Emre Belözoğlu (Turkish pronunciation: [emˈɾe beˈlœzoːɫu], born 7 September 1980), simply known as Emre, is a Turkish football manager and former professional footballer who is currently head coach of Kasımpaşa.
A left-footed, tempo-setting midfielder most often used as a central midfielder or advanced playmaker, he came through the Galatasaray academy and debuted for the first team at 16, winning four consecutive Süper Lig titles, two Turkish Cups, the UEFA Cup (1999–2000) and the UEFA Super Cup (2000).
In 2001 he moved to Inter Milan for £5 million, was voted the club’s Pirata d'Oro (player of the year) in 2002–03 and reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals. He later played for Newcastle United, had three spells with Fenerbahçe (winning the Süper Lig in 2010–11 and 2013–14, the 2012–13 Turkish Cup and the 2014 Turkish Super Cup), joined Atlético Madrid briefly in 2012, and captained İstanbul Başakşehir from 2015 to 2019 before returning to Fenerbahçe for a final season and retiring in 2020.
Internationally, Belözoğlu earned 101 caps and scored 9 goals for Turkey between 2000 and 2019. He was part of the squad that finished third at the 2002 FIFA World Cup and reached the semi-finals of UEFA Euro 2008, and is a member of the FIFA 100, the list of the world’s greatest living footballers selected by Pelé for FIFA’s centenary.
After retiring, he became Fenerbahçe’s director of football in October 2020 and served as the club’s interim head coach for the final ten league matches of the 2020–21 season. He subsequently managed İstanbul Başakşehir (securing European qualification and reaching the Turkish Cup final), Ankaragücü (relegated on the final day of 2023–24), and Antalyaspor, where he briefly resigned in June 2025 before the decision was reversed and he was confirmed to continue into 2025–26.
Born in Istanbul’s Zeytinburnu district, Belözoğlu was introduced to football by his father, Mehmet, an amateur player who took him to the Zeytinburnuspor training ground. His mother, Fatma, having witnessed the difficulties her husband faced in the game, initially opposed a professional career, but his father encouraged him to pursue it.
At Zeytinburnuspor, coach Salih Bulgurlu identified his talent, praising his control with his left foot and giving him individual training for four years to refine his technique, fitness and stamina. His progress quickly drew wider attention. Former Galatasaray player and coach Bülent Ünder a close friend of then Galatasaray manager Fatih Terim recommended that Belözoğlu be taken into Galatasaray’s academy, which he duly joined in 1996. Ünder is reported to have told Bulgurlu:Wait and see. In two years, this teenager will be playing proudly within the battlegrounds of Europe.
Belözoğlu represented Turkey at youth level from under-15 through under-21 before breaking into Galatasaray’s first team as a 16-year-old during the 1996–97.
Belözoğlu came through Galatasaray’s youth system and was promoted to the senior squad in the 1996–97 season at the age of 16. He broke into the first team the following year under Fatih Terim, and between 1996 and 2001 made over 100 competitive appearances for the club.
During this period he was part of Galatasaray’s most successful modern era, winning four consecutive Süper Lig titles (1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000), two Turkish Cups (1998–99, 1999–2000), the 1999–2000 UEFA Cup, and the 2000 UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid.
He also featured in the 2000–01 UEFA Champions League, including the quarter-final tie against Real Madrid in April 2001. Deployed primarily as a left-footed central midfielder, he was noted for his press resistance, intensity out of possession and ability to progress the ball through tight spaces, often forming part of a midfield unit with Gheorghe Hagi, Okan Buruk and Tugay Kerimoğlu under Terim.
Regarded domestically as one of the leading Turkish prospects of his generation, Belözoğlu left Galatasaray in the summer of 2001 to join Inter Milan for a reported multi-million euro fee.
Belözoğlu moved to Inter Milan in July 2001. Across four seasons he made 115 competitive appearances and scored 5 goals for the Nerazzurri, playing under Héctor Cúper, Alberto Zaccheroni and Roberto Mancini. His standout year came in 2002–03, when he made 37 appearances in all competitions and was voted the Pirata d’Oro (Inter’s player of the year), becoming the 17th recipient of the award. That season Inter reached the UEFA Champions League semi-finals, losing to AC Milan on away goals.
From 2003–04 onward, a series of injuries curtailed his minutes and he gradually fell out of favour; in 2004–05 he made only 19 appearances before being made available for transfer at season’s end. Despite limited appearances, he was part of the Inter squad that won the Coppa Italia in the 2004–05 season under manager Roberto Mancini. He left the club in the summer of 2005 and subsequently signed with Newcastle United in the Premier League.
On 19 July 2005, Belözoğlu moved to Newcastle United on a five-year deal for a £3.8 million transfer fee. He made his debut on 3 August in a 2–1 home defeat to Deportivo La Coruña in the UEFA Intertoto Cup, and 11 days later started in Newcastle's first game of the Premier League season, a defeat to Arsenal. In his fourth game, on 23 October, he assisted the opener for Shola Ameobi from a corner and then scored the winner with a free kick in a 3–2 victory over Sunderland in the Tyne–Wear derby. He finished his first season with 25 appearances in all competitions (20 in the league) and two Premier League goals, adding a second with a long-range strike in a 1–0 win over Birmingham City on 5 November.
Across the following two seasons, persistent injuries limited Belözoğlu to 35 Premier League appearances and three goals. On 17 January 2008, in an FA Cup replay against Stoke City, he was sent off after 29 minutes for retaliating following a foul by John Eustace. He left the club at the end of the 2007–08 season.
In July 2008, Belözoğlu joined Fenerbahçe on a free transfer after leaving Newcastle United, and was unveiled at the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium in a public signing ceremony. The move caused controversy among sections of Galatasaray supporters due to his formative years there, though Belözoğlu stated he had supported Fenerbahçe since childhood, a claim later echoed in Turkish media by former teammates Hakan Şükür and Hasan Şaş.
His first 2008–09 season, under Luis Aragonés, was stop–start due to recurring muscle injuries and Fenerbahçe finished fourth in the Süper Lig. In 2009–10, with Christoph Daum back in charge, Belözoğlu’s form and availability improved markedly; he became one of the side’s key midfielders as Fenerbahçe finished runners-up in the league and reached the Turkish Cup final.