Adana Demirspor

The foundation of Adana Demirspor was first laid down in 1938 by Eşref Demirağ, Vasfı Ramzan, Hasan Silah, Hikmet Tezel, Feridun Kuzeybay, Seha Keyder, Emin Ersan, Esat Gürkan, and Kenan Gülgün from TCDD. The club was formally founded on 28 December 1940 with the help of over five hundred employees of TCDD.[8] Adana Demirspor competed in the Adana Football League along with the Cilician clubs; Mersin İdman Yurdu, Tarsus İdman Yurdu, Torosspor, Seyhanspor, and Milli Mensucat. Demirspor won the league a record 15 times between 1942 and 1959.[9] They also won the Turkish Amateur Championship in 1954 against Hacettepe. The match finished 1–0, with Selami Tekkazancı scoring the only goal.[8]

Former club office at the Central Station (now Club Museum)

Before 1959, Turkey did not have a national professional league. Instead, teams competed in regional amateur leagues in cities such as Adana, Ankara, Eskişehir, İzmir, Kayseri, and Trabzon.[10] The Milli Lig, known today as the Süper Lig, was created in 1959. The league consisted of eight clubs from Istanbul, and four clubs each from Ankara and İzmir.[11] When Adana Demirspor joined the Milli Lig in 1960, they became the first club from outside the three major football cities to compete. However, their stay didn't last long, as they finished last place with 18 points in their first season due to playing their home matches in Ankara.[12] The club returned to the Adana League, where they competed until 1963. The 2.Lig (Second Division)[13] was created at the start of the 1963–64 season. Adana Demirspor were allowed to compete in the league, and placed second in their first season.[14] Demirspor competed in the 2. Lig for nine years before gaining promotion back to the 1. Lig for the first time since the 1960–61 season. They secured promotion after defeating Uşakspor 2–0, with goals from Fatih Terim and Bektaş Yurttasın.[8][15]

Adana Demirspor reached the finals of the 1977–78 Turkish Cup. At the time, the final was played over two legs. Demirspor lost the first leg 3–0, and failed to make a comeback in the second leg, drawing 0–0 with Trabzonspor. They met Trabzonspor in a cup final once more that year, this time in the Prime Minister's Cup, but would go on to lose 2–1.[4][7] Their stay in the top-flight continued through 1984, and reached its apex when the club finished sixth in the 1981–82 season.[5] Since then, Demirspor have failed to match their success. They spent the next several years moving back and forth between the 1. Lig and 2. Lig. Their last season of top-flight football came in 1994–95. The club finished with 15 points, their lowest point total ever in the 1. Lig.[8][16] Adana Demirspor reached their lowest point professionally in 1999 when they were relegated to the 3. Lig (Third Division before the 2001–02 season). The club spent two years in the 3. Lig before gaining promotion to the newly created 2. Lig. The 2. Lig became the 1. Lig and the 1. Lig became the Süper Lig in 2001. Adana Demirspor competed in the 2. Lig from 2004 to 2012, before returning to First League after winning promotion play-offs.[8]

After completing the 1. Lig as the leader in the 2020–2021 season, Demirspor was promoted to the Süper Lig after 26 years. The club finished the 2021-2022 season as 9th in the Süper Lig.

Marathon (East) stands choreography show

Adana Demir's homeground is the New Adana Stadium since March 2021. The stadium has a capacity of 33,543 seats.[17] The stadium's north seats are painted to Adana Demirspor's jersey colors and south seats are painted to Adanaspor's jersey colors. Şimşekler group gather at the North Stand, other fan groups tend to gather at the northern section of the East Stands. From 1940 to 2021, the football team played their home games at the now defunct 5 Ocak Stadium. The waterpolo team played their home games at the Atatürk Swimming Complex from 1940 to dissolution. Menderes Sports Hall hosted club's basketball and volleyball teams.

