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Acun Ilıcalı
Fenerbahçe Sports Club Ordinary General Assembly Meeting 20240609 (24).jpg
Ilıcalı (centre) in 2024
Born
Ali Acun Ilıcalı

(1969-05-29) 29 May 1969 (age 56)
Uzunköprü, Edirne, Turkey
Nationality Turkish
Education Kadıköy Anadolu Lisesi
Istanbul University (left)
Occupation
  • Businessman
  • TV producer
  • TV personality
  • entrepreneur
  • reality TV judge
Years active 1991–present
Spouse(s)
Seda Başbuğ
(m. 1988; div. 1993)
Zeynep Yılmaz
(m. 2003; div. 2016)
Şeyma Subaşı
(m. 2017; div. 2018)
Ayça Çağla Altunkaya
(m. 2024)
Children 4
President of Hull City
Assumed office
19 January 2022
Preceded by Assem Allam

Ali Acun Ilıcalı is a famous Turkish TV producer, businessman, and TV personality. He was born on May 29, 1969. He owns popular TV channels like TV8 and TV8.5 in Turkey. He also created a digital platform called Exxen.

Acun Ilıcalı is the founder and head of ACUNMEDYA. This company makes TV shows that are watched all over the world. Many shows and documentaries have been made about his life. They show how he grew from a sports reporter to a big name in media. From 2018 to 2021, Variety magazine named him one of the most important business people in media.

Acun Ilıcalı's Early Life

Acun Ilıcalı was born in Edirne, Turkey. His family comes from the Erzurum Province in Turkey's northeast. He also has family roots from Azerbaijan.

Acun Ilıcalı's Media Journey

Acun Ilıcalı started working in television when he was 22 years old. This was around 1991 or 1992. He began as a sports reporter for a Turkish TV channel called Show TV. By 2002, he was making many shows for Turkey's most-watched TV channels.

Traveling the World for TV

One of his most successful shows was Acun Firarda. On this show, he traveled to over 100 countries. He prepared and presented the show himself. It quickly made him very famous in Turkey. His shows always got very high ratings.

Starting His Own Production Company

In 2004, Acun Ilıcalı started his own company, ACUNMEDYA. This company bought the rights to popular international TV shows. Then, they made Turkish versions of these shows.

Some of the famous shows ACUNMEDYA adapted include:

All these shows were broadcast during prime-time hours and were very popular.

Expanding to Other Countries

In 2016, Acun Ilıcalı started making shows in Greece. This was his first step into international TV. ACUNMEDYA produced many shows for Skai TV in Greece. These included The Voice, Survivor, Got Talent, and My Style Rocks. These shows were incredibly popular, with some getting 70% of viewers. They became some of the most-watched shows in Greek TV history.

After this success, ACUNMEDYA created a new type of show called Exatlon. This show mixes sports and reality TV. It started in 2017 and was shown in many countries. These included the USA, Mexico, Romania, Slovenia, Colombia, Brazil, Germany, and Hungary. Exatlon is still one of the most-watched shows in these countries.

Today, ACUNMEDYA creates TV content on four continents. They work in more than 10 countries. They do this by developing their own show ideas and buying rights to global programs.

Exxen: A Digital Platform

ACUNMEDYA also launched Exxen. This is a digital platform that offers family-friendly content. Exxen has over 1 million subscribers. It has also bought the rights to broadcast important football matches in Turkey. These include the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, and UEFA Europa Conference League.

Since 2008, Acun Ilıcalı has been one of Turkey's biggest taxpayers.

Acun Ilıcalı and Sports Teams

Acun Ilıcalı has also invested in football teams.

  • In 2020, he bought a share in the Dutch football team Fortuna Sittard. This team plays in the Eredivisie League. He ended his partnership with them in 2021.
  • In 2022, his company ACUNMEDYA bought the English football team Hull City A.F.C.
  • In June 2023, he bought a share in the Irish club Shelbourne F.C.. He became the main owner for a short time. However, he gave up control in November 2023.

Personal Life

Acun Ilıcalı has been married three times and has four daughters. In 1989, he married Seda Başbuğ, and they had a daughter together.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Acun Ilıcalı para niños

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