Alanya Milli Egemenlik Stadı

Alanya Milli Egemenlik Stadı sits in the Cumhuriyet neighbourhood. When Alanyaspor climbed out of the lower leagues, they left this ground behind. The pitch is natural grass.

In January 2008, the home side hosted Fenerbahçe and survived a 10–3 humiliation that remains one of the most lopsided results in Turkish football history. The club that now calls it home, Alanya 1221 FSK, plays in the third tier, where the stakes are lower and the attention is thinner. They are not alone; the stadium also hosts youth matches for Alanyaspor’s under-21s and local amateur sides, filling the gaps between the big fixtures.

It is not a place built for spectacle. The capacity was halved when the renovation replaced standing areas with seats, a move that prioritised safety over atmosphere. You can feel that shift in the way the sound carries. There is no undersoil heating to keep the surface pristine in the winter, and no official website to project a modern image. It is managed by the district directorate, which tends to focus on the basics: keeping the grass cut and the gates open for the May Day celebrations.

While the new Oba Stadium draws the crowds for Süper Lig matches, this ground remains a repository for local memories. It is where the city remembers when football came to them first, before the money arrived. The name has not changed, but the role has. It is no longer the centre of gravity, just a stable anchor point for those who still come to watch the game without expecting fireworks.