This is a record of Turkey's results at the FIFA World Cup. The FIFA World Cup, sometimes called the Football World Cup or the Soccer World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II.
The tournament consists of two parts, the qualification phase and the final phase (officially called the World Cup Finals). The qualification phase, which currently take place over the three years preceding the Finals, is used to determine which teams qualify for the Finals. The current format of the Finals involves 32 teams competing for the title, at venues within the host nation (or nations) over a period of about a month. The World Cup Finals is the most widely viewed sporting event in the world, with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the 2006 tournament final.[1]
Turkey have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup on two occasions: 1954, recording a group-stage finish, and 2002, where they finished third.[2][3][4]
Record at the FIFA World Cup
| FIFA World Cup record | FIFA World Cup qualification record | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
 1930 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
 1934 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||
 1938 | Did not enter | Did not enter | |||||||||||||
 1950 | Qualified but withdrew | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | ||||||||
 1954 | Group stage | 9th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | |
 1958 | Withdrew | Withdrew | |||||||||||||
 1962 | Did not qualify | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | ||||||||
 1966 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 19 | |||||||||
 1970 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 13 | |||||||||
 1974 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 3 | |||||||||
 1978 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 5 | |||||||||
 1982 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 22 | |||||||||
| 1986 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 24 | |||||||||
 1990 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 10 | |||||||||
 1994 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 19 | |||||||||
 1998 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 21 | 9 | |||||||||
  2002 | Third place | 3rd | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 24 | 8 | |
| 2006 | Did not qualify | 14 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 27 | 13 | ||||||||
 2010 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 13 | 10 | |||||||||
 2014 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 16 | 9 | |||||||||
 2018 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 13 | |||||||||
 2022 | 11 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 28 | 19 | |||||||||
 2026 | To be determined | To be determined | |||||||||||||
   2030 | |||||||||||||||
 2034 | |||||||||||||||
 2038 | |||||||||||||||
| Total | Third place | 2/26 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 20 | 17 | 139 | 53 | 27 | 59 | 204 | 206 | |
- *Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out
By match
| World Cup | Round | Opponent | Score | Result | Venue | Turkey scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1954 | Group 2 | West Germany | 1–4 | L | Bern | S. Mamat |
 South Korea | 7–0 | W | Geneva | B. Sargun (3), S. Mamat (2), L. Küçükandonyadis, E. Keskin | ||
| West Germany | 2–7 | L | Zürich | M. Ertan, L. Küçükandonyadis | ||
| 2002 | Group C | Brazil | 1–2 | L | Ulsan | H. Şaş |
 Costa Rica | 1–1 | D | Incheon | E. Belözoğlu | ||
 China | 3–0 | W | Seoul | H. Şaş, B. Korkmaz, Ü. Davala | ||
| Round of 16 | Japan | 1–0 | W | Rifu | Ü. Davala | |
| Quarter-finals |  Senegal | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | W | Osaka | İ. Mansız | |
| Semi-finals | Brazil | 0–1 | L | Saitama | — | |
