Galatasaray to play charity match against Qarabag to help quake victims

The Turkish football giant will visit Baku to play the Azerbaijani club Qarabag on March 26.

Nicolo Zaniolo (17) of Galatasaray celebrates after scoring a goal during Turkish Super Lig week 25 match between Galatasaray and Kasimpasa at Nef Stadium in Istanbul, Turkiye on March 11, 2023.
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Nicolo Zaniolo (17) of Galatasaray celebrates after scoring a goal during Turkish Super Lig week 25 match between Galatasaray and Kasimpasa at Nef Stadium in Istanbul, Turkiye on March 11, 2023.

Turkish football powerhouse Galatasaray will play a charity match against Azerbaijan's Qarabag on March 26 to help earthquake victims in Türkiye.

Qarabag said on Twitter on Tuesday that Galatasaray will visit them in a friendly match in Baku, and all proceeds from the friendly match will be donated to those impacted by the February 6 quakes that rocked 11 Turkish provinces and killed over 48,000 people.

The match will be played at Baku Olympic Stadium, a 68,700-seat football venue that hosted the 2019 UEFA Europa League final and several games during the UEFA Euro 2020.

It will start at 1600GMT.

Galatasaray is one of the many Turkish football clubs that have banded together to help with earthquake relief efforts.

On March 12, Galatasaray released its new 2022-2023 special blackout kit made by Nike to support earthquake victims, and was worn in the team’s latest Turkish Super League clash against Kasimpasa.

The kit has special writing in yellow that reads 'Birlikte (Together) 1905', representing the club's plea for everyone to support the earthquake victims. The number 1905 is to mark the year Galatasaray was founded.

READ MORE: Global sporting world shows solidarity with Türkiye after deadly quakes

Two weeks after the twin quakes struck, Galatasaray Club President Dursun Aydin Ozbek and Galatasaray Sportif A.S. Deputy Chairperson Erden Timur visited some of the affected areas.

Separately, Galatasaray left-back Emre Tasdemir donated the jersey he wore in the match he scored against Fatih Karagumruk to an auction in a bid to aid in the relief of the Kahramanmaras-centred earthquake victims.

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Meanwhile, Hatayspor and Gaziantep, based in two cities hit by the deadly earthquakes, have withdrawn from the Turkish Super League, reducing the number of active teams to 17.

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) ruled last month that the opponents of the withdrawn teams would be considered winners in the remaining matches.

READ MORE: Football fans shower field with toys for children in quake-hit Türkiye

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