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Rabat — The Turkish Football Federation has sent a staggering 1,024 professional players to its Professional Football Disciplinary Board to face charges over a massive sports betting and match fixing investigation. This latest development is part of a bigger effort by the authorities to crack down on gambling corruption in Turkish football.
The investigation -which started a few months ago -has already led to the suspension of 149 referees who were found to have active betting accounts. Eight people, including the chairman of Süper Lig club Eyüpspors, have also been taken into custody. The operation swooped in on 13 provinces.
This massive referral exposes the state of Turkish football
The list of players referred to includes everyone from Süper Liga stars to players in the third division. An astonishing 27 of them are top-tier players, and they’ve all been temporarily benched pending further investigation. But, the TFF is adamant that all these disciplinary actions are purely precautionary — a way of keeping the sport clean.
As a result of the suspensions, lower-tier matches have been called off for two weeks to allow clubs to get used to being short-staffed. Talks are underway with FIFA to open a temporary registration window so that teams can make up their numbers a bit quicker.
The scandal has even affected the national team. Galatasaray defender Eren Elmalı was taken off the squad after being one of the players under investigation. TFF President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu called it a moral crisis for Turkish football, saying that the game needs a root and branch overhaul and much tighter control.
The disciplinary hearing could lead to some pretty severe punishments including long bans, big fines and even the revocation of a licence for any player or official found guilty of betting against the rules or trying to fix a game. The investigation is still ongoing, as the authorities continue to dig through betting records, club communications and financial dealings to get a clear idea of how far this scandal goes.
