Shaken goalposts

Football rarely stops in Turkey, but when two earthquakes causes tens of thousands to die in the south-east region of the country early in 2023, even the passionately followed Super Lig top division is suspended. Hatayspor - a team from the league - loses its star player Christian Atsu to the rubble of a collapsed building. Its home city of Antakya is all but wiped from the map. A year later, football writer James Montague travels to his home nation of Turkey to tell the story of Hatayspor FC's improbable, and symbolic fight to survive in the aftermath of the disaster.

James meets female ‘ultra’ fan, Songul, who follows her team despite the obstacles of life living in converted-shipping container emergency accommodation. He talks to football icon Volkan Demirel, as the coach battles to keep his side in the league despite their lack of training facilities or a home stadium. Can the team that emerged from the rubble avoid relegation, too?

Presenter: James Montague
Executive producer/writer: Ben Wyatt
A Comuniqué production for BBC World Service

(Photo: Hatayspor players wear shirts with image of Ghanaian footballer Christian Atsu on his birthday, commemorating his life lost in the Feb Kahramanmaras earthquake, Mersin Stadium, Turkey, 10 January, 2024. Credit: Mustafa Unal Uysal/Anadolu/Getty Images)