Qemal Omari (born 1928) was a

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

football player, manager and referee of Albanian heritage. He was a founding member of

İstanbulspor A.Ş. İstanbulspor is a Turkish football and sports club founded by Istanbul High School students in 1926. In 2004–05 they were relegated from the Turkish Süper Lig (Super League) to TFF 1. Lig. For many decades it was the fourth most famous and ...

in 1926 and he played for the club before retiring and becoming a referee and the general secretary of the

Istanbul Football League The Istanbul Football League ( tr, İstanbul Futbol Ligi) was founded as a regional football league under the name Constantinople Football Association League by James La Fontaine and Henry Pears in Istanbul, the capital of the former Ottoman Emp ...

. in 1932 he notably refereed the game between

Galatasaray Galatasaray Spor Kulübü (, ''Galatasaray Sports Club'') is a Turkish sports club based on the European side of the city of Istanbul in Turkey. Most notable for its association football department, the club also consists of various other dep ...

and Fenerbahçe before moving to

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the ...

to become the manager of

Skënderbeu Korçë , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

Skënderbeu

In the early 1930s, King Zog of

had wanted foreign players and coaches to come to the country in order to raise the profile of football and to increase the standards, and Omari was invited by representatives of King Zog to Albania along with

Servet Teufik Agaj Servet Teufik Agaj was an Albanian former football player who played for Skënderbeu Korçë during the 1930s, where he won the club's first ever Albanian Championship in 1933, a season in which he also finished as top scorer with 7 goals in 5 gam ...

, both of whom were

Ethnic Albanian The Albanians (; sq, Shqiptarët ) are an ethnic group and nation native to the Balkan Peninsula who share a common Albanian ancestry, culture, history and language. They primarily live in Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serb ...

s living in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. Both Omari and Agaj were to head to

Korçë Korçë (; sq-definite, Korça) is the eighth most populous city of the Republic of Albania and the seat of Korçë County and Korçë Municipality. The total population is 75,994 (2011 census), in a total area of . It stands on a plateau some ...

to join the Skënderbeu. It is not known why they chose Skënderbeu, but some have suggested that Omari's parents may have originally been from Korçë, but had emigrated to Turkey during the

Ottoman era The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. Agaj was born in Gora, Korçë but had been living in Turkey for a number of years before returning in 1931, one year before himself and Omari joined Skënderbeu. It has been suggested that Omari chose to go to Korçë on the recommendation of Agaj. Omari won the 1933 Albanian Championship with Skënderbeu after finishing fourth in his first season. In the title winning season Servet Teufik Agaj scored seven league goals and was named the top scorer. Both the player and coach remained at the club until 1938, when they returned to Turkey.

References

Year of death missing Turkish people of Albanian descent Turkish footballers İstanbulspor footballers Turkish football managers KF Skënderbeu Korçë managers Turkish expatriate football managers Turkish expatriate sportspeople in Albania Expatriate football managers in Albania Association football midfielders 1928 births {{Turkey-footy-bio-stub