Besiktas

Bereket Gymnastics Club was founded on 3 March 1903 under special permission from the authorities.^[] Their sporting activities gained more freedom with the declaration of the Constitutional Monarchy in 1908. After the political events of 31 March 1909, Fuat Balkan and Mazhar Kazancı, who were in Edirne, came to Istanbul with the National Movement. After the restoration of political order, Fuat Balkan, a proven fencing coach, and Mazhar Kazancı, a wrestler and weight lifter, found the youths involved in gymnastics in Serencebey and persuaded them to train together. Refik Bey and Şerafettin Bey, friends of Fuat Bey, were also fencing practitioners. Fuat Balkan made the first floor of his own home as the club's headquarters, located in Ihlamur neighbourhood of Beşiktaş. The title of "Bereket Gymnastics Club" was renamed as "Beşiktaş Ottoman Gymnastics Club". The club was turned into a more comprehensive structure, in which gymnastics, wrestling, boxing, fencing and athletics were emphasized. Mehmet Şamil Şhaplı, one of the founding members, was elected the first president of the club.

On 13 January 1910, the club became the first registered Turkish sports club in Ottoman Empire, with the encouragement of the Governor of Beyoğlu District. The interest among the youths of the neighbourhood in the sports club grew, and the number of members involved in sports quickly grew to 150. The headquarters of the club was moved from Ihlamur, Beşiktaş to Building No. 49 in Akaretler, Beşiktaş. When this building became too small, Building 84, also in Akaretler, Beşiktaş, became their headquarters. The yard behind this building was turned into a sports pitch.

Some of the young patriots from the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul formed two football clubs called "Valideçeşme" and "Basiret" under the leadership of Şeref Bey. Local football clubs "Valideçeşme" and "Basiret" joined the club, in 1911.

For years, the original colours of Beşiktaş were believed to be "Red and White"; and then temporarily changed into "Black and White", commemorating the martyrs of Balkan Wars, including players of the club. Although most written sources endorse this claim, a detailed study carried out for Beşiktaş's 100th anniversary documentary had shown that colour red was never used in club's first colours; and colours of the club were always "black and white".

With football becoming the main sport of the Ottoman Empire around 1910, Beşiktaş members slowly started to give more attention to football. In August 1911, Ahmed Şerafettin started the football team. With the outbreak of World War I following the Balkan Wars, sporting activities at the club effectively came to a halt as many athletes left to serve on the front lines. While the end of the war allowed surviving athletes to return, the team faced a difficult period during the Occupation of Istanbul, but was able to recover with the hard work of Şeref Bey. Beşiktaş did not enter the Istanbul Friday and Sunday leagues, and did not have any championships until 1918, when they won the Istanbul Turkish 1st Sports League.

In 1921, that particular league's final season, they won it again. In 1924, Beşiktaş entered the Istanbul Football League along with Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe and other Istanbul teams. Beşiktaş became the league's first champion of 1923–24 season, but was unable to have more success in the league. Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe were the two dominant teams through the middle of the 1930s.

Beşiktaş won their 2nd Istanbul League title in 1933–34 season, as well as their first Turkish Football Championship in the same year, beating Altay in the final 3–1 on 29 October 1934. In 1937, the Turkish National League was formed. In 1936–37 Istanbul Football League season prior to the National League's inaugural season, Beşiktaş finished in fourth place, which earned them a berth in the National League. Beşiktaş finished 3rd place in the National League, behind Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray. In 1937–38 season, Beşiktaş finished in 3rd place in the Istanbul League and, 2nd place in the National League, behind Güneş. Beşiktaş won a record five consecutive Istanbul League championships between 1939 and 1943. In the National League, Beşiktaş finished 4th in 1939, 5th in 1940, 1st in 1941 and 3rd in 1943 (in 1942 the league was not held). The club won 1944–45 and 1945–46 seasons in Istanbul League, as well as the national league in 1944 and 1947. The team visited the United States for a month-long visit in May 1950, and on their return to Turkey, visited president Celâl Bayar.

Professionalism in football in Turkey entered into force in 1952. In 1959, the Millî Lig was formed, the nation's first professional football league. Finishing in 2nd place at White Group and failing to reach the 2-legged-final in inaugural year of the competition, Beşiktaş won their first title in the following season. In 1960, the club also participated in the European Cup, becoming the first Turkish team ever to participate in the tournament. In subsequent years, Beşiktaş finished third in both 1961 and 1962, as well as second in 1963, 1964 and 1965. In 1966 and 1967, meanwhile, the club won back-to-back championship titles, and in the latter year, they also won their first Turkish Super Cup. In 1968, Beşiktaş finished second.

After 1967, Beşiktaş's performance declined slightly, finishing in 8th, 12th, 5th, 4th many times, while Trabzonspor, Fenerbahçe and occasionally Galatasaray continued their success. Beşiktaş only finished in second place once in the decade, in 1973–74 season.

Following a period of 15 seasons with no league title, Beşiktaş put an end to their poor performances in 1981–82 season with a surprise championship title under the management of Yugoslav trainer Đorđe Milić, earning another in 1985–86 season. They finished the league as runners-up four times in the second half of the decade.

