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The Turkish Football Federation has appointed Sergen Yalçın as head coach of the men's national team, the 48th person to hold the post and the 27th from Türkiye. The federation said a four-year contract will be signed with the former player and coach.

Yalçın takes over after the team's disappointing group-stage exit at the 2026 FIFA World Cup and four straight defeats in the UEFA Nations League, results that led to the departure of Vincenzo Montella.

Federation confirms appointment

"By decision of the Board of Directors, Sergen Yalçın has been appointed as head coach of the national team," the Turkish Football Federation said in a statement. The federation also announced that a four-year contract will be signed with Yalçın.

Yalçın enjoyed a successful playing career and wore the national shirt on many occasions. He will now serve as head coach of the side he once represented on the pitch.

Club career and success with Beşiktaş

Yalçın began his coaching career in 2013 and has worked at Gaziantepspor, Sivasspor, Kayserispor, Eskişehirspor, Konyaspor, Alanyaspor, Yeni Malatyaspor, Antalyaspor and Beşiktaş.

While in charge of Beşiktaş, he won both the Süper Lig and the Turkish Cup in the 2020-2021 season. He arrived at the national team after Montella's exit, which followed four consecutive UEFA Nations League defeats and the group-stage elimination at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

27th Turkish coach in 103 years

In 103 years of history, Türkiye has played 658 matches under 47 head coaches in total, 26 of them Turkish and 21 foreign. Yalçın becomes the 27th Turkish coach to lead the national team.

The foreign coaches came from a range of countries: four Hungarians and four Italians, three English and three Yugoslav, two Romanians and two Germans, along with one Scottish, one Irish and one Dutch coach. Six coaches each took charge of only a single national match: Ali Sami Yen, Nicolae Petrescu, Gündüz Kılıç, Şeref Görkey, Şükrü Gülesin and Ünal Karaman.

Records belong to Fatih Terim

Fatih Terim holds the record for most matches as Türkiye head coach. Across spells in 1990, 1993-1996, 2005-2009 and 2013-2017, the team played 135 matches under him.

Terim also oversaw the highest number of victories in the team's history. Of those 135 matches, the national side won 70, one of them by default.

Landmark results under Terim, Denizli and Güneş

Under Terim, Türkiye qualified for the European Championship finals for the first time, reaching EURO 1996, and went on to the semi-finals at EURO 2008. Mustafa Denizli then guided the team to the quarter-finals of EURO 2000.

Şenol Güneş, who followed Denizli, took the national team to the FIFA World Cup finals after a 48-year absence, finishing third in the world and taking third place at the FIFA Confederations Cup.

Güneş's second spell in charge lasted two and a half years and ended after poor results at EURO 2020, where Türkiye lost all their matches, and in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.

Montella's rise followed by a decline

Vincenzo Montella took over in 2023 after Stefan Kuntz. His tenure began with an away win over Croatia, and the team went on to reach the quarter-finals of EURO 2024, qualify for the World Cup for the first time in 24 years and win promotion to UEFA Nations League A for the first time.

After those achievements, the side failed to get out of the group at the 2026 World Cup and lost its first four matches in Nations League A. Montella was then dismissed, and Yalçın now takes charge ahead of the next competitive fixtures.

Key takeaways

• Sergen Yalçın has been named head coach of Türkiye's national team, the 48th in its history and the 27th Turkish coach.
• A four-year contract will be signed with Yalçın, the Turkish Football Federation announced.
• Yalçın won the Süper Lig and Turkish Cup with Beşiktaş in the 2020-2021 season.
• He replaces Vincenzo Montella, who left after the 2026 World Cup group-stage exit and four straight Nations League defeats.