Postcard from Arkadag
IT’S BEEN a remarkable rise to the top for Arkadag, a football club that was only formed in 2023 in Turkmenistan, a country more normally known for its fondness of horse racing (jumps and flats). The club recently won Asia’s Challenge League, the continent’s third-tier competition, making it a haul of five trophies in two years following backto-back domestic league and cup doubles.
If you’re wondering what’s behind this astounding success story, then look no further than patronage from the very top. Arkadag, which translates as “protector”, also happens to be the preferred title of former dentist-turnedpresident for just over 15 years (2006-22), Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.