Boris Nikolov (footballer)

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Boris Nikolov (Bulgarian: Борис Николов), nicknamed The Bear, was a Bulgarian footballer and manager who helped found Galatasaray S.K. in Istanbul. He was one of the club’s thirteen founders in autumn 1905 and became Galatasaray’s first captain and first manager.

In Galatasaray’s very first game, a 2–0 win over Cadi-Keuy FC, Nikolov scored a goal. Because of his height and strength, he earned the nickname The Bear. As player-manager, he also played in Galatasaray’s first Istanbul League match in 1906–07, a 1–1 draw with HMS Imogene FC, scoring Galatasaray’s only goal.

During the Balkan Wars that began in 1912, Nikolov’s name was removed from the official founder list for nationalist reasons. The original list was later reinstated after the Republic of Turkey was founded in 1923.

There is a theory by a Bulgarian sports site that this Boris Nikolov might be the same person who signed Slavia Sofia’s foundation document in the early 1930s, but there is no strong evidence connecting the two.