One of the biggest Forex brokers in Turkey, Integral Menkul Degerler, has become the latest firm from the industry to venture into the vast world of football sponsorship. The company has signed a two-year deal with one of “the big three” rival football clubs in Turkey’s biggest city with a population of almost 14 million.
After sponsoring rival basketball team Beskitas for the past two years, Integral Menkul Degerler has decided not only to change the sport but also the club it is supporting. Istanbul is notorious for the rivalry between “the big three" clubs in the city - Besiktas, Galatasaray and Fenerbahce.
Integral Menkul Degerler is firmly committed to continue targeting the crowds in the biggest city in Turkey with sports sponsorship deals. The financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed as of yet, but the deal includes two seasons throughout the 2015-2016 and 2016-2017 Turkish Super League tournament.
Before committing to this new sponsorship deal the brokerage had been supporting the basketball team of Besiktas for the past two years.
The new CEO of the company, Kivanc Memişoğlu, commented that the company would like to commit to a football sponsorship after a series of negotiations. Integral Menkul Degerler becomes the sponsor of the current runner-up in the Turkish Super League.
Bolstering the football club’s chances for a championship win this season, the team attracted star striker from Manchester United, Robin van Persie and Portuguese national Luis Nani.
After being banned from participating in the European tournaments for two years, Fenerbahce aims to make a comeback into the UEFA Europe League.
In addition to Fenerbahce, Integral Menkul Degerler is also committed to sponsoring women’s basketball team BGD and an amputee football team. Both initiatives will remain unscathed by the deal with Fenerbahce.
Football sponsorship remains a particularly popular online and offline advertising method for forex brokers and the local market in Turkey is no exception. The only downside to such deals is that in a country, and in this case a city, which is characterized by passionate football supporters, fans of the other two clubs from Istanbul - Besiktas and Galatasaray, may be turned away from working with the broker.
That being said, in the tight regulatory environment within which it operates, Integral Menkul Degerler has proven to be a very successful company with a solid reputation among traders and industry peers alike.
