Ilıcalı entered the media sector at the age of 22 (year 1991 or 1992) and began working for
Turkish television channel
Show TV as a sports reporter. In 2002, Ilıcalı produced several programs and content for a number of Turkey's most popular television channels. His travel/entertainment program,
Acun Firarda, which he prepared and presented himself by travelling to more than 100 countries, was particularly successful. He quickly became one of the most recognized names in Turkey, where his shows typically enjoyed very high ratings.
Jennifer Şebnem Schaefer took part in the fashion-related parts of the program. In 2004, Ilıcalı founded his own
production company ACUNMEDYA. The company purchased the
broadcasting rights to famous shows and adapted them for Turkish viewers. The shows included
Deal or No Deal?,
Fear Factor,
Survivor,
MasterChef,
Got Talent,
The Voice,
Dancing with the Stars,
Rising Star and
Ninja Warrior, all of which were broadcast on popular prime-time slots. In 2016, Ilıcalı produced projects in
Greece, marking his first foray into the international media sector. ACUNMEDYA produced a number of television programs in Greece, including
The Voice,
Survivor,
Got Talent and
My Style Rocks for broadcast on
Skai TV. The programs had ratings of 70% and were some of the most-viewed programs in Greek television history. As a result of its successes in Greece, ACUNMEDYA developed a format bringing sports and reality programming together for the first time.
Exatlon, a new reality sports competition program, began broadcasting in 2017 to an international audience in a number of countries, including
USA,
Mexico,
Romania,
Slovenia,
Colombia,
Brazil,
Germany, and
Hungary. At the 2017 Brazil edition, presented by the local host
Luís Ernesto Lacombe, Ilıcalı and some partners menaced the local presenter hours before the grand final and took the stage himself.
Exatlon currently remains among the most highly viewed programs in the countries in which it is broadcast. Following the success of
Exatlon, Ilıcalı concluded an agreement with
Ricardo Salinas, owner of Mexico's largest media group, for the production of television content for a three-year period. These productions are currently being broadcast in both daytime and evening slots on
Azteca Uno, Mexico's most popular television channel. Today, through the formats he has developed and the global program rights he has purchased, ACUNMEDYA produces content on four continents and in more than 10 countries. ACUNMEDYA also launched Exxen a digital broadcasting platform that focused on family-oriented content. Exxen has more than 1 million subscribers. Exxen has acquired broadcasting rights for
UEFA Champions League,
UEFA Europa League and
UEFA Europa Conference League. These organizations have been broadcast in Turkey for three seasons on Exxen. Since 2008, Ilıcalı has been one of Turkey's top 100 largest taxpayers. == Sports teams ==