Hooliganism was a major problem that had started in Europe and had also spread throughout Turkey. Beşiktaş fan hooliganism had been an issue with many fights inside and outside the stadium, although this has become less of an issue in more recent years.^[]

Beşiktaş had their most successful run in the Süper Lig with three consecutive championships under the management of Gordon Milne in the early 1990s. Three players of the squad – Metin Tekin, Ali Gültiken and Feyyaz Uçar – were notable for significant contributions to the team during this period. These players were known as Metin-Ali-Feyyaz ("MAF") and they formed the front of the team's line-up. The trio is regarded by supporters as the best ever attacking line of the club. The supporters composed various chants for the trio devoted to their delighting style on the pitch, their goals, and above all for their friendship and modesty.

The only three-in-a-row title term in club history occurred in the 1989–90, 1990–91 and 1991–92 seasons. Most notably, Beşiktaş became the first and only undefeated champions in Süper Lig history.

Under Milne's management, the team adopted the 4–4–2 system. By playing down the lines, crossing and winning balls in the air, the team were in fine form and scored many goals. On 15 October 1989, Beşiktaş broke the Süper Lig record for the biggest winning margin in a game with a 10–0 victory over Adana Demirspor. This match was designated as one of the 16 biggest matches in club history. Collecting 79 points in 34 matches, Beşiktaş won the 1994–95 1. Lig with the German coach Christoph Daum with 79 points, 3 points ahead of Trabzonspor.

After a choppy start to the decade, Beşiktaş hit a clean reset under Mircea Lucescu. In the club’s centenary season they won the Süper Lig and produced one of their best European campaigns, reaching the UEFA Cup quarter-finals before losing to Lazio (3–1 agg.).

In the 2008–09 season, veteran coach Mustafa Denizli—the only manager to have won the Süper Lig with all three Istanbul giants—led Beşiktaş to a domestic double. On 13 May 2009, they beat Fenerbahçe 4–2 in the Turkish Cup final at İzmir Atatürk Stadium. then the league title sealed by a 2–1 win at Denizlispor on the final day.

Beşiktaş beat İstanbul BB on penalties to lift the 2011 Turkish Cup in Kayseri, but were later sanctioned by UEFA over match-fixing allegations related to that final; CAS upheld a one-season ban from European competition in August 2013. After appointing Şenol Güneş as head coach in June 2015 on a two-year deal with an option to extend, Beşiktaş moved back to Dolmabahçe during the 2015–16 season, opening the rebuilt Vodafone Arena on 11 April 2016 with a 3–2 league win over Bursaspor (Mario Gómez scoring the first goal at the new ground); they then secured the 2015–16 Süper Lig with a 3–1 home victory against Osmanlıspor and retained the championship in 2016–17 with a decisive 4–0 win away at Gaziantepspor.

In 2017–18, Beşiktaş topped a Champions League group featuring Porto, Monaco and RB Leipzig—unbeaten and through with a draw against Porto before winning away in Leipzig on MD6. They were then eliminated in the round of 16 by Bayern Munich, 8–1 on aggregate (0–5 in Munich, 1–3 in Istanbul). The domestic scene also produced flashpoints: the 2018 Turkish Cup semi-final second leg at Fenerbahçe was abandoned after an object struck Beşiktaş coach Şenol Güneş; when the TFF ordered a behind-closed-doors resumption, Beşiktaş refused to play the remainder.

Under Sergen Yalçın, Beşiktaş clinched the 2020–21 Süper Lig title on the final day and completed the league-and-cup double by beating Antalyaspor in the cup final. They added the Turkish Super Cup in January 2022, defeating Antalyaspor on penalties. The 2021–22 Champions League campaign, by contrast, ended with six defeats in a group with Ajax, Dortmund and Sporting CP.

Beşiktaş began 2023–24 season with Şenol Güneş, but a run of poor results—capped by a 3–2 home collapse to Lugano in the Europa Conference League—led to his resignation on 6 October 2023; assistant Burak Yılmaz acted briefly before Rıza Çalımbay was appointed on 10 November. Amid the downturn, the club held a presidential election on 3 December 2023, in which Hasan Arat defeated incumbent Ahmet Nur Çebi and took office at an extraordinary congress. Seeking stability, Beşiktaş appointed Fernando Santos in January 2024, but dismissed him on 13 April 2024 after continued underperformance; academy coach Serdar Topraktepe took interim charge and won the 2023–24 Turkish Cup with a 3–2 victory over Trabzonspor at Atatürk Olympic Stadium on 23 May 2024.

Beşiktaş began the 2024–25 season by appointing Dutch coach Giovanni van Bronckhorst in June, and got off to a historic start by winning the 2024 Turkish Super Cup in emphatic fashion. On 3 August 2024, they defeated arch-rivals Galatasaray 5–0 at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul—marking the largest winning margin in Turkish Super Cup history.

Form dipped in autumn; UEFA moved the home Europa League tie against Maccabi Tel-Aviv to Debrecen behind closed doors for security reasons and Beşiktaş lost 3–1 there, and the club parted ways with Van Bronckhorst at the end of November. Ole Gunnar Solskjær was appointed head coach in January and marked his first European match with a 4–1 win over Athletic Club, while his side also recorded derby victories over both Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray later in the league campaign; Beşiktaş nevertheless finished fourth in the Süper Lig.