Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, currently neck and neck in the Süper Lig title race, are set to embark on parallel journeys in the league, making their first-half fixture lineup notably similar.
As the matches unfold until the first week of January, both teams are poised to cover a similar distance in their pursuit of the championship.
After 12 weeks in the Süper Lig, the archrivals find themselves tied with the same number of victories and points, setting the stage for a closely contested battle.
In the remaining matches of the first half, both teams will venture beyond Istanbul only once.
Hosting Fatih Karagümrük and Sivasspor consecutively, Fenerbahçe will then face Beşiktaş away in the 15th week.
Following the derby, they will play Konyaspor at home and then travel to Kayseri. The round trip to Kayseri will see Fenerbahçe covering 1240 kilometers (770.5 miles).
After the Kayseri trip, Fenerbahçe will conclude the first half of the season by hosting Galatasaray in a highly anticipated match before their supporters.
Galatasaray's away in Sivas
Galatasaray, like Fenerbahçe, will only venture outside Istanbul once in the remaining matches of the first half of the league.
In the 13th week of the Süper Lig, Galatasaray will host Alanyaspor and then face Pendikspor away in the 14th week.
After a home game against Adana Demirspor in the 15th week, the Lions will travel to face Sivasspor, covering a total of 1400 kilometers for the round trip.
Following the Sivas trip, Galatasaray will play against Fatih Karagümrük at home in the league and will wrap up the first half with an away match against Fenerbahçe.
European destination
Participating in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa Conference League, respectively, Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe will travel to Denmark for their final away matches in the group stage.
Fenerbahçe will face Nordsjaelland on Nov. 30 in their last away group stage match.
The Yellow Canaries will fly to Copenhagen, and from there, they will travel 25 kilometers to Farum for the match.
Galatasaray, competing in the UEFA Champions League Group A, will play their last group stage match on Dec. 12 against a Copenhagen-based team.
The red-yellow team will cover 4,004 kilometers for the round trip, 50 kilometers less than their yellow-navy counterparts.
Saudi-bound
In a climactic showdown, Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray, engaged in the championship race, will face off in Kadıköy on Dec. 24 in the league.
Just five days later, they will clash in the TFF Süper Cup final in Saudi Arabia.
The flight distance between Istanbul and Riyadh is 2,467 kilometers. Both teams will cover a total distance of 4,934 kilometers for the round trip.
As Galatasaray travels to Sivas for their only away league match outside Istanbul in the first half, they will cover 10,338 kilometers by the year's end.
Fenerbahçe, on the other hand, heading to Kayseri for their sole away league match outside Istanbul in the first half, will have an early 10,228-kilometer New Year present.