The main training ground in Yüreğir

Club Store in Reşatbey

Adana Demir's main training ground is the "Adana Demirspor Tesisleri", along the Seyhan river bank in the Yüreğir district. The training ground was built by the Metropolitan Municipality on a state land in early 2000s. It was named the Aytaç Durak Tesisleri to honour the long-time serving mayor of Adana, who lead the construction of the training ground. As it was built on a state land without a tenancy agreement, Milli Emlak (en:National Property Foundation) sent an eviction notice several times in late 2010s. In March 2019, with the efforts of the Adana MP Jülide Sarıeroğlu, a tenancy agreement is finally made between ADS and the Milli Emlak which secured the training ground for a long-term and at the same time the facility is renamed the Adana Demirspor Tesisleri.[18] The main training ground hosts the club's Head Office and is made of 4 football fields, Club store, fitness center, swimming pool and the staff-player residences.

Adana Demir youth teams train at the TCDD owned training ground at the Central railway station in Kurtuluş, Seyhan. The property, which is composed of a football field and Youth Office, is rented out to Adana Demir for free. ADS Club Museum which is next to the TCDD training ground, was the club's Head Office from 1940 to 2000. Adana Demir has three club stores, one at the main training ground, one at M1 mall and one at the Park Adana mall. The club store at the 5 Ocak Stadium in Reşatbey, moved a little further and is now ran by the supporter group, Şimşekler.

A banner at a TCDD facility: 'Adana Demirspor are the brow sweat of the railway workers.'

Adana Demirspor draw support from all over the city and as well as from the districts of the Adana Province. As being founded as a railway club, they are supported by the railway workers in Turkey. Politically left leaning people also have sympathy for the club.

The main supporters group is called Mavi Şimşekler, which translates to Blue lightnings. The fans are known to have a left-wing political stance, as result they have good relations with other left-wing teams such as Livorno and St Pauli. The archrivals are Adanaspor, who share the New Adana Stadium with Adana Demirspor.[19][20]

• Adana Football
  • National Finals
    • Winners (1) : 1954
    • Third (2) : 1947, 1951[23]
  • Adana League
    • Winners (16) (record): 1942–43, 1943–44, 1944–45, 1945–46, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1949–50, 1950–51, 1951–52, 1952–53, 1953–54, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59[24]
• Turkish Football League System
  • Second Tier (1.Lig)
    • Winners (4): 1972–73, 1986–87, 1990–91, 2020–21
    • Playoff winners (1): 1993–94
  • Third Tier (2.Lig)
    • Winners (1): 2001–02,[25]
    • Playoff winners (1): 2011–12
  • Turkish Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 1977–78[26]
  • Prime Minister's Cup
    • Runners-up (1): 1978[7]
• Turkish Waterpolo League
  • Sutopu 1.Lig
    • Winners (21): 1942, 1943, 1944, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965
• Turkish Basketball League
  • Second Tier (TBL)
    • Winners (2): 1972–73, 1974–75

Adana Demirspor is an incorporated company that will partially open to public. President Murat Sancak holds the majority of the shares. The club were a member-owned sports club until 2021. From 1940 to 1959, the club were directly governed by TCDD.

As of 21 September 2021[27]

Fatih Terim and Hasan Şaş, two names synonymous with Galatasaray S.K. and the Turkish national team, were born in Adana and began their careers with Adana Demirspor. Terim spent five years at the club before moving to Galatasaray. He became a manager after retiring and won several honours, including the UEFA Cup in 2000, four straight Süper Lig titles,[28] and a semi-final finish in the 2008 UEFA European Football Championship. Şaş spent two years at the club before moving to Ankaragücü in 1995. He was a part of the Turkey squad that finished in third place at the 2002 FIFA World Cup. He also played a part in winning five Süper Lig[29] and three Turkish Cup titles with Galatasaray from 1998 to 2009. Adana Demirspor also produced striker Taner Gülleri.

Notes

Citations

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Adana Demirspor.

• Official website
• Adana Demirspor on TFF.org