ANKARA, Oct. 27 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of referees officiating in Türkiye's professional football leagues have been found to have engaged in betting activities, Turkish Football Federation (TFF) president Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu said on Monday.
At a press conference in Istanbul, Haciosmanoglu said that they will be referred to the disciplinary committee for penalties.
An internal investigation, supported by data from state institutions, revealed that 371 of 571 active referees had betting accounts, he said.
"According to data we received from state institutions and the work of our professional team, it was determined that 371 of 571 active referees in professional leagues have betting accounts. Among them, 152 were found to be actively betting," he added.
The breakdown includes seven top-class referees, 15 top-class assistant referees, 36 class referees, and 94 class assistant referees.
Haciosmanoglu said that 10 referees placed more than 10,000 bets, one referee made 18,227 bets alone, and 42 referees each bet on over 1,000 football matches. Some referees, however, were found to have placed bets only once.
"Starting today, our disciplinary board will take the necessary actions," he said. "They will be referred to the board soon and punished according to our regulations."
He noted that the federation has shared its findings with FIFA and UEFA.
The TFF president noted that the review extended beyond referees to include members of the federation itself. "We started with the referees, including myself and my board members," he said, urging football clubs to follow suit.
"Just as we are cleaning our own doorstep, club presidents should start with themselves, their boards, and their players and share the results transparently with the public," he added. "If not, we will continue working with the relevant state bodies and release our findings regardless."
While sports betting is legal in Türkiye under a single state-run system, referees, players, and officials are strictly prohibited from betting on any football matches.
