Aziz Üstel (1946–2026) was a Turkish journalist, writer, translator, television presenter, and sports administrator. Born in Ankara in 1946, Üstel received his education at the University of California’s Department of Communication.^【1】 He held various positions in the fields of media and sports administration in Türkiye.

Aziz Üstel was born in Ankara in 1946 as the son of Sabih Üstel and Yekta Hanım. His family also included another son named Enis. Üstel’s parents divorced when he was seven years old. Following this separation, he moved to the United States with his father and stepmother and lived in San Francisco until the age of 18.^【2】

During this period, he worked in various jobs including sewage cleaning for the municipality and laboring in oil wells in Texas. He completed his higher education at the University of California’s Department of Communication. He married Filiz Üstel.

Returning to Türkiye to fulfill his military service, Üstel co-founded a translation bureau with two friends. He translated Anthony Burgess’s novel A Clockwork Orange into Turkish and was awarded the “Best Translation Award” for this work.

Among his literary works are Who Killed Me? (2012), The Last Eagles of the Ottoman Empire (2013), and City of Dead Children (2013). He also published his translation of Emmett Grogan’s Death Game (2018).

Üstel began his television career in 1974 at TRT, where he worked as a translator and scriptwriter for foreign series. He oversaw the Turkish translations of productions such as Fugitive, Star Trek, and Mission: Impossible. During the period when TRT operated a single channel, he produced and hosted the talk show Gecenin Konukları for nine years.

In 1989, his position at TRT was terminated by order of then President Kenan Evren. After this event, Üstel continued his career on private television channels, broadcasting Gecenin Konukları on Kanal 6 and Kanal E. He also provided football commentary on CNN Türk’s program Futbolmania and in 2008 produced and hosted the program Patron Katı on the 24 channel.

He returned to talk shows on TGRT Haber and provided commentary on the program Aslan Yuvası on Radyospor.

Üstel expanded his media career to include screenwriting and acting. He wrote the screenplay for the 1994 Kanal D series Kartal Kaya, starring Bülent Kayabaş.

As an actor, he appeared in the 2000 film Abuzer Kadayıf, the 2004 film Cumhurbaşkanı Öteki Türkiye'de, and in the 2004 series İyi Saatte Olsunlar portraying the character Tekin.

Throughout his professional life, Üstel was active in print media. He served as General Manager of Yan Publications at Tercüman Gazetesi and later worked at Günaydın Gazetesi. In later stages of his career, he contributed as a columnist for Star Gazetesi.

Known for his association with Galatasaray Sports Club, Üstel became a club member despite not being an alumnus of Galatasaray High School. He served on the club’s board of directors during the 2001–2002 term and is listed as member number 8481 of the Galatasaray Divan Kurulu.

Aziz Üstel passed away on 17 July 2026 at the hospital where he was receiving treatment due to multiple organ failure.