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The Beşiktaş JK Museum (Beşiktaş JK Müzesi) chronicles the history of the Beşiktaş football club. It’s located at Beşiktaş Stadium in Istanbul.
The Beşiktaş JK Museum is the biggest sports museum in Turkey, with an area of 1,650 meters spread over two floors. There are hundreds of objects on display including trophies, photos, and memorabilia. Many interactive displays include video, virtual games, and other technology.
Visiting
Adult admission for foreigners is 400₺ (as of March 2024), with discounts offered to anyone who takes the stadium tour. The museum is open daily except Mondays, and closes two hours before the gates open on game days. Most of the museum displays are in both Turkish and English.
There are 42 sections in the museum. I’ve only covered the sections that caught my eye.
Chronology
Visits to the Beşiktaş JK Museum start on the upper level, where there’s a chronology of the club history. It covers the club’s founders and talks about championships and cups.
2016-17 Champions
At the rear of the upper level were cutouts of the latest team to win the Turkish Super League, which occurred in the 2016-17 season.
In the center, glass cases displayed autographed jerseys of every member of the club that season as well as the trophy.
Logo
Next is the lower level, where there’s a display about the history of the Beşiktaş club logo. As the first registered sports club in Ottoman and Turkish history, Beşiktaş was allowed to display the Turkish flag on its logo.
Beşiktaş by Decade
Important moments from each decade of the club’s history lines a long wall of the museum. On display are trophies, boots, photos, shirts, and more. Some sections talk about Super League championship seasons, listing squads and explaining how Beşiktaş won the championship.
Beşiktaş in Europe
In one section, panels discuss the team’s famous victories in the Champions League and Europa League.
Unforgettable Players
In the center, jerseys and boots of unforgettable Beşiktaş players are on display. There’s also a memorial dedicated to players and club members who lost their lives in the Balkan Wars, Gallipoli Campaign in World War I, and the Turkish War of Independence.
Süleyman Seba
Another area is dedicated to long-time club president Süleyman Seba (1926-2014). Seba played as a winger for the club from 1946 to 1953, and was the president for 16 years from 1984 to 2000.
Fans
A section about Beşiktaş fans chronicles personal stories about how the team has affected their lives. Another exhibits flags used by ultras.
Also, one of my favorite sections is a soundproof booth where visitors can experience the sound of the crowd. The booth uses the loudest decibel level ever recorded in the stadium.
Stadiums
One of the last sections in the museum talks about the different stadiums where Beşiktaş has played. Visitors can look at photos of Taksim Stadium at Taksim Square as well as İnönü Stadium.
A special section contains models of both İnönü Stadium and Beşiktaş Stadium side-by-side, with videos projected onto each model. Beşiktaş Stadium was built on the site of İnönü Stadium.
Jerseys
Another display chronicles the evolution of the club’s football jersey. Jerseys from each decade sit behind glass cases with team photos above.
Multimedia Area
Finally, there’s an interactive children’s activity zone as well as a multimedia area where fans can relive historic games.
