Referees among suspects sought in match-fixing probe

Turkish prosecutors have issued detention orders for 21 people – including 17 referees and two football club presidents – as part of a major investigation into betting and match fixing.

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said simultaneous raids had been carried out across 12 cities, including Istanbul.

Eighteen suspects were taken into custody, two are believed to be abroad and one could not be located.

Prosecutors have not yet disclosed the identities of those detained.

According to the statement, the referees are being investigated on charges of misconduct in office and manipulating the outcome of games.

Among those named are Eyupspor president Murat Ozkaya, Kasimpasa Sports Club’s former owner Turgay Ciner and ex-president Fatih Sarac, who are accused of influencing match results.

In September, a separate financial investigation was launched into two major conglomerates, Can Holding and Ciner Group, which owned Kasımpasa Sports Club.

As part of that probe, a court appointed a trustee to oversee the club’s management, which remains under court-appointed administration. Ciner is believed to be currently abroad.

Prosecutors also announced a detention order for a social media user identified as UE, accused of publicly spreading misleading information.

Public attention first turned to the betting allegations on 27 October, when Turkish Football Federation (TFF) president Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu said in a news conference hundreds of referees were linked to betting accounts.

Haciosmanoglu claimed that out of 571 referees working in professional leagues, 371 had betting accounts and 152 were actively placing wagers.

He said the group included seven referees and 15 assistant referees from Turkey’s top two divisions, as well as 36 “classified” referees and 94 assistants from the level below.

The TFF president added that 10 referees placed more than 10,000 bets. One referee alone placed 18,227 bets, while 142 referees placed bets on more than 1,000 football matches. Some referees only placed a single bet.

The Istanbul prosecutor’s office later confirmed the investigation into referees’ betting activities began in April. A related probe launched by the Antalya Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office into the TFF’s Central Refereeing Committee was subsequently merged with the Istanbul case.

The prosecutor’s office said Haciosmanoglu’s latest remarks were also added to the investigation file as a formal notification.

Following the revelations, the referees were referred to the Professional Football Disciplinary Board (PFDK).

Among them was Super Lig referee Zorbay Kucuk, who filed a criminal complaint on 30 October, alleging his identity had been stolen and denying any involvement in betting. Kucuk told reporters outside the courthouse he was not a member of any betting website.

On 1 November, the TFF announced that 149 of the 152 referees referred to the PFDK had been banned for between eight and 12 months for betting violations.