Turkish football’s darkest hour: 1,000 players and 149 referees face betting allegations

Sabah stated that between 2021 and 2025, the under-fire match officials made 18,278 transactions on gambling sites.

Here’s more on the unusual sports scandal that is now being covered by the mainstream media globally with the name of Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan too cropping up.

How did it all start

In October this year, the Turkish Football Federation started to investigate referees who were allegedly betting on domestic matches. İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu, the federation president, said that 371 of 571 active referees have at least one account with a betting company, as per government agencies.

In five years, 10 referees had placed bets on more than 10,000 matches each, with one alone betting on 18,227 games. This resulted in 149 referees and assistant referees being suspended by the federation. They were charged with ‘abuse of office’ and ‘influencing the outcome of a match.

This was followed by questioning of the owners of top Turkish clubs. They were among the 21 suspects, including 17 referees, who were detained.

Breaking down the numbers

Sabah claims to have obtained the investigation file of the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), which individually examined the financial transfers made by referees who were regular on the betting sites. The outlet said that 147 referees made 18,278 transactions between 2021 and 2025 to the gambling sites. The online betting platform Misli was the most preferred site with match officials making close to 5000 transactions amounting to 9,222,000 liras, approximately Rs 2 crore.

Misli happens to be sponsored by some of Turkey’s lower leagues and is part of the Demirören Group, whose chair is a former head of the Turkish Football Federation and is close to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, as per sports commentators mentioned in a Financial Times report.

The report also states that referees had all but been encouraged to become members of Misli.com.

How did the scandal spill over to the players

Among those suspended were big names like defender Eren Elmali, who had played in the Champions League for Galatasaray. After the allegations arose, he was dropped from Turkey’s squad for the 2026 World Cup Qualifiers against Spain and Bulgaria.

The 25-year-old, who joined Galatasaray in 2025, later posted on social media that he had bet on a game about five years ago that did not involve his own team.  He was suspended for 45 days, while his club teammate Metehan Baltaci was suspended for 9 months.  Konyaspor winger Alassane Ndao got a 12-month ban.

The sanctions were issued by the federation, which on November 13, temporarily banned 102 professional players, including 25 from the Super Lig. Seventy-seven players from the second-tier first division also faced bans, which ranged from 45 days to 1 year.

What do FIFA’s rules say

FIFA’s Code of Ethics states that betting directly or indirectly on games can lead to a ban of up to three years and a fine of up to 100,000 Swiss francs ($126,000).

The scandal couldn’t have come at a more inopportune time for Turkey, with its international and club football witnessing a revival of sorts. It’s set to co-host the 2032 men’s Euro alongside Italy, while Besiktas is set to stage the Europa League final in May next year.

The national team reached the Euro 2024 quarterfinals and are currently in the play-offs to qualify for the 2026 World Cup.