BURSA , Turkey ( CNN ) -- Armenian President Serzh Sarkisian Wednesday became the first Armenian head of state to travel to Turkey to attend a soccer game between the two countries ' national teams . Armenian President Serzh Sarkasian ( right ) pictured with Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul during Gul 's visit to Yerevan in 2008 . Sarkisian and Turkish president Abdullah Gul arrived at the stadium in Bursa together in a car flying the national flags of both countries . In an exclusive interview with CNN before the game , Gul said the event opened a new chapter for relations between Armenia and Turkey . But when asked , he avoided saying whether the border between the two neighbors would be opened before 2010 . At the match , Turkish supporters vastly outnumbered Armenian fans and gave the Armenian national anthem the standard treatment for most visiting foreign teams -- they booed . Small pockets of Armenian supporters waved the tri-color flag of Armenia . Turkey won the World Cup qualifying group game 2-0 but with both countries already unable to progress to the 2010 tournament in South Africa , the significance of the game was in its symbolism . This round of `` football diplomacy , '' comes just days after the two governments signed a historic series of protocols to establish diplomatic relations between the two neighbors . `` This is going to be the biggest change in the South Caucasus since 1994 , '' said Gevorg Tel-Gabrielyan , the Armenia country director for the Eurasia Partnership Foundation . He was in Bursa on Wednesday , hosting a conference of Armenian and Turkish academics examining bilateral relations . `` If this happens , '' he added , `` its going to change geopolitics in the region . '' Armenia and Turkey have been separated by nearly a century of animosity and distrust . The protocols call for establishment of embassies in each others ' capitals , and for re-opening the Turkish-Armenian border , which has been closed since 1993 . The soccer game was also being held in Bursa , which centuries ago was the capital of the Ottoman Empire . Thousands of police were deployed to maintain strict security . On Tuesday , Turkey 's prime minister made a public appeal to Turkish football fans , to greet Sarkisian with hospitality and to avoid provocations . Despite strong support from the United States , the European Union and Russia , there is considerable opposition among nationalists in Turkey and Armenia to the peace process . Sarkisian has been met by angry protests both within Armenia and among the influential diaspora communities in the United States , France and Lebanon . Thousands of protesters in the Armenian capital marched to the country 's genocide memorial chanting `` no concessions to the Turks , '' last week . Armenia has long demanded that Turkey recognize the World War I-era massacre of hundreds of thousands of ethnic Armenians by Ottoman Turkish soldiers as genocide . Modern-day Turkey vehemently denies a genocide took place and is calling for an international commission of historical experts to examine these tragic events . Meanwhile , opposition party leaders in Turkey have criticized the agreement , as has Turkey 's close ally in the Caucasus , Azerbaijan . Azerbaijan fought and lost a war against Armenia in the early 1990s . On Sunday , Turkey 's prime minister made a fresh call for Armenia to withdraw its troops from the disputed Azerbaijani territory of Nagorno-Karabakh . For the new agreement to go into effect , the documents must first be put to a vote in the Turkish and Armenian parliaments . There is no guarantee lawmakers will ratify the agreement . The process of unraveling the complicated network of regional , domestic and historical grievances dividing Armenia and Turkey was jump-started in September of 2008 , when Gul traveled to Yerevan to attend a football match between the two national teams . The diplomatic rapprochement has also gotten valuable support from powerful patrons , experts say . `` This is one of the few places in the world where Russia and the United States are pulling in the same direction , '' says Hugh Pope , an expert on Turkey with the International Crisis Group . `` Both want to see a more stable Caucasus . '' Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton were both present at the signing ceremony for the Turkish-Armenian agreement in Switzerland on Saturday . Wednesday 's game in Bursa was the final match for the coach of the Turkish national team , Fatih Terim , who announced his resignation after Turkey 's most recent football defeat . Despite that , the headline in one of Turkey 's biggest newspapers billed today 's football game `` Our most challenging match . ''
Armenian president 's visit comes amid thaw in relations between Turkey . However , Armenia broke protocols at weekend to establish diplomatic relations . President Sarkisian has faced angry protests at home over rapprochement . Sarkisian attends Turkey match ; Gul ##bis match in Yerevan last year .