We started discussing this topic back in 2005. On 25 May of that year, Liverpool played one of their legendary games against Milan at Istanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium. Trailing 3-0 at halftime, Liverpool scored three goals in the second half to send the game into extra time. After two goalless periods of extra time, Liverpool defeated their Italian opponents 3-2 in the penalty shootout, securing their fifth consecutive UEFA Champions League victory. You can watch this legendary game in the video below:
Guess which hotel Liverpool stayed at during this Champions League victory, which brought Liverpool the Champions League trophy in Istanbul after 20 years?
The Ritz-Carlton in Istanbul.
Last year, on 13 September, Liverpool played Chelsea in the Super Cup final, the trophy of all cups. The 2019 UEFA Super Cup game between Liverpool, the 2018-19 Champions League champions, and Chelsea, the 2018-19 Europa League winners, took place on 14 August at Vodafone Park, next to the Ritz-Carlton Istanbul in Istanbul. The game ended 1-1 in regulation time, 2-2 in extra time, and Liverpool prevailed 5-4 in the penalty shootout, winning the cup for the fourth time. Liverpool once again opted to stay at the Ritz-Carlton. Liverpool officials personally told the hotel managers, “This hotel brings us good luck.”
Unfortunately, Uğur also benefits our foreign opponents.
The Ritz-Carlton Istanbul is among the most preferred hotels for foreign teams playing European Cup games against Turkish teams. I don’t like this at all, but we can’t ignore the interesting statistics. Let me give you a few examples of other recent games played in Istanbul:
On 13 October 2019, Wolverhampton played a European Cup game against Beşiktaş. The English team won this game 1-0.
On 24 September 2020, Rio Ave played a European Cup qualifying game against Beşiktaş. The Portuguese team won this game 4-2 on penalties.
On 15 September 2021, Borussia Dortmund played a Champions League game against Beşiktaş. The German team won this game 2-1.
On 24 November 2021, Ajax played a Europa League game against Beşiktaş. The Dutch team won this game 2-1.
So, when I heard that Barcelona, who were coming to Istanbul for a game against Galatasaray, would be staying at our hotel last week, I thought to myself, “Oh my gosh, they’re staying with us, so their chances of winning are higher.” Unfortunately, I was right. Our hotel, which offers the highest quality service in Istanbul, hosted Barcelona in the best possible way. After Barcelona shared the welcome at the Ritz-Carlton on social media, Galatasaray fans, unfortunately, chanted in front of the hotel and even set off fireworks to keep the Barcelona Soccer Team awake until dawn. Here’s a video to help you visualize the action: https://twitter.com/EmreeOzen1905/status/1504344775499071490?cxt=HHwWhICytcvmwOApAAAA
Focus on soccer quality is essential
I don’t think these actions, which I disapprove of, are befitting Galatasaray fans. But the result is what happened. After all these incidents, Galatasaray took a 1-0 lead in the game, but Barcelona defeated them 2-1.
So, our efforts to gain an advantage by keeping the players awake and creating a hellish atmosphere in the stadium are futile against a team that plays good soccer. Galatasaray’s players had opportunities against Barcelona, who were dominating from start to finish, but the Spanish, in true soccer playing fashion, capped their fine performance with two goals. Although the second goal was recorded as a goal scored when Galatasaray was down to 10 men, Barcelona ultimately dominated and won the game under difficult conditions.
I believe Galatasaray, as a club, needs to learn from this experience and, instead of relying on such tricky methods, focus on “how we can reach the level of soccer Barcelona plays.” I say this as a devoted Galatasaray supporter. I’ll summarize the necessary steps for this below:
1) Focus on infrastructure investments
2) Make the right, precise transfers that will elevate the team every year
3) Work with one of the best managers
4) Improve the financial situation.
The hotel also brings good fortune to Anatolian teams.
I told you that foreign teams staying at the Ritz-Carlton in Istanbul generally beat both other foreign teams and Turkish teams. There’s another statistic: Turkish teams staying at the Ritz-Carlton can also beat Istanbul teams. Did you know that Trabzonspor, who are very likely to win this year’s championship, is staying at the Ritz-Carlton for their games in Istanbul? Trabzonspor, who last won the championship in 1982-83, will be winning the championship after nearly 40 years. In this regard, they played their most critical games against six Istanbul teams (Galatasaray, Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe, Başakşehir, Kasımpaşa, Fatih Karagümrük). So far, they’ve won four and drawn four of their five games in Istanbul. Trabzonspor’s only draw in Istanbul came earlier this month when, despite playing well against Fenerbahçe and leading, they couldn’t prevent a goal in the 71st minute. In my opinion, Trabzonspor deserved to win this game. After all, they still haven’t lost. They only have one game left in Istanbul, against Başakşehir in May, and I think they’ll win that one too.
Now, let’s get to the secret. While luck might seem like a coincidence, it’s not. Statistically, the reason soccer teams staying at the Ritz-Carlton, Istanbul consistently win so much is because staying at our hotel boosts their performance. More specifically, I’d like to explain how their performance improves:
1) Players who feel good about themselves thanks to good service maximize their performance,
2) Players also get a good night’s sleep in incredibly comfortable, custom-made beds, allowing them to rest well for the next day’s game.
Having written all this, I hope I’ve been able to convey to you that you create your own luck with extra touches in life. I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate all the staff at Ritz-Carlton Istanbul, who have raised the bar for hotel service quality in Istanbul significantly with their entry into the Istanbul market. In other words, kudos to the hard work of “the ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen.”
Note: In the banner image, you can see Liverpool’s legendary German manager Jürgen Klopp and the Ritz-Carlton professionals. The lady in this photo, taken after Liverpool won the Super Cup in August 2019, is the hotel’s general manager, Ela Ergin.
Tag: memoir
