The Turkish Football Federation has suspended 149 referees and assistant referees after an investigation alleged widespread betting activity among match officials in the country’s professional leagues.
The disciplinary board issued bans ranging from eight to twelve months, with three further cases still under review. The federation also published the names of those sanctioned and said penalties were set according to the severity of each case.
TFF president Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu called it a moral crisis for Turkish football, noting that state-sourced data indicated 371 of the 571 active referees held betting accounts and 152 were actively gambling. He claimed some officials placed extraordinarily high volumes of bets, including one referee with 18,227 wagers and 42 referees who each placed more than 1,000 bets on football matches.
Haciosmanoglu insisted referees had been paid on time and had received salary increases in back-to-back years, arguing the root problem was ethical rather than financial.
The Super Lig continues amid the fallout, but the scale of the suspensions raises urgent questions about match appointments, refereeing depth, and governance. Further action could follow once the remaining investigations conclude.
