Turkish football federation (TFF) says it will launch disciplinary proceedings after hundreds of professional match officials were found to have betting accounts. A five-year investigation found that that 371 of 571 match officials have accounts, with 152 of those actively gambling. While some had only bet once, 42 had bet on more than 1,000 football matches, with one official found to have placed 18,227 bets.
On 28 October, TFF and took disciplinary action against the 152 referees, referring them to the Professional Football Discipline Board (PFDK). The 7 top flight referees were Zorbay Küçük, Egemen Artun, Mehmet Ali Özer, Melih Kurt, Muhammed Selim Özbek, Seyfettin Alper Yılmaz and Yunus Dursun. Among these 7, Yunus Dursun and Egemen Artun were each given a 10-month ban, while Muhammed Selim Özbek, Mehmet Ali Özer and Seyfettin Alper Yılmaz were each given an 8-month ban. It was also decided to continue the investigation into the allegations of betting activities involving top-tier referees Zorbay Küçük and Melih Kurt. The remaining 145 referees officiating in lower divisions, were all punished with 8 to 12 month bans. Küçük's lawyer argued that two fake betting accounts had been opened in the referee's name and that his identity details had been stolen by a foreign individual. Küçük stated that he had never been a member of a betting site or placed any bets, either before or during his refereeing career.
Source: Hurriyet
