Betting scandal involving referees rocks Turkish football
Okan Yücel
October 30, 2025
Turkish football has been hit by a major betting scandal. More than 150 referees are accused of betting on matches — including officials from the top-flight Super Lig.
Turkish football has been rocked by these allegationsImage: ANKA
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Turkish football has been in a state of shock since Monday, when the president of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) confirmed that 152 of the 571 active referees are suspected of involvement in illegal betting activities. Particularly alarming is the fact that seven referees and 15 assistant referees who work in the Super Lig are among the suspects.
"One referee alone placed 18,227 bets," TFF President Ibrahim Hacıosmanoglu told a press conference. "We are determined to rid football of any trace of corruption. We will make no exceptions."
The scale of the scandal suggests systematic, organized structures. The revelations also suggest a lack of sufficient oversight of Turkey's referees and call into question the credibility of the professional game in the country.
Exploiting amateur soccer
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Long bans or even jail sentences possible
During his press conference, the TFF boss stressed that the federation had immediately initiated disciplinary proceedings against the referees suspected of involvement. TFF statutes provide for bans of between three months and one year — and in cases of particularly serious violations, an official could face a lifetime ban.
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On Tuesday, the TFF announced the names of the referees. None of the 152 referees involved appear to have bet on matches they officiated themselves. However, if it is proven that they communicated with the referee of a match they bet on, they could still face match-fixing charges. Should this be confirmed, those involved would stand to face not only lifetime bans from football, but also prison sentences of between 18 months and four and a half years.
Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu is president of the Turkish Football FederationImage: Hakan Burak Altunoz/Anadolu Agency/picture alliance
The most well-known is Zorbay Kuçuk, who made a statement in front of the courthouse Thursday, claiming that someone else opened the betting account in his name, and filed a criminal complaint with the prosecutor's office.
"We have started with the referees, but my board and I are also conducting our own internal reviews with the relevant government institutions," Hacıosmanoglu said. "We will announce the results of this work shortly."
No disruption to Super Lig
Despite the accusations, legal experts currently see no grounds for annulling results or further action affecting league tables. Nevertheless, the season could be disrupted if a large number of referees were to be suspended. In that case, the TFF could call in foreign referees to ensure that the season can continue without disruption.
"The fact that this is coming to light is a hopeful development," said Sadettin Saran, president of Istanbul club Fenerbahce. "But it is crucial that this information is transparently disseminated without delay."
Fenerbahce Sadettin Saran said the fact that the scandal had been uncovered was "hopeful"Image: Agit Erdi Ulukaya/Anadolu Agency/imago images
Report: Clubs, players also being investigated
"We view this initiative, led by Mr. Hacıosmanoglu, as a significant turning point for Turkish football," fellow Istanbul outfit Galatasaray said in a press release.
Besiktas issued a similar statement: "The results of the investigation could mark a new beginning for clean football."
The betting scandal appears to be widening. The broadcaster Haberturk, citing judicial sources, reported that clubs and players are also under investigation. The report put the number of players under investigation at 3,700.
The scandal clearly demonstrates how vulnerable football is to financial interests and a lack of oversight. Much is at stake for Turkish football — not only in terms of sporting success, but also its credibility and international reputation.
Both football's global governing body, FIFA, and its European counterpart, UEFA, have said that they are closely monitoring the situation.
German football coaches in Turkey: A long history
Domenico Tedesco has been named as Jose Mourinho's replacement at Fenerbahce. He joins a long list of German coaches to move to Turkey – with varying degrees of success.
Image: Ali Atmaca/Anadolu/IMAGO
Christoph Daum
Christoph Daum coached more Turkish Süper Lig matches (290) and won more honors than any other German coach. Daum won the Turkish league title three times, once with Besiktas and twice with Fenerbahce. He also won the Turkish Cup with Besiktas in 1994 as well as the Super Cup, which he also won with Fenerbahce in 2009. Daum also had a short spell at Buraspor.
Image: Seskim Photo/IMAGO
Jupp Derwall
Jupp Derwall is best remembered as coaching West Germany to the 1980 European Championship. After stepping down in 1984, he moved to Istanbul club Galatasaray, where he won the Turkish Cup in 1985. A year after losing the league title on goal difference to Besiktas, Derwall's Galatasaray won the title by one point.
