The head of Turkey’s refereeing body has been arrested as part of a police investigation into alleged corruption.
Turkish Justice Minister Akin Gurlek confirmed that Ferhat Gundogdu, president of the Central Refereeing Committee, along with his vice-president and five other people, were detained on Tuesday.
The investigation focuses on claims of interference in referee classification, assignments, scoring, appointments and rule examinations.
Gurlek said police also carried out searches at the suspects’ homes, workplaces and offices in four provinces, Istanbul, Ankara, Elazig and Manisa.
“We will resolutely continue our fight for clean football so that allegations damaging trust in Turkish football are brought to light, those responsible are held accountable before the law, and football is associated with the effort, competition and sportsmanship on the pitch,” Gurlek wrote on X.
The Turkish Football Federation said it was working resolutely to restore confidence in clean football. It said all requested documents had been sent in sealed envelopes for forensic examination.
The case comes less than a year after Turkish football was rocked by a betting scandal. In November 2025, the federation suspended 149 referees after an investigation found hundreds of professional officials held betting accounts.
A total of 29 people were arrested in that scandal, including 14 footballers.
However, Gurlek did not link the latest arrests to last year’s betting case. The current investigation is still ongoing.
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