The British are hopeful for Istanbul! No losses in the finals

Istanbul, which has organized the final of the UEFA Champions League, the number 1 organization of European football, twice, has also witnessed the UEFA Cup final and the UEFA Super Cup once each.

FIRST FINAL AMONG THE UNFORGETTABLE ONES

In the 2005 UEFA Champions League final played at Atatürk Olympic Stadium, Liverpool and Milan faced each other and the first final in Istanbul witnessed one of the most dramatic and unforgettable comebacks in football history.

Milan ended the first half of the match 3-0 ahead with goals scored by Paolo Maldini and Hernan Crespo (2). Liverpool equalized the score with goals from Steven Gerrard, Vladimir Smicer and Xabi Alonso in the second half and won the trophy in the first UEFA Cup final held in Turkey with a 3-2 victory in the penalty shootout.

UEFA CUP ENDED IN ISTANBUL

In 2009, Istanbul put an end to the UEFA Cup. The UEFA Cup organization, which was held for the last time under its old name and was called UEFA Europa League the following year, was completed in Istanbul.

Shakhtar Donetsk, coached by Mircea Lucescu, one of the former coaches of the A National Football Team who passed away in the past days, lifted the first European Cup in its history in Istanbul.

In the final played at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, Shakhtar Donetsk defeated German team Werder Bremen 2-1 and took the UEFA Cup to its museum.

THE SUPER CUP ALSO WENT TO THE ISLAND

In the 2019 UEFA Super Cup match, two English teams faced each other.

Liverpool came to Istanbul as UEFA Champions League champions, while Chelsea took the field for the Super Cup as UEFA Europa League winners.

The game, which was played at Beşiktaş's Tüpraş Stadium, ended 1-1 in normal time and after the extra time ended 2-2, penalty shootouts were held.

Liverpool won the cup with a 5-4 victory in the penalty shootout. Liverpool thus returned home with a trophy from the second final played in Istanbul.

MANCHESTER CITY MADE HISTORY

Eighteen years after the first UEFA Champions League final, Atatürk Olympic Stadium once again opened its doors to determine the greatest of European football.

In the 2023 UEFA Champions League final played in Istanbul, England's Manchester City defeated Italy's Inter 1-0 to win the trophy.

With this victory, Manchester City won the first UEFA Champions League title in its history, while also lifting the Premier League and the Federation Cup that season, making it a "treble".

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola lifted the trophy in Istanbul for the third time in his career after winning it twice at Barcelona.

ISTANBUL WORKS FOR THE BRITISH

England teams took part in all but one of the 4 finals held in Istanbul.

Except for the UEFA Cup final between Shakhtar Donetsk and Werder Bremen, English teams won the trophy in 2 UEFA Champions League and 1 UEFA Super Cup matches.

In the UEFA Champions League finals hosted by Istanbul, Liverpool and Manchester City defeated their Italian rivals to reach the happy end, while Liverpool was the happy winner in the Super Cup, where two English teams faced each other.

If the English team Aston Villa defeats the German representative Freiburg in the UEFA Europa League final to be played tomorrow, the series of winning the final in Istanbul will continue.

ANOTHER FINAL WILL BE PLAYED IN TURKEY IN 2027

Turkey will also host the 2027 UEFA Conference League final.

There are two candidate cities from Turkey for the organization that will be held to determine next season's champion. If the 19 Mayıs Stadium under construction in Ankara is completed, the final will be played in the capital. However, if the construction is not completed, Beşiktaş's Tüpraş Stadium will host the final.