Sport Republic agree deal to acquire Göztepe S.K.

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Goztepe
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Turkish football club Göztepe S.K. have reached an agreement with Sport Republic which will see the London-based investment firm acquire a controlling stake in the side.

Backed by Serbian billionaire Dragan Šolak, Göztepe S.K. will become Sport Republic’s second football club investment, having taken control of Premier League side Southampton in January 2022.

In purchasing a 70% shareholding of Göztepe, Sport Republic become the first foreign investor within the Turkish football industry.

The existing shareholders will retain a 30 per cent stake in the club, while Sport Republic CEO Rasmus Ankersen will become chairman of the Turkish second division outfit.

Ankersen said in a statement:

“Göztepe S.K. has a lot of potential for growth. It has a unique and very large following as well as a high-quality infrastructure, in particular a new and beautiful stadium located in Izmir.

“With almost five million inhabitants on its doorstep, we believe the club offers an opportunity to build a strong pipeline of homegrown talent.

“Being the first foreign investors in Turkish football comes with extra responsibilities and attention. We know it will not be without challenges, but we are committed to our long-term vision of fulfilling the potential of Göztepe.

“The passion for football in Turkey is truly special and we hope that our methodology and ideas can help develop Göztepe further.”

Chairman of Sport Republic, Henrik Kraft, added:

“We are very excited to announce our investment into Göztepe S.K. and add the club to the Sport Republic family. We have been working on this for a long time and are very pleased that it was possible to come to an agreement.

“The ambition of all of us at Sport Republic is to build a portfolio of high-influence stakes in football clubs and other sporting assets across the world and then use our wider portfolio of sports technology businesses to accelerate the development of those companies. We can’t wait to get started and begin implementing our strategy with Göztepe.

“I would also like to thank Mehmet Sepil for his collaboration in making this deal happen. One of our key requirements was that Mehmet stayed as a shareholder as he knows the club and Turkish football in general inside out. We very much look forward to our partnership with Mehmet.”

Sport Republic had declared their interest in creating a multi-club portfolio, with Southampton considered the jewel in the crown, when they purchased the club from Gao Jisheng in January.

The Saints could see their new Turkish acquaintances as an opportunity for development loan spells, while Sport Republic still seek to add more clubs to the portfolio.

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Project ACL: The initiative leading the way on injury research

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Launched in 2024, the research project recently welcomed two US-based organisations: the National Women’s Soccer League Players Association (NWSLPA) and National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL).

 

About Project ACL

Led by FIFPRO, PFA England, Nike and Leeds Beckett University, Project ACL aims to research ACL injuries and understand more about multifactorial risk factors.

After piloting in England’s Women’s Super League (WSL), Project ACL will expand to the NWSL in the US, reflecting the global importance of the project’s research and outcome.

“We are incredibly excited to bring the NWSLPA and NWSL to Project ACL,” said Director of Women’s Football at FIFPRO, Dr. Alex Culvin, via official press release.

“Overall, we believe that player-centricity and collaboration with key stakeholders are central to establishing meaningful change in the soccer ecosystem and that players, competition organisers and stakeholdersaround the world will benefit from Project ACL’s outputs and outcomes.”

Interviews with over 30 players and team surveys across all 12 WSL clubs provided the project’s research team with valuable information about current prevention strategies and available resources.

Furthermore, the project tracks player workload and busy schedule periods during the season through the FIFPRO Player Workload Monitoring tool, therefore gaining insights into the link between scheduling and injury risks.

 

Looking to the data

Project ACL’s partnerships with the WSL – and now the NWSL – are immensely valuable for the future of player welfare in women’s football.

Although ACL injuries affect both male and female athletes, they are twice as likely to occur in women than men. However, according to the NWSL, as little as 8% of sports science research focuses on female athletes.

In Australia, several CommBank Matildas suffered ACL injuries in recent years: Sam Kerr was sidelined from January 2024 to September 2025, Ellie Carpenter for 8 months after suffering the injury while playing for Olympique Lyonnais, and Holly McNamara came back from three ACL’s aged 15, 18 and 20.

And this is just the tip of the iceberg. The 2025/26 ALW season saw several ACL incidents, including four in just two weeks.

 

Research, prevent, protect

Injury prevention and research are vital to sport – whether professional or amateur.

But when the numbers are so shocking – and incidents are so common – governing bodies must remember that player welfare comes above all else. Research can inform prevention strategies. Prevention means players can enjoy the game they love.

The work of Project ACL, continuing until 2027, will hopefully protect countless players across women’s football from suffering long-term or recurring injuries.

South Canberra FC Breaks the Mold: Equity-Driven Model Earns ‘Club Changer’ Honour

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Image Credit: SCFC

South Canberra Football Club has been named Club Changer of the Month for April, in a recognition that reflects a broader shift across Australian football toward rewarding clubs that are actively dismantling the structural barriers limiting women’s access to the game.

The AFC Women’s Asian Cup has just delivered record crowds and unprecedented visibility for women’s football in Australia, and the Club Changer program is now asking what comes next. Its decision to name South Canberra Football Club as Club Changer of the Month for April signals a clear shift in how the program defines contribution: away from participation numbers alone, and toward the equity frameworks that determine whether women stay in the game once they arrive.

South Canberra FC built that framework from the ground up. Established in 2021, the club set out to give women and female-identifying players a safe, inclusive environment to play football at any level. It runs entirely on volunteers, operates as a not-for-profit, and is governed by an all-female committee with 13 of its 14 coaches identifying as female.

 

Building the infrastructure of inclusion

In 2026, the club secured grant funding and put it to work immediately. Two coaches are completing their C Licence qualification, and ten coaches, players and community members have undertaken the Foundations of Football course, which directly tackles the cost and accessibility barriers that exclude women out of coaching pathways.

The club also commissioned a female-specific strength and conditioning program with sports physiotherapists ahead of the 2026 season, targeting injury prevention and explicitly supporting players returning after childbirth.

SCFC’s leadership team draws from LGBTIQ+ individuals, First Nations people and veterans, strengthening the club’s connection to the communities it was built to represent.

The Club Changer program is backing clubs that do this work- clubs that treat equity as infrastructure rather than aspiration. At a moment when Australian football is under pressure to turn its biggest-ever surge of women’s interest into something lasting, SCFC’s model offers a clear answer to the question of how.

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