Mohamed Salah’s arrival at Trabzonspor has transformed the Turkish club, with his popularity driving shirt sales, international interest and a challenge for the Turkish Super Lig title.
The 34-year-old was greeted by thousands of supporters when he landed in Istanbul from Mykonos in August wearing Trabzonspor’s burgundy and blue home kit. It sold out almost immediately. After president Ertugrul Dogan suggested he wear the black away strip for his journey to Trabzon, that kit disappeared from shops too.
“I went to the airport to see him in Istanbul and it was surreal,” said Nisa Dumangoz. “I still can’t believe that he is one of us.”
Salah’s image now appears throughout the Black Sea port city, from fishmongers’ walls to the club shop, where a member of staff jokes that the ground floor belongs to the Egyptian and the upper floor to everyone else.
Scarves, magnets, keyrings, lighters and Egyptian Nemes headdresses in Trabzonspor colours are being sold outside the stadium, while season-ticket sales have risen sharply.
“Walking around Trabzon, it feels as though nine out of every 10 fans wearing a shirt have Salah’s name on the back,” said Turkish football journalist Hasan Tuncel. “The 10th has their own.”
Trabzonspor exceeded the previous year’s merchandise revenue within three months of Salah’s arrival. New flights from Cairo, Dubai and Riyadh have also been introduced, making the club easier to reach for supporters across the Arab world than Liverpool often was.
An Egyptian family of 10 travelled from Cairo for Trabzonspor’s Uefa Conference League match against Freiburg. “He is our ambassador and our Egyptian King,” said Mahmoud.
Salah’s commercial appeal is matched by his performances. He has scored 10 goals and provided five assists in all competitions, helping Trabzonspor win seven of their first 10 league games and move within three points of leaders Galatasaray. They have also beaten Galatasaray and Besiktas.
Galatasaray, Fenerbahce and Besiktas have won the league 61 times between them, compared with Trabzonspor’s seven titles.
Salah earns about £14.6m a year and receives 20% of official merchandise sold with his name on. He chose Trabzonspor over the possibility of joining Besiktas after the 2026 World Cup, valuing the quieter lifestyle away from Istanbul. He lives in Yomra, which now has a street named after him, has his own security and employs a private chef.
He has also become a tourist attraction. A rock where he posed during a hike in the Trabzon highlands has been renamed Salahtasi, or Salah’s Rock.
Salah has ambitions to play at the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2030 World Cup. His two-year contract ends in 2028, when he will be 36, and sources in the Middle East believe he could then move to Saudi Arabia.
Trabzonspor’s Paul Onuachu said: “Everyone wants to work with a star like Mohamed Salah. He adds so much and helps all of us… It’s a blessing to play with him.”
Salah told BBC Sport his message to Liverpool fans was simply “hello”. His former club chapter is closed, but in Trabzon he is determined to show he still belongs at the highest level.
