April 7 – With Turkey having failed to qualify for the World Cup and the domestic broadcast deal for the SuperLig nowhere near club expectations, Turkish Football Federation (TFF) president, Nihat Ozdemir. has resigned.
Two weeks, the Turkish failed to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar, crashing out in the semi-finals of the European playoffs, 3-1 against Portugal. The failure to qualify only compounded domestic issues around the professional game in Turkey’s SuperLig and how it is financed.
Ozdemir (pictured), the owner of conglomerate Limak Holdings, took charge of the TFF in 2019 and was near the end of a two-year term. He has recently faced severe criticism for failing to find a broadcast deal for the domestic game that matched the previous deal the league had with beIN/Digiturk.
The TFF turned down the highest broadcast bid for the SuperLig, instead preferring to go with an offer that is $50 million below the $150 million beIN/Digiturk had put on the table.
The substantial drop in income is a major blow to clubs, which already labour under a combined debt of $750 million.
The TFF didn’t give a reason for Ozdemir’s resignation in their statement announcing his departure.
TFF vice-president for legal affairs Mehmet Baykan also stepped down from his post.
The next TFF president elections are scheduled for June 2023.
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