Erdogan played football to inaugurate new stadium

A new football stadium in Istanbul has been inaugurated by Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, AzerTAc reports citing Turkish Anadoly news agency.

After the ceremony, Erdogan – who is a former semi-professional footballer - played a friendly game with some Turkish celebrities including TV producer Acun Ilicali, and film producer and writer Yilmaz Erdogan.

PM Erdogan’s team won the game 9 - 4.

Turkey has invested in big-budget sports complexes to host international sports organizations such as the Olympics.

The country lost a bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics to Japan last year.

Erdogan opened another complex - the Hasan Dogan National Teams' Camp and Training Facility - three weeks ago, which is among the most modern sports training facilities in the world.

It includes tennis courts, running tracks, recreation areas, conference halls, a lake and a mini-golf course as well as football pitches and is the Turkish Football Federation's biggest infrastructure investment.


/AzerTAc/