Selim Soydan

Selim Soydan — Biography

Selim Soydan (full name Eşref Selim Soydan) was born on November 15, 1941, in Istanbul; he began at Beşiktaş's youth team, turned professional there in 1959, and transferred to Fenerbahçe on July 8, 1961. Playing as a defender, he won four league titles, a President's Cup and a Balkan Cup with Fenerbahçe, represented Turkey's national team at the 1960 Summer Olympics, and ended his playing career on August 25, 1971, at age 29, with a farewell match between Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş.

After football he worked as a Fenerbahçe club administrator and as a commentator on the program Telegol, which ran until 2013, and served on the Turkish Football Federation's board from 2019 to 2021. He married actress Hülya Koçyiğit on July 5, 1968, and the couple founded Gülşah Film, named after their daughter Gülşah (born 1969), through which he produced dozens of movies from the 1970s into the 1980s. Now a grandfather to Aslışah and Neslişah Alkoçlar, Soydan made headlines again in 2026 when he recalled once wanting to bring coach Fatih Terim to Fenerbahçe.