Drogheda United Set for Historic Match Against Trabzonspor
Drogheda United are heading into uncharted territory – and they might just run into Mohamed Salah along the way.
The League of Ireland club have confirmed a glamour friendly against Turkish giants Trabzonspor at Papara Park on 1 October, the first time the Louth side will play a match on Turkish soil.
The fixture drops neatly into a broader story. Ireland and Turkey will mark 75 years of diplomatic relations in 2026, and Drogheda are now firmly woven into that relationship. The club are one of three official sister clubs of Trabzonspor, alongside Sanlıurfaspor and Siirt Provincial Special Administration Sport.
This isn’t just a game. It’s a chapter in a story that stretches back nearly two centuries.
A Turkish TV documentary – titled An Gorta Mór – The Star & The Crescent – will run alongside the occasion, charting the tale of Ottoman humanitarian aid sent to Ireland during the Great Famine. Drogheda’s role in that history is central.
Speaking on the RTÉ Soccer podcast in 2020, former Drogheda United PRO Roisin Philips outlined how deep the connection really runs.
"It goes back far longer than 2011 when they announced that we'd become their sister club," she said.
"In fact it goes back to the Great Famine in 1845. Drogheda had links with Turkey as a result of the Sultan at the time sending aid over to the Irish people. Boats came up the Boyne in Drogheda. He also sent £1,000 at the time.
"There's been a long history of co-operation between the two countries, from the Turkish side to Ireland."
Now that history will spill onto the pitch.
Salah factor hovers over Drogheda’s Turkish trip
The timing of the match, during a three-week international break, means it will double as a late-season mini-camp for Drogheda. A chance to reset, sharpen up – and measure themselves against a squad loaded with star power.
Whether Salah actually lines out is another matter.
The Egypt forward is due to play for his country against South Sudan in African Cup of Nations qualifying on 27 September. That schedule could rule him out of the friendly, or at least limit his involvement, as he juggles international duty with the demands of Trabzonspor’s season.
Trabzonspor’s Super Lig campaign restarts the following week, with Salah and his team-mates set for an away trip to Samsunspor. Any minutes he gets against Drogheda would come with that league resumption looming.
Even if he sits it out, the scale of the challenge for Drogheda is clear. Trabzonspor have assembled a heavyweight squad in recent years, headlined by Salah after his trophy-laden spell at Liverpool, his former Anfield colleague Fabinho, and ex-Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana.
For Drogheda United, it is a friendly in name only. It is a rare stage, a historic journey, and a chance to test themselves against some of the game’s biggest names in a city where a 19th-century act of generosity still echoes today.
