Çarşı

Çarşı is a prominent supporter group and broader fan identity associated with Beşiktaş J.K., the Istanbul sports club whose football team is one of Turkey's most widely followed. The name comes from Beşiktaş Çarşı, the central marketplace district near the Bosphorus. During the 1980s, young Beşiktaş supporters commonly met in the area's restaurants, bars, fish market and shops before matches. Their shared routines and collective support developed into a named group around the 1981–82 season, generally dated to 1982. The group became increasingly visible during the 1990s through coordinated chanting, banners, choreography and a distinctive style of humorous, improvisational and often oppositional commentary. Çarşı traditionally occupies the curva associated with the Covered Stand, or Kapalı, at Beşiktaş's home ground. Historically, supporters gathered in the Beşiktaş marketplace before walking toward the stadium around Dolmabahçe. Fans living on both sides of the Bosphorus also used ferries from districts such as Kadıköy and Üsküdar to reach Beşiktaş. These rituals helped make the group more than a collection of stadium attendees: Çarşı became a social network and a shared mode of expression linking regular members, unaffiliated supporters who joined its activities, students, and fans from different generations and backgrounds. The group is not defined by a single uniform political ideology or membership structure. Its public image is instead associated with an intentionally rebellious and broadly antagonistic attitude, expressed through wordplay, satire, unusual chants and topical banners. The slogan “Çarşı, her şeye karşı!”—roughly, “Çarşı is against everything!”—is its best-known catchphrase. A modified form of the anarchist letter A is also used to represent a rebellious spirit, or “Asi Ruh,” while distinguishing the group's own visual identity. Çarşı's merchandise and symbols circulate alongside official Beşiktaş products, although the group has repeatedly emphasized that its identity should serve, rather than supersede, Beşiktaş itself. The group announced a dissolution on 28 May 2008 through a farewell letter associated with its prominent cheerleader Alen Markaryan. The decision was linked to concerns that the Çarşı name had become more prominent than the club, allegations directed at the group and its founders, damage to unity within the Beşiktaş community, and the attribution of judicial incidents to Çarşı. On 21 August 2008, a statement published through the group's website announced its return. It said Çarşı would remain active in support of Beşiktaş and would not again leave the stands for the same reasons. Çarşı received international attention during the 2013 protests in Turkey. Members and supporters were reported to have participated prominently in demonstrations, resisted police attacks and used an excavator to drive back a water cannon. This activism reinforced the group's public reputation as a politically expressive supporter movement, although Çarşı remains rooted in football culture rather than operating as a conventional political organization. Its continuing significance lies in the combination of match-day performance, neighborhood identity, humor, social solidarity and public commentary.

Çarşı developed in the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul among young supporters of Beşiktaş J.K. during the early 1980s. The group's name refers to the district's central marketplace, where supporters met in cafés, restaurants, bars and around the fish market before matches. The area functioned as a social base as well as a gathering point, allowing fans from different parts of Istanbul to organize travel, exchange chants and build a collective match-day culture. The group is generally associated with the 1981–82 season and a founding date of 1982. During the 1990s, Çarşı's profile expanded. Its support was marked by forceful chanting, elaborate banners, choreographed displays and a willingness to respond to current events with humor or provocation. The group came to be associated with the Kapalı, or Covered Stand, at Beşiktaş's home stadium. Before fixtures, supporters commonly gathered in the marketplace and then moved toward the stadium near Dolmabahçe. Ferry travel from Istanbul's Asian-side districts, including Kadıköy and Üsküdar, became part of the match-day experience for many supporters. Çarşı has never been a strictly homogeneous organization. Its participants have included people of different ages, social backgrounds, cultural origins and political views. The term can therefore describe both an organized supporter group and a wider disposition among Beşiktaş fans. A frequently cited characterization presents Çarşı as an abstract common spirit rather than a formal club-like body. Its broad appeal is connected to its wit, improvised responses and capacity to turn local football rituals into public commentary. The group's visual and verbal language includes the slogan “Çarşı, her şeye karşı!” and a modified A-shaped emblem associated with rebelliousness, described by the group as “Asi Ruh.” The latter inspired the documentary Asi Ruh, produced around the group's twenty-fifth anniversary in 2007 and released on DVD in 2008. Çarşı-related apparel and symbols have circulated alongside official Beşiktaş merchandise. On 28 May 2008, Çarşı announced that it was disbanding. A farewell letter associated with Alen Markaryan explained that supporters had debated whether the group's identity had begun to overshadow Beşiktaş. Other cited concerns included allegations against the group and its founders, disruption of unity within the Beşiktaş community, and the assignment of responsibility for judicial incidents to Çarşı. The group returned to public activity on 21 August 2008, announcing on its website that its name and chants would continue and that it intended to remain at the service of Beşiktaş. Çarşı's most prominent political visibility came during the 2013 protests in Turkey. Supporters participated in demonstrations, resisted police attacks and were associated with the use of an excavator against a water cannon. The events strengthened Çarşı's international reputation as a politically outspoken football-supporter movement. It nevertheless remains primarily a fan community centered on Beşiktaş, Istanbul neighborhood identity, stadium culture and collective expression.

