The Turkish Football Federation has taken action against more than 1,000 players, including 27 from the top league, in response to a significant betting investigation involving alleged wagers on matches. A total of 1,024 footballers have been implicated in an ongoing probe, and all individuals involved have been referred to the Professional Football Disciplinary Board (PFDK) in Turkey.
Current champions and league leaders, Galatasaray, have had one of their players, Eren Elmali, implicated in the scandal. Meanwhile, Istanbul rivals Besiktas have two players referred to the PFDK, though the club asserts their belief in the innocence of these unnamed players.
Elmali admitted on Instagram that he placed a bet on a game not involving his team around five years ago, prior to joining Galatasaray this year. As a result of the investigation, matches in the third and fourth tiers of Turkish football have been postponed for two weeks, while games in the top two tiers will proceed. The President of the Turkish Football Federation, Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu, described the situation as a “moral crisis” and emphasized the need to cleanse Turkish football of any wrongdoing.
The TFF has requested FIFA to grant a 15-day extension for transfers and registrations in the winter window to allow clubs to address squad gaps arising from the investigation. However, FIFA has yet to respond to this request. Local reports indicate that Turkish authorities have made eight arrests in connection to the probe, including a club chairman, with detention orders issued for 21 individuals, including referees and club presidents.
The investigation, ongoing for the past five years, has already led to the banning of 149 officials. It has been revealed that 371 out of 571 referees had gambling accounts, with 152 being active. The severity of the situation has prompted the TFF to affirm that three officials are still under scrutiny and may face penalties.
Former Fenerbahce manager, Jose Mourinho, previously criticized the standard of refereeing in Turkish football. While there is no evidence of his team being involved in any betting misconduct, he urged the media to address such issues.
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