Cuneyt Cakir, a well-known football referee in Europe, ended his long-time career Thursday, according to the head of the governing body of football in Turkey. Mehmet Büyükekshi, president of the Turkish Football Federation (TFF), thanked 45-year-old Cakir for his contributions to Turkish football during a live TV broadcast. Büyükekshi said that Cakir, a FIFA referee since 2006, recently requested to leave his job at Turkey’s Central Refereeing Committee (MHK). "Last week, we held a camp with our referees in the northern province of Bolu. During the seminar, Cuneyt Cakir informed the MHK that he wants to leave his post", Büyükekshi said. He added that Cakir had several offers abroad, but the Turkish referee wanted to end his career in Turkey, as the country has provided so many opportunities to him. Büyükekshi stated that Cakir wants to train referees in lower categories in the future so that he can contribute to Turkish refereeing. The Turkish football body's president added that the MHK, TFF and its board approved his request.
The Turkish referee officiated matches in the 2014 and 2018 FIFA World Cups and refereed the 2015 UEFA Champions League final when Barcelona beat Juventus 3-1 in Berlin. He was last assigned to referee several matches at the UEFA Euro 2020, which was won by Italy in the summer of 2021. Cakir previously appeared in the Euro 2012 and Euro 2016 tournaments. He has been a regular referee in the Champions League since 2010 and officiated many matches in the Europa League. “Cakir has represented our country in two World Cups and three European Championships. He has refereed the Champions League final in 2015 and three semi-finals of the Champions League. Cakir represented Turkish football in many tournaments. I hope we can organize a farewell match for our teacher. We want to conduct it properly. I would like to thank Cuneyt Cakir for all the work he has done. I wish him good luck in his future work”, Büyükekshi said, noting that despite many proposals from abroad, Cakir plans to improve the development of referees in Turkey.
Cakir’s farewell message: “I am ending my refereeing adventure, which started 28 years ago with big dreams, with the pride of having achieved my dreams. Easy to say, every moment of these 28 years was very precious. I approached all matches with the same seriousness, from my first amateur competition to my last highest-level competition. I worked hard, very hard. I am happy if I could help to raise the level of Turkish football refereeing. The prayers of the Turkish nation with 80 million people were always with me during my duties in international high-level competitions. This gave me great strength and pride. My other big wish was to be a role model for the Turkish youth, who followed me and considered me as an example, and for the Turkish refereeing. I have always felt this responsibility. I am grateful for the trust shown and the messages of love received. Thanks to the Turkish refereeing, I became Cüneyt Çakir. With this awareness, I took the decision to share my experience with young Turkish referees today. I want to watch them and contribute to their development. There are tens and thousands of people who have worked with me. Thank you all. I would like to thank my precious instructors, who brought me to where I am today, my referee friends, our federation, our referee managers, all friends who supported me in the media, the officials and referee managers of international federations, my dear family who is always with me, and the Turkish people who always support me with their prayers. As I have done so far, I will continue to work hard to contribute to Turkish refereeing. I am happy if I could leave nice memories behind me. Stay well...” (Source: TFF)
Cüneyt Çakir's major achievements
- 385 Super League matches (most appearances in Super League)
- 29 Derby matches
- 204 International matches
- 59 National team matches
- 54 Champions League matches
Finals (2)
UEFA Champions League 2015
FIFA Club World Cup 2012
Semi-finals (13)
FIFA World Cup 2014, 2018
UEFA Euro 2012
UEFA Champions League 2012, 2016 (x2), 2017, 2018, 2019
UEFA Europa League 2010, 2014
UEFA U-21 Euro 2009
FIFA U-20 World Cup 2011
International Tournaments (12)
FIFA World Cup 2014, 2018
UEFA Euro 2012, 2016, 2020
FIFA Olympic Games 2016
FIFA Club World Cup 2012
UEFA U-21 Euro 2009
FIFA U-20 World Cup 2011, 2013, 2017
UEFA U-19 Euro 2007
