Beşiktaş announces it will stay at İnönü Stadium
ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News
Beşiktaş plans renovating İnönü Stadium to turn the historic venue to a modern one. Hürriyet photo
Beşiktaş ended speculations and announced it would continue playing next season’s games at theİnönü Stadium.
The Istanbul club made a statement late July 10 that it will “play its home games in the 2012 to 2013 football season at the İnönü Stadium.”
Debt-ridden Beşiktaş had been planning to renovate its historic stadium next season to turn the venue into a more lucrative one, similar to how its rivals Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe have done in recent years.
Galatasaray left its Ali Sami Yen Stadium to move to a modern ground at Türk Telekom Arena last year and Fenerbahçe renovated its Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium gradually while the team still continued to play its home games there.
Beşiktaş had asked Galatasaray if they could play home games at the Türk Telekom Arena while İnönü Stadium was under construction, but the club’s repeated demands were categorically rejected.
“We are not only saddened by Galatasaray’s rejection of our demands, but also saddened by the statements of some members of the Galatasaray board, which are in no way suited to the 100-year-old friendship between the two clubs,” a statement released by the club said.
Galatasaray coach Fatih Terim had said he was OK with sharing the stadium with their rivals, but the club’s board member Adnan Öztürk had rejected the proposal, citing the idea that fans are still adapting to the new stadium as reasoning.
Beşiktaş’s announcement signaled that the construction for İnönü Stadium would be delayed, but the club said construction works would be underway later in the season.
The state will help Beşiktaş finance its reconstruction, Culture and Tourism Minister Ertuğrul Günay said earlier this year.
“We will work with the Beşiktaş board in a joint project to renovate the stadium,” Günay said. “We will do it while preserving the stadium’s cultural and historical texture.”
Various media outlets have also suggested that a new mall would be built on the incredibly valuable location and that Beşiktaş would be moved to another stadium, but Günay rejected the claims.
