Baf Ülkü Yurdu S.K.

Baf Ülkü Yurdu S.K.
	Üner Berkalp Stadı
Capacity	7.000
Chairman	Ahmet Ertay
Manager	Kemal Yürekli
League	Süper Lig (Premier League)
2017–18	6th
Home colours	Away colours

Baf Ülkü Yurdu Spor Kulübü is a

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus football

.

History

The

Turkish Cypriot community in Baf were assigned the responsibility to proceed with the establishment of the club; Halit Ali Rıza and Derviş Ahmet Raşit. The petition was approved and Ülkü Yurdu Spor Kulübü was formally established on 23 April 1947. Since the petition was prepared by Halit Ali Rıza, who was a lawyer, he became the founding president of Ülkü Yurdu Spor Kulübü and Mr. Derviş Ahmet Raşit was elected as the first president in the first assembly of club's members. A house was rented in Moutallos neighbourhood of Baf

that served as the club headquarters.

1947–1960

Upon its establishment, Ülkü Yurdu became a focal point in the lives of the

Turkish Cypriot

league that was formed.

1961–1980

In early 1960s, Ülkü Yurdu continued to take part in the

Turkish Cypriot football league. However, that season was not completed due to the increased level of inter-communal violence between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots

. The league was resumed in 1968–69 season and Ülkü Yurdu became a regular in the league in the years that followed.

Following the summer of 1974, the

Turkish Cypriot community of Baf settled in Güzelyurt, which also became Ülkü Yurdu's new home. The club added Baf meaning Paphos in Turkish

to its name in order to stay loyal to its roots.

1981–2000

Ülkü Yurdu enjoyed great success during the later part of the 1980s. The team was crowned the champions of the

Birinci Lig

and İkinci Lig.

2001–2010

Due to economic underdevelopment and negligence of the Güzelyurt area, Ülkü Yurdu continued to suffer from inconsistency during the early 2000s. The club continued to feature between Süper Lig (Premier League) and Birinci Lig (First Division) throughout the decade.

2011–present

At the end of the 2015–2016 season, the club finished 6th in Birinci Lig (First Division) earning a place in the play-off group for promotion to the Süper Lig (Premier League). After a pulsating round of 3 matches in the play-off group, Ülkü Yurdu and Denizli were even on points, which meant that two teams had to face each other again in the play-off final. Ülkü Yurdu came out victorious after 90 minutes winning the play-off final game 2 – 1, securing their return to the Süper Lig (Premier League) after 13 long years. Following their promotion to the Süper Lig (Premier League), the club finished 11th at the end of 2016 – 2017 season and a respectable 6th at the end of 2017 – 2018 season.

Academy

The club is renowned for producing talented young players from its youth ranks raised in the local area of

first team

. In June 2009, the Under-14 team won the national Under-14 league in a decisive manner by winning all of its 13 games, scoring 65 goals and conceding 7 goals on the way to their triumph.

Supporters

Ülkü Yurdu is widely supported by

Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus

with 8.7% of the people surveyed indicating their alliance to the team.

Colors

The club colors are red and green.

Stadium

The club's home stadium is

Zafer Stadı

.

Achievements

Birinci Lig
- Champions (4): 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990
Cumhurbaşkanlığı Kupası
- Winners (3): 1987, 1988, 1989
Dr. Fazıl Küçük Kupası
- Winners (2): 1989, 1991

References

"Baf Ülkü Yurdu 60.Yıl Dergisi". (T-Medya) Tokel Ltd. 2007.
Hastürer, Hasan. "Kıbrıs'ta Futbol". Archived from the original on 2008-08-02. Retrieved 2007-12-30.
"BÜY'nun Yıldızları Parlıyor". Arca Haber Ajansi. Archived from the original on 2011-07-07. Retrieved 2009-06-18.