Istanbul Cavaliers was an American football team in Turkey. The team was a semi-pro club team in the national Türkiye Korumalñ Futbol Ligi (TKFL, American Football First League of Turkey). It was founded in 2005. The team's head coach was Hayden Flowers for the 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 seasons, with the success of one championship and one runner-up record at the national level; his successor John Douglas Harper coached the team for the 2011-2012 season. Its colors were navy and white. The team practiced at the athletic fields of Maltepe and Fikirtepe, Göztepe on the Asian part of Istanbul. The club had three teams, A-team, B-team and U19 team.
In the 2005âÂÂ06 season, the team finished 5th in the league. In the 2006âÂÂ07 season, the team made the playoffs by finishing second place in the regular season in the Istanbul Conference, before it was eliminated by the Ege Dolphins 20âÂÂ14 in ðzmir in May 2007. In the 2007âÂÂ08 season, the Cavaliers were eliminated in regular-season competition, and the team did not make to the playoffs. In the 2008âÂÂ09 season, the Cavaliers had a 7âÂÂ2 run, and qualified for the playoffs. The team played the 2008âÂÂ09 season final but lost to BoÃÂaziçi Sultans 22âÂÂ20, finishing as the runner-up. In the 2009âÂÂ10 season, the team won the championship title after a very exciting bowl game against Ankara team Gazi Warriors, with a score of 18âÂÂ13. The team finished the regular season in the top spot with a 7âÂÂ1 record.
In 2008, the Cavaliers won against the Bulgarian Team Sofia 28âÂÂ0 in a friendly match in Sofia after winning by 22âÂÂ16 in Istanbul. The team folded in 2012.