Thousands of fans toss stuffed toys on football pitch for children affected by Türkiye earthquakes

February 27, 2023 admin-dominor

Key Points

Thousands of fans donated stuffed toys to children victims affected by the earthquakes in Türkiye on Sunday evening.
The game was paused at 4:17 – the time the earthquake hit – for thousands of fans to toss their toys on the pitch.
More than 44,000 people have died in the country with hundreds of thousands more displaced since the quakes hit.

Just four minutes and 17 seconds after a national league football match in Türkiye kicked off, it was stopped.

Then, all eyes shifted to the stands as thousands of fans threw stuffed toys, scarves and berets onto the pitch in the Turkish Super League match in Istanbul.

The toys will be donated to children affected by the .

Players and support staff moved the toys, which included huge teddy bears, to the sides of the pitch before the match resumed.

The toy drive was organised by the Istanbul-based Beşiktaş club, whose fans came ready.

The stadium was packed with 40,000 supporters for the match against Antalyaspor. Some brought their own toys and others bought them from the club’s merchandise store nearby.

The government’s disaster agency confirmed more than 44,000 people have died in the country that has been left reeling in the aftermath of a 7.7 magnitude earthquake on 6 February.

More than 530,000 people are now displaced as a result and more than 173,000 buildings have collapsed since the first earthquake shocked the region.

Thousands of children left without a home will receive the toys from the match.

The toss took place at the 4:17 mark of the match as a symbolic nod to the time – 4.17am – when the earthquake struck Türkiye and Syria.

Fans in a football stadium throwing toys onto the pitch

Toys were thrown at the 4:17 mark of the match, the time the earthquakes hit the region. Source: Getty / Depo Photos / ABACA / PA / Alamy

In a statement, Beşiktaş said the event was aimed at giving “morale to the children affected by the earthquake that stifled our country”.

Beşiktaş also said the players’ jerseys would be auctioned after the game, with the proceeds to be donated to victims of the quakes.

Several of the club’s players and management have been involved in relief efforts, from visiting fans in hospital to packing and supplying items sent to those in earthquake-affected regions.

The club has been involved in toy tosses before, notably in 2011 after earthquakes in Van, Türkiye, that killed more than 600 people.

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