Turkish Federation face scrutiny after pardoning teams involved in match fixing debacle

By Andrew Warshaw

May 8 – Turkish football has come under further scrutiny by FIFA and UEFA after clearing a raft of clubs, including Fenerbahçe, of involvement in a widespread match fixing scandal that has cast a dark shadow on the country.

UEFA banned Fenerbahçe from this season’s Champions League but after a lengthy inquiry the disciplinary board of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) said there was not enough evidence to punish any individual teams.

“There is no reason for punishment since the elements of the alleged disciplinary violation have not materialised,” the TFF said in a statement that will be viewed with strong caution by the game’s governing bodies.

The announcement came a week after the TFF said an independent soccer ethics committee looking into the match fixing allegations concluded there was no evidence to suggest that alleged attempts to fix games had altered the course of the matches.

Remarkably the decisions were taken while 93 officials, players and coaches are still on trial including jailed Fenerbahçe president Aziz Yıldırım (pictured top).

It remains to be seen how the latest judgment affects the hearing.

Although the clubs were exonerated, a number of players were suspended for allegedly fixing results involving Fenerbahçe.

The TFF banned striker İbrahim Akın (pictured above), at İstanbul Büyükşehir Belediye at the time he was charged, for three years for allegedly fixing the result of a game in which his team lost to Fenerbahçe 2-0 on May 1, 2011.

And Ankaragücü goalkeeper Serdar Kulbilge was thrown out for two years for allegedly attempting to rig a match that Fenerbahçe won 4-2 when he was with Gençlerbirliği.

Eight others – including Fenerbahçe officials Mehmet Şekip Mosturoğlu, İlhan Yüksel Ekşioğlu and Cemil Turhan – were slapped with a disciplinary measure called “deprivation of rights”.

This amounts to being barred from any administrative or sports activities, including entering the stadiums though it can be appealed.

Interestingly, however, no punishment was meted out to Yıldırım who denies the charges against him and says the case was specifically designed to undermine the 18-times domestic champions.

But there will now be intense speculation as to whether those sanctioned were singled out as scapegoats.

The Turkish authorities have been under constant pressure by angry fans to make a stand in favour of the clubs.

Shares in Fenerbahçe, Turkey’s richest club, surged 10 per cent after the announcement, the timing of which – ahead of the final games of the season – was significant given the race for European berths.

Equally significant is the fact that Turkey is bidding for the 2020 European Championships and is keen to play down the match fixing scandal that has seriously undermined the country’s global image.

Last week, Fenerbahçe dropped a court case against both UEFA and the TFF over its exclusion from the Champions League and are set to play arch-rivals Galatasaray on May 20 in a match which will decide this season’s domestic title.

The scandal erupted last July when police carried out raids against those accused of involvement in rigging 13 matches, including Fenerbahçe’s 4-3 victory over Sivasspor which clinched the league championship on the final day of last season.

The indictment names eight clubs, including Fenerbahçe, Beşiktaş and Trabzonspor.

Fourteen players are among the defendants.

The TFF launched its own investigation, and 22 separate top-flight games were referred to the disciplinary committee.

Contact the writer of this story at zib.l1734796801labto1734796801ofdlr1734796801owedi1734796801sni@w1734796801ahsra1734796801w.wer1734796801dna1734796801