Ayfer Topluoğlu

Ayfer Topluoğlu — Biography

Ayfer Topluoğlu is a former Turkish women's footballer, goalkeeper and coach, born on January 31, 1977, in Gürpınar village in the Çatalca district of Istanbul. She graduated from Büyükçekmece High School. Before turning to football she played basketball professionally for Bakırköyspor from 1990 to 1993.

Her goalkeeping career began at Dinarsuspor (1993-97), where she won four consecutive Women's League titles, two of them undefeated. She then kept goal for Adana Yataşspor (1997-98) and Gemlik Zeytinspor (1998-99), won another championship with Delta Mobilyaspor in 1999-2000, and finished at Adana İdmanyurduspor in 2002-03. She received a Fair Play Award for 1995-96. She debuted for the Turkey women's national team in a friendly against Romania on September 10, 1995, and earned 30 caps between 1995 and 2003, among the highest totals for the team, playing in qualifying for the 1997 and 2001 European Championships and the 1999 and 2003 World Cups.

She retired at the end of 2002-03. She was goalkeeper coach at the Tunkaya Football School from 2002 to 2004 and coach of Gürpınarspor from 2004 to 2006, and in 2003 became assistant coach of the junior women's national team. She also worked briefly as a local newspaper reporter and radio commentator. In a 2021 interview she said the debate over whether women can play football in Turkey had still not been overcome. She serves as sports advisor to the Beylikdüzü municipality in Istanbul.