Abdi İpekçi Arena

Abdi İpekçi Arena, formerly known as Abdi İpekçi Sports Complex, was a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, Turkey, situated just outside the ancient city walls, in Yedikule.

History
Designed in 1979, and opened on 3 June 1989, after several years of interrupted construction, it was named after the renowned Turkish journalist Abdi İpekçi. It was the primary basketball venue in Istanbul for two decades and hosted many (mostly the international) games of Istanbul's four top basketball clubs Anandolu Efes, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray and Besiktas, as well as many other sports events and concerts. However, its significance declined after the opening of Sinan Erdem Dome in 2010, which surpassed Abdi İpekçi Arena as the biggest and most state of the art arena in Istanbul.

Closure
After the 2016/2017 season, the arena was closed. It got demolished in early 2018. In its place, a basketball training and performance center is to be built. Basketball teams Anadolu Efes and Galatasaray are now playing their games at Sinan Erdem Dome beginning with the 2017/18 season. Galatasaray also plans to move into a newly built own arena in the coming years. Fenerbahçe already moved into their own Ülker Sports Arena in 2012.

Facilities
The arena had an audience seating capacity of 12,270. It hosted national and international sports events, such as basketball, volleyball, wrestling, and weightlifting, as well as concerts and congresses, among other events. The facility contained a multi-faced visual scoreboard, six online-system counters, four locker rooms, two internet rooms, a press room, two multi-purpose offices, VIP rooms, etc. Its parking lot had a capacity of 1,500 cars.

Events
The professional basketball teams of Galatasaray men's basketball team and Galatasaray women's basketball team played their Turkish League home matches since the 2009–10 season in the Abdi İpekçi Arena.

Some of the notable events, which took place in the arena are:


 * 1992 FIBA European League Final Four
 * 1995 FIBA European Cup Final
 * 1996 FIBA EuroStars
 * 1997 Girl Power! Live in Istanbul
 * 2001 Depeche Mode concert Exciter Tour
 * EuroBasket 2001 Final phase
 * 2004 Eurovision Song Contest
 * 2005 Phil Collins Concert
 * 2007 Enrique Iglesias Concert
 * 2009 European Short Course Swimming Championships
 * 2009 Men's European Volleyball Championship
 * 2010 FIBA World Championship
 * 2011 European Judo Championships
 * 2012 EuroLeague Women Final Eight
 * 2014 FIBA World Championship for Women