| Third place play-off | South Korea | 3–2 | W | Daegu | İ. Mansız (2), H. Şükür |
Record by opponent
| FIFA World Cup matches (by team) | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opponent | W | D | L | Pld | GF | GA |
| Brazil | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| China | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| Costa Rica | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Japan | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Senegal | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| South Korea | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 2 |
| West Germany | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 11 |
Turkey at 1954 FIFA World Cup
Head coach: Sandro Puppo
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Turgay Şeren (captain) | 15 May 1932 (aged 22) | 11 |  Galatasaray S.K. |
| 2 | DF | Rıdvan Bolatlı | 2 December 1928 (aged 25) | 2 | MKE Ankaragücü SK |
| 3 | DF | Basri Dirimlili | 7 June 1929 (aged 25) | 3 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 4 | DF | Mustafa Ertan | 21 April 1926 (aged 28) | 4 | MKE Ankaragücü SK |
| 5 | MF | Çetin Zeybek | 12 September 1932 (aged 21) | 2 | Kasımpaşa SK |
| 6 | MF | Rober Eryol | 21 December 1930 (aged 23) | 5 | Galatasaray S.K. |
| 7 | FW | Erol Keskin | 2 March 1927 (aged 27) | 1 | Adalet SK Istanbul |
| 8 | FW | Suat Mamat | 8 November 1930 (aged 23) | 2 | Galatasaray S.K. |
| 9 | FW | Feridun Buğeker | 5 April 1933 (aged 21) | 3 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 10 | FW | Burhan Sargun | 11 February 1929 (aged 25) | 5 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 11 | FW | Lefter Küçükandonyadis | 22 December 1925 (aged 28) | 3 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 12 | GK | Şükrü Ersoy | 14 January 1934 (aged 20) | 3 | Vefa SK |
| 13 | DF | Bülent Eken | 26 January 1923 (aged 31) | 11 | Galatasaray S.K. |
| 14 | DF | Ali Beratlıgil | 21 October 1931 (aged 22) | 2 | Galatasaray S.K. |
| 15 | MF | Mehmet Dinçer | 20 February 1933 (aged 21) | 0 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 16 | DF | Nedim Günar | 2 January 1932 (aged 22) | 0 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 17 | DF | Naci Erdem | 28 January 1931 (aged 23) | 0 | Fenerbahçe SK |
| 18 | DF | Kaçmaz Akgün | 19 February 1935 (aged 19) | 1 | MKE Ankaragücü SK |
| 19 | DF | Ahmet Berman | 1 January 1932 (aged 22) | 0 | Beşiktaş J.K. |
| 20 | FW | Necmi Onarıcı | 2 November 1925 (aged 28) | 0 | Adalet SK Istanbul |
| 21 | FW | Kadri Aytaç | 6 August 1931 (aged 22) | 0 | Galatasaray S.K. |
| 22 | FW | Coşkun Taş | 23 April 1935 (aged 19) | 2 | Beşiktaş J.K. |
Group stage
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Hungary | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 | 3 | +14 | 4 | Advance to the knockout stage |
| 2 | West Germany | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 9 | −2 | 2[a] | |
| 3 | Turkey | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 4 | +4 | 2[a] | |
| 4 |  South Korea | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | −16 | 0 |
Notes:
Play-off
Turkey at 2002 FIFA World Cup
Head coach: Şenol Güneş
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | GK | Rüştü Reçber | 10 May 1973 (aged 29) | 64 | Fenerbahçe |
| 2 | DF | Emre Aşık | 13 December 1973 (aged 28) | 16 | Galatasaray |
| 3 | DF | Bülent Korkmaz | 24 November 1968 (aged 33) | 68 | Galatasaray |
| 4 | DF | Fatih Akyel | 26 December 1977 (aged 24) | 36 | Fenerbahçe |
| 5 | DF | Alpay Özalan | 29 May 1973 (aged 29) | 62 | Aston Villa |
| 6 | FW | Arif Erdem | 2 January 1972 (aged 30) | 50 | Galatasaray |
| 7 | MF | Okan Buruk | 19 October 1973 (aged 28) | 26 | Inter |
| 8 | MF | Tugay Kerimoğlu | 24 August 1970 (aged 31) | 69 | Blackburn Rovers |
| 9 | FW | Hakan Şükür (c) | 1 September 1971 (aged 30) | 73 | Parma |
