The betting scandal continues to confuse Turkish football. More than 1,500 players, referees and officials are involved. Now there are more detentions. A former top Galatasaray official is also among them.
Arrests have been made again in connection with the betting scandal in Turkish football. According to consistent Turkish media reports, arrest warrants were issued against 29 people – including the former vice president of Galatasaray Istanbul, Erden Timur.
In a simultaneous operation in eleven provinces, 24 people were arrested, including Timur and 14 football players. One person is already in prison for another crime, and the search for the remaining four is ongoing.
According to the media, the Istanbul Prosecutor General’s Office announced that when Timur’s bank accounts were checked, it was found that he had made suspicious financial transactions and thus violated several laws. The football players would therefore have bet on the outcome of games.
Well over 1,500 people affected by the betting scandal
The betting scandal has been shaking Turkish football for several weeks. At the end of October, the Turkish Football Association (TFF) announced allegations that a total of 152 referees were said to have actively placed bets.
Clubs and players are also being investigated: 149 referees and more than 1,000 players have so far been banned for the duration of the investigation. 27 players from the Turkish top league Süperlig are affected, including professionals from the top clubs Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe and Besiktas Istanbul as well as Trabzonspor. Other club bosses are also among the suspects. In total, over 570 active referees are now said to be involved in the case.
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371 of 571 active referees had accounts with betting providers, including seven referees and 15 assistant referees in the top division. Ten referees are said to have each placed bets on more than 10,000 games over a period of five years. One referee is said to have placed bets on 18,227 games. “There is a moral crisis in Turkish football. There is a lack of structure. The fundamental problem at the core of Turkish football is an ethical one,” said association president Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu.
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