Scandal in Turkey after Football Federation reveals that nearly one third of professional referees are betting

Huge scandal in Turkey regarding football referees. On Monday, the Turkish Football Federation denounced in a press conference that nearly two thirds of official referees in the country, active in professional leagues, have betting accounts, and 152 (of the 571 official referees recognised by the TFF) are actively betting.

This is naturally a violation of the disciplinary regulations by the TFF, which says, on article 57, that "referees could face match suspensions or refereeing bans ranging from three months to one year". Some referees have reportedly placed wagers in tens of thousands in volume, according to DailySabah.

TFF president Ibrahim Hacıosmanoğlu said that "Out of 571 referees, 371 hold betting accounts, and 152 are actively gambling. We are determined to clean our football from any shadow of corruption. There will be no exceptions." Seven of these referees work in Süper Lig, Turkish top division, where clubs like Galatasaray, Tranbzonspor, and Fenerbahçe play. No names were given.

This comes after years of distrust between the public and clubs to Turkish referee, with EFE reporting that it is common in Turkey for clubs to file complaints about referees. Last February, TFF appointed a Dutch official, Slavko Vincic, in the heated match between Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe. José Mourinho, who at the time was managing Fenerbahçe, talked about biased referees in Turkish, which caused him trouble with the TFF and was given a monetary fine.