A day in the life of Turkish soccer power Besiktas

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"We are the loudest fans in the world," Engin said as we took our seats in the VIP section of Besiktas Stadium. He pointed across to where the diehards were swaying like a massive black-and-white flag. They were singing about their beloved Black Eagles. Engin's face betrayed his pride. "Normally, I sit over there."

Today, he was in the VIP section -- which just means the section where people sit rather than stand for the full 90 -- chaperoning me and another American, my buddy Jordan. Engin (pronounced EN-yin) was thrilled that we had wanted to go see "his Besiktas." When he and his friend Mehmet had picked us up at our hotel, Engin had pointed to a pile of shirts on the backseat. "It is a Besiktas bazaar," he said, smiling. "You take one to wear to the match." I chose a white long-sleeved jersey that read "11+1" on the back, a reference to a recent crowd-ban for the club.

Besiktas (pronounced beh-SHIK-tash) is one of Istanbul's three big clubs, along with Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe. It was founded in 1903 and has won 12 league championships and six cups. Right now, as the season wraps up, the "Karakartal," or Black Eagles, are in second place, two points behind Fenerbahçe.

When traveling, I've always found that having a little knowledge about the local sides and league is a great way to make friends. It also can help you avoid being cheated by taxi drivers and hassled by drunk thugs. "What team do you support?" should be in every guidebook's "useful phrases" section.

Turkish football fans have a reputation for hooliganism. A well-earned reputation, it turns out. The violence can be deadly, such as the infamous stabbings of two Leeds supporters in 2000 before the English club's match with Galatasaray. One of the most popular T-shirt slogans among Besiktas fans is "Against Everything"; the "A" is circled. Great, I thought, Turkish anarchists.

As we walked toward the stadium and noshed on doner kebabs smothered in yogurt sauce, a scuffle broke out right in the middle of heavily trafficked Besiktas Street. One guy got popped and a plum-sized shiner blew up just above his eye. They were both Besiktas fans! The everything in "Against Everything," it seems, includes yourself.

This brutal ugliness contrasted sadly with the nearby ornate Dolmabahçe Palace, former administrative center for the Ottoman Empire. But then, in Istanbul, contrast is everywhere. This is one of the world's most beautiful cities, but it is rife with clashes. It is here, along the banks of the Bosphorus, where the world collides, where Asia meets Europe, Islam slams up against Christianity, and the past wrestles with the present.

Inönü Stadium, built in 1947, sits within shooting distance of the Bosphorus. On this night, the Black Eagles faced Antalyaspor, a team from the eastern city of Antalya, where, it turned out, Mehmet was from. He explained that they were a young speedy side that could trouble older, slower Besiktas.

From the opening whistle, the nearly 33,000 fans kept up a riot of noise. "We became louder than Liverpool a few years ago," Engin claimed, his voice filled with pride. "We are reaching 132 decibels."

The sheer volume is astounding and constant. At one point, they cried "Kartal, Goal, Goal, Goal!" for -- no kidding -- 13 minutes straight. The cheer looped from a near whisper to a full bellow, and whenever you thought it couldn't possibly get any louder without someone's vocal cords -- or my eardrums -- shattering, it did: They turned it up to 11!