| 10 | MF | Yıldıray Baştürk | 24 December 1978 (aged 23) | 13 | Bayer 04 Leverkusen |
| 11 | FW | Hasan Şaş | 1 August 1976 (aged 25) | 14 | Galatasaray |
| 12 | GK | Ömer Çatkıç | 15 October 1974 (aged 27) | 6 | Gaziantepspor |
| 13 | MF | Mustafa İzzet | 31 October 1974 (aged 27) | 7 | Leicester City |
| 14 | MF | Tayfur Havutçu | 23 April 1970 (aged 32) | 39 | Beşiktaş |
| 15 | FW | Nihat Kahveci | 23 November 1979 (aged 22) | 11 | Real Sociedad |
| 16 | DF | Ümit Özat | 30 October 1976 (aged 25) | 14 | Fenerbahçe |
| 17 | FW | İlhan Mansız | 10 August 1975 (aged 26) | 6 | Beşiktaş |
| 18 | MF | Ergün Penbe | 17 May 1972 (aged 30) | 21 | Galatasaray |
| 19 | MF | Abdullah Ercan | 8 December 1971 (aged 30) | 70 | Fenerbahçe |
| 20 | DF | Hakan Ünsal | 14 May 1973 (aged 29) | 25 | Galatasaray |
| 21 | MF | Emre Belözoğlu | 7 September 1980 (aged 21) | 11 | Inter |
| 22 | MF | Ümit Davala | 30 July 1973 (aged 28) | 24 | A.C. Milan |
| 23 | GK | Zafer Özgültekin | 10 March 1975 (aged 27) | 1 | Ankaragücü |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brazil | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 3 | +8 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Turkey | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | +2 | 4 | |
| 3 | Costa Rica | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −1 | 4 | |
| 4 | China | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 9 | −9 | 0 |
Brazil vs Turkey
          Brazil |     Turkey |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Costa Rica vs Turkey
| Costa Rica | 1–1 | Turkey |
|---|---|---|
Parks  86' | Report | Emre 56' |
    Costa Rica |     Turkey |
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Turkey vs China PR
| Turkey |     China PR |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Second Round Japan vs Turkey
| Japan | 0–1 | Turkey |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Ümit Davala 12' |
   Japan |  Turkey |
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Quarter-Final Senegal vs Turkey
    Senegal | Turkey |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Semi-final Brazil vs Turkey
| | Turkey |
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Third place play-off
Hakan Şükür scored the fastest goal in World Cup finals history with a low left footed shot past the goalkeeper from the edge of the penalty box after 11 seconds.[5]
| South Korea | 2–3 | Turkey |
|---|---|---|
| Lee Eul-yong 9' Song Chong-gug 90+3' | Report | Hakan Şükür 1' İlhan 13', 32' |
  South Korea | Turkey |
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Man of the Match: Assistant referees: |
Record players
Seven players were fielded in all seven matches of Turkey's third-place run in 2002. Of those seven, only Fatih Akyel played every minute of the tournament.
| Rank | Player | Matches | World Cups |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fatih Akyel | 7 | 2002 |
| Hakan Şükür | 7 | 2002 | |
| İlhan Mansız | 7 | 2002 | |
| Rüştü Reçber | 7 | 2002 | |
| Tugay Kerimoğlu | 7 | 2002 | |
| Ümit Davala | 7 | 2002 | |
| Yıldıray Baştürk | 7 | 2002 | |
| 8 | Bülent Korkmaz | 6 | 2002 |
| Emre Belözoğlu | 6 | 2002 | |
| Hasan Şaş | 6 | 2002 |
Top goalscorers
A notable goal was scored by Hakan Şükür in the third place match against South Korea in 2002, when he scored after only 10.89 seconds. It is the fastest goal in FIFA World Cup history, breaking Czechoslovakian striker Václav Mašek's 40-year-old record of 16 seconds.
| Rank | Player | Goals | World Cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Burhan Sargun | 3 | 1954 |
| Suat Mamat | 3 | 1954 | |
| İlhan Mansız | 3 | 2002 | |
| 4 | Lefter Küçükandonyadis | 2 | 1954 |
| Hasan Şaş | 2 | 2002 | |
| Ümit Davala | 2 | 2002 | |
| 7 | Erol Keskin | 1 | 1954 |
| Mustafa Ertan | 1 | 1954 | |
| Bülent Korkmaz | 1 | 2002 | |
| Emre Belözoğlu | 1 | 2002 | |
| Hakan Şükür | 1 | 2002 |