Galatasaray's statement on the betting investigation: Everyone is aware now!
The Turkish Football Federation's Professional Football Discipline Committee (PFDK) has announced the names of 152 referees found to have engaged in betting. Galatasaray has issued a flash statement regarding the matter.
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Turkish Football Federation (TFF) President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu had previously announced that 371 out of 571 referees officiating in professional leagues had betting accounts, and 152 of them were actively placing bets.
Today, in a statement released on the TFF's website, the names of the 152 referees who were actively betting were made public, and they were referred to the PFDK.
The TFF Legal Consultancy referred the 152 referees to the PFDK on the grounds of "engaging in betting."
Top-class referee Zorbay Küçük was also referred to the PFDK.
Following this, the Galatasaray Football Club issued a press statement, outlining its demands from the TFF for the development of Turkish football.
The statement released from Galatasaray's social media account:
"EVERYONE IS AWARE NOW!
As Galatasaray Sports Club, we have long advocated for the complete assurance of justice, transparency, and ethical values in Turkish football. In line with this, we shared our detailed proposals regarding the structural problems of Turkish football in our official letter submitted to the Turkish Football Federation on October 26, 2023.
Furthermore, following the suspicious situations that emerged after our match against Adana Demirspor played on February 9, 2025, we had also taken legal action to ensure that the necessary investigations were conducted.
Our views and statements regarding the referee, who is known for his hostile attitude, rhetoric, and scandalous decisions against our club, are known to everyone. At the point reached today, the fact that the same referee has been referred to the disciplinary board with a precautionary measure due to allegations of "engaging in betting" reveals the validity of our concerns at that time.
As we emphasized in our aforementioned applications, Turkish football needs a deep-rooted reform process to become one of Europe's leading leagues. Strengthening transparency and accountability among all stakeholders to ensure full justice is now an unavoidable necessity.
Today, with the same determination,
we continue to closely follow the process to ensure justice and rebuild trust at every level of football.
For the development of Turkish football;
The establishment of an independent Investigation Commission with the participation of the Federation, clubs, and all stakeholders,
The transformation of the referee assignment system into an objective and auditable structure,
The strengthening of ethical principles in media and public relations are among the priority steps.
As Galatasaray Sports Club, we respectfully announce to the public that we are always ready to cooperate with all football stakeholders, especially the Turkish Football Federation, to create a fair, transparent, and reliable environment for the future of Turkish football."