Turkish league

Trabzonspor travels to Copenhagen for a Champions League qualification playoff round first leg game, hoping to get an advantageous score to advance to the group stage of the top European club competition.

Former Real Madrid and Arsenal midfielder Mesut Özil signed with Istanbul Başakşehir on July 14 after leaving fellow Turkish club Fenerbahçe.

Istanbul Başakşehir said the deal with Özil was for a one-year contract with an optional extension for another year.

The Black Sea province of Trabzon is ready for joyous celebrations this weekend as the city's beloved football team, Trabzonspor, counts down the hours to claim its first Turkish league title in almost four decades.

A draw will be enough for the Süper Lig leader on April 30 against Antalyaspor to claim the league trophy with three weeks still to go.

Bahçeşehir College basketball team weathered another valiant fightback from Unahotels Reggio Emilia to claim the FIBA Europe Cup title with a 90-74 second leg victory on the night of April 27.

The Istanbul club became the competition's first winner from Turkey after securing an overall 162-143 triumph in front of a FIBA Europe Cup Final record crowd of 13,485.

Turkish Süper Lig leader Trabzonspor inched towards its first title in almost three decades despite a 1-1 draw at home against defending champion Beşiktaş on April 3.

"We will be the champions, we should just wait for it to be official," Trabzonspor coach Abdullah Avcı said after the game.

Turkish volleyball club Fenerbahçe Opet's Cuban-born player Melissa Vargas was granted Turkish citizenship on April 10.

In a statement, Fenerbahçe said Melissa Teresa Vargas Abreu, 21, was given her Turkish identity card by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan after the Turkish Volleyball Federation's application for Vargas had been confirmed.

Medipol Başakşehir's Turkish midfielder Irfan Can Kahveci has been selected for the UEFA Champions League Team of the Week on Dec. 3 for his hat-trick against RB Leipzig Wednesday night.

UEFA announced the Champions League team of the week five on its website as Kahveci, 25, who scored three goals in Wednesday's match against Germany's Leipzig, was picked for it.

Turkish basketball club Anadolu Efes's French forward Adrien Moerman said Turkey is safer than France amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Moerman underlined that the number of coronavirus cases in France was more than Turkey.

Galatasaray's head coach Fatih Terim tested negative for the new coronavirus on April 15 after receiving a positive test late last month.

Turkish Super Lig club Fenerbahçe confirmed on April 6 that former player Radomir Antic passed away at 71.

"We have learned with great sadness the death of our former player Radomir Antic who sweated the striped jersey and played an important role in the championship we won in the 1977-78 season," the Istanbul club said on Twitter.