$2,000 for a Premier League club? A football club is being sold in Kazakhstan

The world of sports and betting is constantly changing, affecting every aspect of the industry. Recently, it became known that the Kazakh football club Turan is being put up for sale, reflecting current trends in the sports business, where even no-deposit registration bonuses are becoming an important tool for attracting attention to events.

FC Turan is a professional football club founded in 2002. During its existence, the team has played in the Kazakhstan Premier League four times (seasons 2021–2022 and 2024–2025). The club’s best achievement was 12th place in the 2021 season. The club has also reached the quarterfinals of the Kazakhstan Cup twice. The squad mainly consists of Kazakh players, but footballers from Russia and several European countries are also represented. After an unsuccessful last season, the team left the top division of Kazakh football.

The decision to put Turan up for auction is linked to a new law in Kazakhstan that prohibits paying salaries to foreign athletes from state budget funds. The country’s president, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, emphasized the need to transform sports into an efficient business. The starting price of the club is 1 million tenge (about $2,000). This amount reflects the market value taking into account all obligations and debts.

There are also several requirements for potential buyers. One mandatory condition is having 200 million tenge in an account for the club’s development. Among the obligations are maintaining the staff for 10 years, creating a youth academy, and investing in a women’s team. The new owner will not be able to resell the club, although the time restriction has not been specified. The buyer must also guarantee the club’s return to the Premier League by 2027.

It is already clear that the sale of Turan is part of a large-scale reorganization of Kazakh football. At the same time, another club, Atyrau, has also been put up for sale with a starting price of 175.6 million tenge. The difference compared to Turan’s price is explained by Atyrau’s larger assets as well as its status as a Premier League team, from which it narrowly avoided relegation last season.