Engin Öztonga

Engin Öztonga — Biography

Engin Öztonga is a former footballer who came through Kocaelispor and played in the club's midfield for roughly nine years. After leaving the professional game he founded a football school under his own name and still turns out in amateur matches.

Born in the Kullar district of Kocaeli, Öztonga started in Kocaelispor's youth setup, and playing for the club helped him win early places in Turkey's youth national teams. He signed a professional contract in 1996 and was taken into the first team, made his Süper Lig debut against Kayserispor on 19 May 1996, and in time became a regular. He stayed at Kocaelispor until 2005, then moved to Gaziantepspor for two seasons and afterwards played for Eskişehirspor. In 2010 he transferred to Diyarbakırspor together with his cousin Mehmet Öztonga, joined First League side Kartalspor in the mid-season window, and at the start of 2011-12 moved to Körfez FK, a Second League club regarded as a continuation of Kocaelispor.

He played 34 times for Turkey's U17, U18 and U21 sides, scoring two goals, and was in the squad when the under-21 team progressed from its group for the first time and reached the finals of the 2000 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. In the summer of 2026 he took the field again in amateur football in a Çubuklu shirt alongside Haydar Koç.