The controversial figure at Beşiktaş: Tevfik Yamantürk… Leader of the team against Seba!

The repercussions continue following the attack on former Beşiktaş president Hasan Arat while he was speaking at the podium during the Beşiktaş Ordinary Divan Board Meeting held in Istanbul the other day.

Arat stepped down from the presidency on November 29, 2024.

The controversies did not end after Arat resigned due to personal health issues. Since that date, the majority of Beşiktaş fans have been demanding and waiting for Arat to make a statement.

Ultimately, Arat appeared at the Divan Board meeting on April 12. He stated that he wanted to give a speech and was placed 17th in the speaking order. However, it was customary for former Beşiktaş presidents to be placed first. The Divan Board would make this decision.

The person presiding over the Divan Board was Güriş Holding Chairman of the Board Tevfik Yamantürk.

Yamantürk, who was tasked with keeping the peace, was the one who ignited the events that unfolded after Arat took the podium.

Yamantürk, who called former Beşiktaş president Arat a "thief, pimp," effectively sabotaged the meeting. Chaos subsequently erupted in the hall.

In response to the insult directed at him, Arat reacted to Yamantürk, and the two walked toward each other.

Yamantürk’s bodyguard and driver, who were waiting by the podium, attacked Arat from behind and punched him.

And the Divan Board meeting was adjourned.

From that moment on, the majority of Beşiktaş fans, including those who criticize Arat's administration, have demanded that Yamantürk be expelled from the club, and they continue to do so.

President Serdal Adalı has not yet made a statement regarding Yamantürk, the subject of the attack.

It is known that Yamantürk has been dreaming of running for the presidency for some time.

However, when we look back a bit, we see that we are dealing with an interesting profile.

So, who is this Tevfik Yamantürk?

He is the owner of Güriş Holding. He is a name who took over this mantle from his father, İdris Yamantürk. The family's roots trace back to Çamlıhemşin, Rize. His father, İdris Yamantürk, worked at Etibank, a republican institution. He resigned from this state institution in 1956 and founded his own personal firm under his own name a year later.

It was a period when American capital began to dominate the country and the Republic of Turkey was turning into a forward outpost of NATO…

And the rising star Yamantürk announced the establishment of GÜRİŞ Holding in 1958.

Tevfik Yamantürk was born 2 years before this date.

There is clearly a "luck" in Tevfik Bey's education that comes from his father's wealth. He was educated at Ankara TED College, Adana College, Istanbul Moran High School, and the Business Department of San Diego National University in the USA.

He became the chairman of the board of GÜRİŞ Holding in 1982, shortly after the September 12, 1980 coup carried out under the command of the junta leader Kenan Evren.

It is also noteworthy that he was one of the "princes" of Özal after September 12.

He even stood out in the establishment of the "Young Managers and Businessmen Association" in 1986, which was architected by names such as Leyla Alaton, Koray Gönensin, Galip Bilgin, and İzzet Garih.

However, we frequently encounter the name Yamantürk at the end of the 1980s.

Being the chairman of a large holding company did not make him a notable figure until he joined Süleyman Seba's administration at Beşiktaş…

When the dates hit 1988 and Süleyman Seba was in his 3rd presidential term, the name Tevfik Yamantürk began to appear in newspapers. And as one of the vice presidents of Seba, who won the election…

Since that date, Yamantürk's name has been mentioned in many transfer operations. Sometimes he comments on Beşiktaş's European opponents, and sometimes he plays a role in bringing aging stars from Germany to the club.

For example, at that time, Yamantürk took action to transfer Meier from Werder Bremen. But it was seen that Meier could not pass the medical examination. Upon this development, Süleyman Seba said, "Yamantürk will make a statement about this issue."

This transfer scandal became the milestone of the first tension between Seba and Yamantürk.

Beşiktaş's debt was around 180 million TL in 1988 (in the currency of that time)…

When we come to 1989-1990, we see that Yamantürk is in the headlines again.

This time, the person at the center of the controversy is Beşiktaş's 'Yellow Storm' Metin Tekin…

Metin Tekin had been having problems with the then-manager Gordon Milne for some time.

Milne wanted Metin to be excluded from the squad. The club's executive Yamantürk also entered the fray hard, so to speak! He made statements that Metin should not be forgiven and should not be taken to the overseas camp.

In a news report dated August 4, 1989, we learn that İdris Yamantürk's son said: "Even if my father came, I wouldn't turn back..."

The prince of Kenan Evren and Özal eventually took a step back and returned!

Two years passed. The headlines read "A new face for Beşiktaş." The board member candidates met in the same frame at a restaurant.

Tevfik Yamantürk is in the photo again... And another name that draws attention in the same frame is İhsan Kalkavan, who was later revealed to be a member of the Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ)!

The two names said they would give 500 million TL each to Beşiktaş in the currency of the time and that this money would be used for transfers.

Seba won the election.

And although the promised 500 million TL support was not paid, Beşiktaş experienced the brightest period in its history by becoming champions 3 years in a row.

The group led by Tevfik Yamantürk and İhsan Kalkavan did everything they could to cast a shadow over Beşiktaş's brightest period.

On January 29, 1991, 6 people on the Beşiktaş board of directors resigned. The resignations were led by İdris Yamantürk's son, Tevfik Yamantürk.

Again, İhsan Kalkavan, a member of the Fethullahist gang, was by his side.

Both names stated that they had "given large sums of money" to the club and that Seba did not grant them the right to speak in proportion to the money given. According to allegations, Yamantürk had only given 250 million TL to the club to join the board and had received this back as advertising sponsorship.

This is where the "The Six" group that Hasan Arat mentioned emerged. The group in question is known by this name, with the headline written by Asena Özkan in the Cumhuriyet newspaper.

When it came to June 20, 1991, Tevfik Yamantürk made the following sentences about the legendary Beşiktaş president Süleyman Seba:

• "I wish Fenerbahçe would transfer Süleyman Seba. The transfer fee is on me..."

• "An executive told me, 'You can make Seba do anything after he drinks 3 double rakis.'"

• Seba will be expelled from the club, if not today, then tomorrow (in 1994).

Tevfik Yamantürk, who said he would pay a transfer fee for Seba to "go to Fenerbahçe" during the period when Beşiktaş was champion for 3 consecutive years, was elected President of the Beşiktaş Divan Board in 2019, İhsan Kalkavan, with whom he acted together, fled abroad because he was a member of the Fethullahist gang, Seba passed away on August 13, 2014, and Beşiktaş legend Metin Tekin is not involved in the club.

News Source: 12punto