Image: Kicker/Eissner/IMAGO
Karl-Heinz Feldkamp
Between 1978 and 1992, Karl-Heinz Feldkamp coached 280 matches over two spells at Kaiserslauten. Late in his career, though, he followed the call to Turkey. His greatest success there came in the 1992-93 season, when he led Galatasaray to the league and cup double. His stint at city rivals Besiktas in 1999-2000 lasted just 15 matches.
Image: ABC Medya/IMAGO
Joachim Löw
Long before winning the World Cup with Germany in 2014, Joachim Löw coached in Germany, Austria – and Turkey. Löw, who won the German Cup with Stuttgart in 1997 and the Austrian Bundesliga with Innsbruck in 2002, had less success with Fenerbahce, where he signed on in 1998. Third place in the league wasn't good enough to earn him a contract beyond his one season in Istanbul.
Image: Pressefoto Baumann/IMAGO
Thomas Reis
Famous for leading Bochum to the second-division title, things went sour for Thomas Reis (red sweater) in their second season in the top flight. An engagement at Schalke ended with their relegation – and Reis out of work. In the summer of 2024, Reis took over Süper Lig club Samsunspor from fellow German Markus Gisdol and led them to a third-place finish in his first season in charge.
Image: Veysel Altun/Anadolu Agency/IMAGO
Markus Gisdol
Markus Gisdol, who formerly coached Hoffenheim, Hamburg and Cologne, is now on to his second Turkish club. Gisdol actually left Germany for Lokomotive Moscow in 2021, but just days after Russia invaded Ukraine, he tendered his resignation. Having saved Samsunpor from the drop in 2023-24, Gisdol turned down a contract extension over the summer to join fellow Süper Lig side Kayserispor.
Image: Emrah Yorulmaz/Anadolu Agency/IMAGO
Jörg Berger
Jörg Berger was highly regarded as a coach in the former East Germany (GDR) and used a match as coach of a GDR youth team in the former Yugoslavia to flee to West Germany. He went on to coach several Bundesliga clubs before trying his luck in Turkey. After just eight matches in charge of Buraspor, he fled Turkey, saying he had been facing death threats.
Image: Franz-Peter Tschauner/dpa/picture alliance
Horst Hrubesch
Hamburg and West Germany legend Horst Hrubesch, known in his playing days as a burly striker with strong, accurate headers, made his coaching reputation as a Germany youth coach and two interim stints as coach of the women's national team. An engagement as coach of Samsungspur lasted but a few weeks before he moved on to start a long career coaching for the German FA (DFB).
Image: Hanno Bode/IMAGO
Holger Osieck
Best remembered as Franz Beckenbauer's assistant when "Der Kaiser" coached West Germany to a 1990 World Cup triumph, Holger Osieck (second from left) held a number of posts as a head coach – including with the Canadian and Australian men's teams. His stints in Turkey, with Fenerbahce and Kocaelispor in the mid-late 1990s, weren't long, but he did lead Kocaelispor to a Turkish Cup win in 1997.
Image: Wolfgang Weihs/dpa/picture alliance
Michael Skibbe
Michael Skibbe is perhaps seen as a better assistant coach than head coach. In 2002, he was assistant to Rüdi Völler when Germany surprisingly finished runners-up in the World Cup in Japan and South Korea. Skibbe, now coaching in Japan, spent five seasons in Turkey with three different clubs: Galatasaray (with whom he won the 2008 Supercup), Eskisehirspor and Kardemir Karabuk.
Image: Schüler/IMAGO
Hans-Peter Briegel
As a player, Hans-Peter Briegel was a defender or defensive midfielder who made 240 appearances for Kaiserslauten and 72 for Germany. He was also a member of the 1980 European Championship winning side. As a coach he held a number of jobs including at Turkish outfits Besiktas, Trabzonspor, Ankaragucu. He was most successful at the former, but none of his stints in Turkey lasted very long.
Image: epa Str/dpa/picture alliance
Domenico Tedesco
Domenico Tedesco had been out of work since January, when he was sacked by the Belgian FA. He replaces Jose Mourinho who was let go after he failed to lead Fenerbahce to the league phase of the Champions League. The 39-year-old previously managed Schalke, Spartak Moscow and RB Leipzig. He helped the former finish second in the Bundesliga in 2018 and won the German Cup with the latter in 2022.
Image: Joris Verwijst/BSR Agency/IMAGO
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This article was originally published in German and was updated on October 30 to reflect the TFF's latest news in the case.
