5G teeth for Turkey top-flights’ home stadia

Article posted by Coliseum, March 12^th, 2025

Image: Tüpraş Stadyumu, Beşiktaş JK, CC BY 2.0

The Transport and Infrastructure Ministry has conducted Turkey’s first-ever 5G tests during a football match with plans to expand the technology across the whole country by 2026.

‘Hurriyet DAILY NEWS’ stated that the authorities trialed the 5G technology at the RAMS Park in Turkey, home of the Süper Lig team Galatasaray S.K., as the Turkish football giant hosted the Dutch club AZ Alkmaar marking the first sporting event in Türkiye to utilize the fresh technology.

The 52,600-capacity Ali Sami Yen Spor Kompleksi, branded as the Rams Park for sponsorship reasons, is a football stadium serving as the home ground of the Süper Lig club Galatasaray S.K. It is located in the Seyrantepe quarter of the Sariyer district on the European side of Istanbul, Turkey.

The Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (Galatasaray Sports Club), more commonly referred to as simply Galatasaray, is a Turkish professional football club based on the European side of the City of Istanbul, Turkey. It plays in the Süper Lig, the top-flight of the Turkish football league system.

The AZ Alkmaar is a Dutch professional football club from Alkmaar and the Zaan district. The club plays in the Eredivisie, the highest professional football league in the Netherlands. The 19,500-capacity AFAS Stadium in Alkmaar, Netherlands, serves as their home ground.

‘Hurriyet DAILY NEWS’ further stated that Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu shared the above news on social media emphasizing that after the Istanbul Airport and 33 production facilities 5G is now being tested in the stadiums.

He added, “We keep working to quickly spread it across Turkey.”

In a previous statement, Uraloğlu had revealed that the 5G technology would be implemented in the stadiums of Turkey’s top four football clubs – Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe S.K., Beşiktaş J.K., and Trabzonspor Kulübü (all Süper Lig teams).

Following Galatasaray’s stadium the Ministry will decide on the service delivery terms and develop the required infrastructure for the stadiums of the remaining three clubs.

Uraloğlu noted that the 5G trials are part of a nationwide effort involving cooperation between the Ministry and the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK), the private sector representatives and the other relevant organizations.

Ankara (Turkey)-based the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (ICTA) is a national telecommunications regulatory and inspection authority of Turkey.

Uraloğlu highlighted the speed and efficiency benefits of 5G including the ability to remotely control the machinery and enhance robotics in production.

As of now, 5G testing is underway in 34 locations across Cities like Istanbul, Ankara and İzmir, Eskişehir and Konya, already allowing the public to experience 5G with compatible devices.

Uraloğlu confirmed that after a successful testing process the technology will be gradually rolled out across Turkey with full nationwide 5G coverage expected by 2026.

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