Galatasaray Daikin defeated Chieri in the 2026 Women’s CEV Cup final, winning the club’s first ever European trophy in volleyball. This makes Galatasaray the only Turkish club to have won European cups in soccer, basketball, and volleyball. This isn’t just a trophy win; it’s a milestone that strongly reinstates Galatasaray’s multi-sport “big club” identity. In my opinion, it’s a confirmation that it’s currently the biggest sports club in Türkiye.
The most important aspect of this is that in Türkiye, big clubs are often defined by their soccer successes. However, this achievement shows that Galatasaray is not just a soccer club, but a multi-sport organization at the European level. They already had a historical European showcase in soccer; they had also won European cups in basketball for both men and women. The completion of the volleyball trophy symbolically increases the club’s brand value significantly.
In the past, we used to talk about Galatasaray’s successes in all branches; Fenerbahçe was more prominent in soccer. Although the situation seems to have reversed today (Galatasaray is more successful in soccer, Fenerbahçe in other branches), we have witnessed Galatasaray winning European championships in basketball and volleyball as well.
Cup Winning Probabilities
Now let’s look at the probabilities of winning cups in different sports. Winning a cup in Europe is quite difficult in the most popular sports. As the popularity of a sport increases, the probability of winning a cup decreases. For example, soccer is the most popular sport in the world. The probability of winning a cup in European soccer is quite low compared to other sports. Especially if we are talking about the Champions League, which we can define as the pinnacle of soccer, the probability of winning the cup is close to impossible.
Although not as low as soccer, basketball has the second lowest probability of winning a cup in terms of difficulty level. Winning a cup in Europe, especially in the Euroleague, is a great achievement. Finally, volleyball has the third lowest odds after basketball.
Meanwhile, the probability of winning a cup also varies between men and women depending on the popularity of the sport. For example, in soccer and basketball, the probability of men’s teams winning a cup is quite low, while these rates are relatively higher for women’s teams. In volleyball, due to the popularity of women’s volleyball, the probability of women winning a cup is lower than that of men.
Turkish Teams Leave Their Mark on European Volleyball
Another important point is this: This success is further proof of the level that women’s volleyball has reached in Türkiye. In recent years, Turkish women’s volleyball has already been very strong in Europe at the club level; Galatasaray’s victory in this cup adds another link to that extensive Turkish volleyball ecosystem. Now let’s look at the cups that Turkish volleyball has won in Europe. I am listing the championships in the women’s and men’s categories below:
Women
Year / Season Team Cup
1999 Eczacıbaşı European Cup Winners’ Cup
2010-11 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2011-12 Fenerbahçe CEV Champions League
2012-13 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2014-15 Eczacıbaşı CEV Champions League
2016-17 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2017-18 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2017-18 Eczacıbaşı CEV Cup
2021-22 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2021-22 Eczacıbaşı CEV Cup
2022-23 VakıfBank CEV Champions League
2025-26 Galatasaray CEV Cup
We can say that men are less successful than women. However, there are two championships won in Men’s Volleyball:
Men’s
Year / Season Team Cup
2008-09 Arkas Spor CEV Challenge Cup
2012-13 Halkbank CEV Cup
The number of European championships won by Turkish clubs in volleyball appears to be 14: 12 in Women’s Volleyball and 2 in Men’s Volleyball.
Eczacıbaşı’s victory in the 1999 European Cup Winners’ Cup brought Türkiye its first European cup in volleyball. In men’s volleyball, the first cup was brought by Arkas Spor in the 2008-09 season by winning the CEV Challenge Cup.
The most successful volleyball club in Europe is Vakıfbank. Vakıfbank won half of the 12 cups won by women’s volleyball, i.e., 6 championships. I’m listing the championship years: 2011, 2013, 2017, 2018, 2022 and 2023. Well done, Vakıfbank.
That said, while such historic achievements are very valuable, true greatness is measured by making them sustainable. In other words, if this trophy is to go beyond being just “momentary pride,” then the budget, squad planning, infrastructure, and consistent European goals in volleyball must be maintained. Then this victory will not be an exception, but the beginning of a new standard. We can say that Vakıfbank has, in a sense, achieved this.
A very meaningful victory for identity
A bad example of this is Galatasaray’s UEFA Cup victory in soccer in 2000 and their Super Cup victory in 2001. After winning the Super Cup, the team went through a period of decline and couldn’t maintain squad unity. Financial sustainability is crucial for any sports club.
In short, my interpretation is this: This current volleyball success is both a historic and a very meaningful victory for identity for Galatasaray. It’s not just “another trophy;” it’s a turning point that shows the club is a multi-sport power in Europe and holds a special place in Turkish sports history.
Here is a list of official European cups won by Galatasaray, categorized by sport and year:
1) UEFA Cup (soccer) — 1999-2000
Galatasaray won the cup by defeating Arsenal in the final, becoming the first team in Turkish soccer history to win a European cup.
2) UEFA Super Cup (soccer) — 2000
Following the UEFA Cup, they also won the UEFA Super Cup by defeating Real Madrid.
3) FIBA EuroCup Women (women’s basketball) — 2008-2009
Galatasaray Women’s Basketball Team made history in Turkish women’s basketball by winning this cup.
4) ULEB EuroCup / EuroCup Basketball (men’s basketball) — 2015-2016
Galatasaray Odeabank won the European cup in men’s basketball by defeating Strasbourg.
5) CEV Cup (Women’s Volleyball) — 2025-2026
Galatasaray Daikin won the championship against Chieri, securing the first European volleyball cup in the club’s history.
This brings Galatasaray’s total number of European cups to 5. Moreover, with this latest achievement, Galatasaray became the first and only Turkish club to win European cups in soccer, basketball, and volleyball.
Let’s hope this success, which will be a source of pride for citizens of the Republic of Türkiye with a strong national consciousness, will be replicated by our other teams.
A Three-Part Vision
I hope Galatasaray will maintain its occasional good management and aim for championships in all European competitions. After all, the club’s mission was defined in the early 20th century by its founder, Ali Sami Yen, with these words:
“Our aim is to play collectively like the English, to have one color and one name, and to defeat non-Turkish teams.”
Today, the most memorable part is naturally the “defeating non-Turkish teams” section. But the whole sentence actually describes a three-part vision:
to be a well-organized team, to establish a strong identity, and to achieve success against international rivals.
I hope Galatasaray will continue this mission in all sports branches for generations to come, continuing to be the pride of our country.
