More than 1,000 players have been suspended by the Turkish Football Federation in a widening betting scandal, including national team defender Eren Elmali, who plays for Galatasaray.
Turkish Football Federation (TFF) Ibrahim Hacıosmanoğlu has described the scandal as a “moral crisis” and vowed to purge the sport of “all its filth.”
The TFF has referred 1,024 players, including 27 from Turkey’s top-tier Super Lig, to a disciplinary commission.
Matches in the third and fourth divisions are suspended for two weeks, but games in the Super Lig, led by defending champion Galatasaray, and the second tier will continue.
The TFF said it has started urgent negotiations with the world governing body FIFA to request a 15-day extension to the winter transfer window so that clubs can deal with shortages caused by the player suspensions.
Turkish football has been rocked in recent weeks by investigations into alleged widespread betting by referees, and now players, on games, which is prohibited by FIFA.
Prosecutors last week issued detention warrants for 21 people, including 17 referees and the president of a top-flight club.
Local media reported that eight people, including a club chairman, had been formally arrested on Monday by Turkish authorities as part of their investigations.
The scandal erupted last month after the TFF suspended 149 referees and assistant referees.
A government agency had determined 371 of 571 active referees held accounts with betting companies, according to the TFF. Of those, 152 referees allegedly placed bets on football matches, including seven top-level referees and 15 top-level assistant referees.
One referee allegedly placed bets on 18,227 games, raising serious concerns about the integrity of officiating in Turkish football. Ten referees placed bets on more than 10,000 matches each over five years, while some only placed one bet, according to the TFF.
TFF President Ibrahim Hacıosmanoğlu described the situation as a “moral crisis in Turkish football”.
“Our duty is to elevate Turkish football to its rightful place and to purge it of all its filth,” he said at a news conference two weeks ago.