• 2013

  Prominent participation in Turkish protests

  [1]Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org

  Çarşı plays a visible role in the 2013 protests, becoming internationally associated with resistance to police actions.

• 2008

  Documentary released and group briefly dissolves

  [1]Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org

  Asi Ruh is released on DVD, while Çarşı announces its dissolution in May and its return in August.

• 2007

  Asi Ruh documentary begins

  [1]Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org

  A documentary about Çarşı begins around the group's twenty-fifth anniversary, using the group's rebellious-spirit symbolism as its theme.

• 1990

  The group's reputation expands

  [1]Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org

  During the 1990s, Çarşı becomes increasingly known for its chants, banners, choreography, humor and oppositional match-day style.

• 1982

  Çarşı forms in Beşiktaş

  [1]Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org

  Young Beşiktaş supporters meeting around the district marketplace develop a named supporter group generally associated with the 1981–82 season.

A highly visible, socially and politically expressive Beşiktaş supporter identity rooted in the Beşiktaş marketplace district and Istanbul football culture.

• Supporter culture

  Çarşı chants

  Collective chants are one of Çarşı's central forms of expression. New or adapted chants are often introduced in the Beşiktaş marketplace and then carried into the stadium. Their tone can range from traditional football support to satire, topical commentary and deliberately provocative humor.

• Stadium displays

  Çarşı banners and choreography

  The group is recognized for placards, visual displays and coordinated stadium presentations in Beşiktaş's black-and-white colors. These displays communicate support for the team while also expressing social, political or cultural positions associated with the group's broader identity.

• Fan merchandise

  Çarşı merchandise

  Supporters use clothing and other fan items carrying Çarşı-related symbols alongside official Beşiktaş products. The merchandise expresses affiliation with the supporter community rather than representing a conventional commercial product line.

• 20132013 Turkish protests

  Turkey

  Çarşı supporters participated prominently in protests in Turkey and were associated with resistance to police attacks, including an incident involving an excavator and a water cannon.

  Outcome. The group's public profile expanded beyond football, and it became widely known as a politically expressive supporter movement.

  Source

• 2008

  Temporary dissolution of ÇarşıStrategy

  Background

  Supporters debated whether the Çarşı identity had become more prominent than Beşiktaş itself. The group also cited allegations against its founders, damage to community unity and the attribution of judicial incidents to Çarşı.

  Action taken

  On 28 May 2008, Çarşı announced that it was ending its organized presence through a farewell letter associated with Alen Markaryan.

  Aftermath

  The dissolution was short-lived. On 21 August 2008, the group announced that it and its chants would continue in support of Beşiktaş.

  Source

• 2008

  Return to the standsStrategy

  Background

  The group explained that the pause had been connected to concerns about its name, accusations directed at its founders, community fragmentation and judicial controversies.

  Action taken

  Çarşı declared that it would resume activity and remain available to the Beşiktaş community, with the stated aim of protecting the club's unity and integrity.

  Aftermath

  Çarşı continued as an active supporter identity and retained its role in match-day chants and public commentary.

  Source

1. 1Çarşı (supporter group)en.wikipedia.org
2. 2Forza Beşiktaşforzabesiktas.com