Atabey Çiçek

Atabey Çiçek — Biography

Atabey Çiçek was born on July 24, 1995, in the Yenimahalle district of Ankara and is a Turkish professional footballer who plays as a forward. He spent his childhood in İzmir before the family moved to Ankara, where his father enrolled him at age seven in Gençlerbirliği's summer sports school; he passed a trial six months later and, since his own birth-year group had no team yet, joined the academy side a year above his age before working his way up to the first team. He signed his first professional contract with Gençlerbirliği in 2011, played for the club's A2 team in Spor Toto Cup matches against Gaziantepspor, MP Antalyaspor and Kayserispor in 2011-12, and topped the A2 League's scoring charts with 29 goals in 2012-13. From 2011 he also played for Turkey's U-16, U-17, U-18 and A2 youth national teams, making 35 appearances and scoring 20 goals.

He went on to play for Kocaelispor before moving to İstanbul Başakşehir, where his contract was extended in April 2022. He was loaned to the Belgian club Westerlo in November 2023, and on returning to Turkey played for Batman Petrolspor before joining Aliağa FK for the 2025-26 season.

In June 2026 he agreed to join Erzincanspor, who were looking to strengthen their attack; the Erzincan press called the move one of the transfer coups of the year, and he received an enthusiastic welcome in the city. Playing in the club's forward line for the new season, he and teammate İsmet Yumakoğulları sent a championship message in August 2026. The youngest of three siblings, Çiçek has an older brother, Cansın Çiçek, who is also a footballer.