A Turkish female referee has landed a lifetime ban - after allegedly featuring in a sex tape with an official almost three times her age. Elif Karaarslan, 24, has refereed matches in Turkey since injury forced her to quit playing football. But the TFF, Turkey's FA, has now banned her for life after she was reportedly filmed having sex with referee observer Orhan Erdemir. Former FIFA referee Erdemir, 61, has received a similar punishment from the TFF.
Istanbul-born Elif, who has 363,000 followers on social media, denied being one of the people in the leaked footage. She intends to appeal, insisting: "I will have a long road ahead legally, but will overcome in the strongest and most robust way. I look forward to your full support and love in this process. Crying, screaming and being sad are not things I would do. That is not me. I will stand by my cause until the end. I am just one of many who are being harmed - I hope I am the last." Elif played for Besiktas before becoming a referee.
Meanwhile, Erdemir claimed the video had been circulated without his permission, but admitted his career is now over: "My honour in my family, my social circle and the refereeing community has been blown away. In addition to my financial losses, the emotional damage I have suffered is indescribable." Istanbul native Erdemir was a FIFA referee between 1999 and 2002. He also took charge of games in Turkey's Super Lig before becoming an observer of his fellow officials.
Source: The Sun