...Turkey, Bursaspor’s cursed crocodile stadium may lead them down to the fourth tier
WEIRD WORLD OF FOOTBALL
When Bursaspor moved into the Timsah Arena in 2016, they hoped their crocodile stadium would lead them back to the summit of Turkish football – and host Euro 2024 this year.
The 44,000-capacity venue was part of Turkey’s bid to host the Euros and quickly gained fame because of its croc design, to match Bursaspor’s nickname of the Green Crocodiles.
The future looked bright for a club who were Turkish champs as recently as 2010 – taking on Manchester United and Rangers in the Champions League later that year, before recruiting, er, Scott Carson, Kenny Miller and Anton Ferdinand.
Turkey lost out to Germany in their Euros bid though, and their new stadium has been about as intimidating as a baby crocodile with its mouth taped up. Once European regulars, they didn’t reach continental competition again after moving into their new home – instead, they fell into financial problems, were relegated in 2019, then went down another level in 2022.
This season, it’s got worse – with just 14 points from their first 20 matches, they sat 18th in the third tier, on course for a drop to the fourth division.
Is the stadium cursed, or are they just rubbish? Either way, to avoid yet another relegation, they really need to turn around results – and make it snappy.
CELEBRITY SIGNING
Portuguese second-tier club Vilaverdense have struggled in front of goal this term, but had a solution: signing Paris Hilton’s 45-year-old brother-in-law.
Courtney Reum isn’t a pro, but his brother is married to Hilton, so can maybe network his way to a hat-trick or something.
“The decision was taken by our scouting department,” the Canadian-owned club insisted. “His age isn’t a problem – he has the energy of a 20-year-old.”
The plan showed no early sign of working: bad results went on, with Reum nowhere to be seen.
