“‘We’ll see beautiful, days kids, we’ll see sunny days.’ This isn’t the kind of song you’d expect to hear chanted at a football game, let alone by one of the most respected groups of ultras in the world. But this group have defied expectations and baffled social commentators for years. Like most things in football, it all began with a dream. But unlike most other significant things in football, it was the dream of a history teacher – from Istanbul. There are few images available of Optik Başkan, but the one that echoes well beyond his tragically short life is one of a man with his arms wide open, as if seeing the sun for the first time, embracing and embodying the agony and the ecstasy of the tumultuous life of a football fan in Turkey. This image has since become immortalised on scarves, banners and stickers – an image held with God-like reverence amongst the Beşiktaşlı. …”
These Football Times
W – Çarşı (supporter group)
YouTube: Besiktas Ultras – Best Moments
A Movement for Society and Self-Improvement: Beşiktaş’ Çarşı Ultras
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“How was Euro 2024 for you? 
“There was a chaotic end to the Olympic men’s football match between 
“… This summer marks the 30th anniversary of the backpass law being introduced, following FIFA’s successful experiment in Italy a year earlier. It is arguably the most significant — and the best — rule change in the modern game. The mindnumbing sight of goalkeepers rolling the ball out to defenders, receiving it back, picking it up and holding it in their hands to kill games, was gone. …”
“It was in the autumn of 2017 when goal kicks first started to become viewed as a legitimate attacking instrument. After signing from Benfica, it soon became clear that the left leg of 
“It was the morning of 
“The 
“
“The black gates at the southwest entrance of Hard Rock Stadium had been closed for one hour and 45 minutes when a young child was hoisted on a guardian’s shoulders amid the crush of people waiting to get in for the 
“The Copa America final could not have been set up any better. Defending champions 
“There are only two matches left of 
“The showpiece final of this summer’s 
“What should have been a showpiece game in the semi-final of the 
“A late winner from England substitute Ollie Watkins against Netherlands put Gareth Southgate’s team into the final of Euro 2024, where they will face Spain. The 
“The 
“
“Watching 
“By this point, it’s time to accept that 
“Sometimes it happens. High stakes, growing tension, a sheer desperation not to lose — the biggest games can light a fire within compulsive competitors that catches too quickly, spreads across the pitch, and burns any sense of spectacle to the ground. Uruguay’s Copa America quarterfinal clash with Brazil fell foul to that intensity: an ugly collision of arms, legs and bodies constantly interrupted by the referee’s whistle. By the time Dario Herrera signalled for the end, it felt as if the contest had barely been given the chance to begin. …”
“Under Luis de la Fuente, 
“Despite having an array of attacking talent at his disposal, not one of Deschamps’ players has scored a goal from open play during Euro 2024. And yet his team are through to a semi-final against 
“The entire NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas gasped. The whistle blew and 
“It was a surprise to hear 
“One of the wonders of the human brain is how it translates words into experiences, sounds and images. The notion, which is called semantic processing, is how our brain understands what we read by searching for associated words, sounds or images in our memory. Try reading the following words: Spain national football team. …”
“Didier Deschamps is a glass-half-full sort of fella. 
“A generous estate agent might describe the two-up, two-down terraced houses on the cramped side streets that lead towards Gillingham’s Priestfield Stadium as ‘snug’. On this warm day, the windows of several are open and the smell of frying mince and onions hangs over the turnstiles in the Brian Moore Stand, an open ‘temporary’ structure held together by scaffolding that has now been in place for more than 20 years. …”
“This always promised to be one of the more frenetic nights at Euro 2024 — and 
“The 
“For just over six minutes, it looked as though the 
“As the game moved into its 120th minute, it was so obvious 
“
“It turns out Murat Yakin wasn’t lying in 2022. He was just one tournament early. ‘I think we are the best Switzerland national team that has ever existed,’ said their coach prior to the World Cup. He promised their best-ever finish at an international tournament but did not deliver — 
“
Scissors Kick 