Football is the most popular and most watched sport branch in Turkey. There are many big sports clubs and there are millions of people supporting them. Besiktas Gymnastics Club is one of the biggest sports clubs of Turkey and is one of the long-established ones of Istanbul. It was found in 1903, when there were no big stadiums that pursue football activities. Besiktas supporters and the members of Besiktas football team liken the stadium with the concept of home and call it by the name “Eagle’s Nest” since Besiktas team is identified with black eagles. It is not hard to guess that the stadium located in the Besiktas district of Istanbul is very significant and valuable to the residents of Besiktas. It has an unstable story but also a glorious one. It witnessed many breath-taking moments in the history of football in Turkey as well as many unbelievable stage performances by globally famous artist. Seeing Besiktas JK Museum and not discovering Besiktas in its entirety would be a shame therefore we prepared you a humble advice on what to do in Besiktas alongside with information on the museum.
A Brief History of Beşiktaş JK Stadium
In 1939, by Turkish architects’ cooperation with invited architects from Italy initiated the project of a stadium, on the area which was used as the Dolmabahce Palace’s horse stables before. These were the ground works for Inonu Stadium. Unfortunately, the conditions as results of the Second World War, inhibited the construction. In 1943, it was reinitiated. It took 4 years to build the stadium and on 27 November 1947 it was opened. Later the name Inonu, which was the name of Ataturk’s brother in arms and the first president of the republic was eliminated because of the political conflicts.
When it was first open it had the capacity to host 16 thousand people because the aim for the construction was to be aesthetic rather than seating thousands of people. However, when the number of supporters enlarged in big numbers through the years, in 1950 they had to add 5000 seats more. Later it reached 41.000 people capacity by further additions and adjustments.
After the final restorations in 2004, even though the stadium was considered as a football sanctuary, almost like a sacred place for the supporters, building a new stadium from scratch became an issue. Finally, in 2013 the foundations were established to build a new stadium and on 10th of November 2016 the stadium began functioning under the name of Vodafone Arena.
Why Beşiktaş JK Museum is Significant?
Bjk Stadium became an exceptional stadium because it did not only host unremarkable football matches but also many events and memorable concerts. In the summer of 1993, which is now remembered as the unforgettable summer of Inonu Stadium, many concerts took place in the stadium. Michael Jackson, Guns N’ Roses, Elton John, Bon Jovi, Metallica, Madonna Sting and Scorpions gave a musical feast to the ears of Istanbul residents on that summer. Then it continued hosting many more legends of millennial culture even until today.
A museum, carrying the title of being the first museum in commemoration of sports culture and history of Turkey, opened in the stadium in 11 December 2011. Besiktas who witnessed the sports history of Turkey, with its 115-year history turns its museum collection resources for sports culture. You can reach the museum, that is built on 1650 m2 area, if you enter from the “19 Mayis” gate of the Vodafone Park Arena. It is the largest sports museum in Turkey in that sense. You will see the chronology of the club and receive information about the branches of sports that the club is active in with more than 50 digital applications appropriate for a wide range of age group. The working hours for the Besiktas JK Museum are 10.00-18.00 in October-May and 10.00-19.00 in June-September, any day but Mondays.
What’s Around Beşiktaş JK Museum
As we stated before the stadium is located in Besiktas, the most central neighbourhoods of European Istanbul. There are many things to do in Besiktas after your visit to the stadium and it is a great location to start your journey in Istanbul especially if it is your first time there. First thing to do while you are planning your trip is to find a place to stay so we recommend you to try Swissotel the Bosphorus or Conrad Istanbul Bosphorus which are both located in Besiktas and close to the stadium. It is easy to reach anywhere you want from there because public transportation is available and bus stops are ridiculously close by. You can also take the ferry to the Princes’ Islands or ferry to the Anatolian side of Istanbul. If you would like to see all of the islands you can also take a Prince’s Islands Boat Trip. Dolmabahce Palace is also close to the stadium you reach there on foot. The palace emphasizes the Bosporus’ beauty when it is lighted in the night and signifies the latest palace life of Ottoman Empire so you should not miss Dolmabahce Palace on your Istanbul visit as well. You can have a tour of Dolmabahce Palace if you have your Tourist Pass. You can even attend a tour of palaces and pay an extended visit to the palace if you don’t want to overlook the delicate details of it. Painting and Sculpture Museum, National Palaces Painting Museum, Palace Collections Museum, Vampire House and Dolmabahce Mosque are all close to th stadium so you might consider visiting them as well. The subject of the Gezi events of 2013, Gezi Park is very close to the stadium. You can relax and take a break from the rush while you are there. Finally, Kucuk Ciftlik Park which is a very nice place that hosts concerts, festivals and various events very frequently, is practically near the stadium. You might arrange your schedule to attend a concert or a festival there accordingly.
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Yes you can enter and discover the museum freely with a wheelchair.