these leagues.
Toulouse from the French League 1, Salernitana from the Italian Serie A teams, Charleroi and Westerlo from the Belgian 1st League teams, Fortuna Sittard from the Netherlands 1st League representative, Hull City from the British Championship teams, Maccabi Tel-Aviv from Israel, Al Batin from the Saudi Arabian team, Albanian League team Partizani and Latvian club Liepaja chose Antalya for their winter camp.
The convoys of foreign clubs were amazed by the facilities they encountered in Antalya and the facilities in the hotels they stayed in. The guest teams, who also like Turkish food, are happy because of the good camping opportunities in Antalya.
Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray, Medipol Başakşehir, Trabzonspor, Demir Grup Sivasspor, Bitexen Giresunspor from Spor Toto Super League, HanimKredi Ümraniyespor, Arabam.com Konyaspor, Adana Demirspor, Gaziantep FK, Yukatel Kayserispor, Atakaş Hatayspor, MKE Ankaragücü, VavaCars Fatih Karagümrük also met in Antalya for the camp between the World Cup.
While more than 100 teams are camping in Antalya, together with the lower league teams as well as the upper leagues, it is stated that this number will reach 2,000 by the end of March when the halftime breaks in the lower leagues start.
FROM 934 SPORTS FACILITIES IN THE CITY, 200 ARE FOOTBALL FIELD
Antalya, which has climate conditions suitable for sports in all seasons, quality hotels and fields, has 934 sports facilities, 185 of which are owned by public institutions and 749 are owned by the private sector. 500 teams can use the 200 football fields of FIFA standards in the city during the same camp period.
Antalya Youth and Sports Provincial Director Yavuz Gürhan said that the city is one of the unique destinations that contains many elements.
Stating that Antalya, which has a strong infrastructure, gets active with sports tourism in the winter season, Gürhan said, “We are a rich city in terms of facilities. 200 of the sports facilities are football fields. We have over 500 tennis courts. Our Belek Tourism Center also offers luxury hotels, sports at international standards, and sports facilities at international standards. stands out with its facilities.” he said.
“WE EXPECT A RECORD IN FOOTBALL TOURISM THIS YEAR”
Turkish Travel Agencies Association (TÜRSAB) Sports Tourism Specialization President Recep Şamil Yaşacan stated that the football team camps started early because of the World Cup.
Stating that Turkey has a high potential for sports tourism, Yaşacan said:
Football teams from many European countries, especially England and Italy, entered the camp in our city. Crystal Palace from the Premier League for the first time, and Napoli Antalya from the Serie A for the first time evaluates the cup break. Football is a very active season. As our region, hotels and fields are very good in terms of logistics, Antalya has become the preferred center. We expect a record in football tourism this year.”