Turkish Football Federation (TFF) President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu has broken his silence on a sweeping referee investigation, vowing full cooperation with authorities and vehemently defending his administration from blame for “decades of corruption” in the sport.
In an interview with daily Hürriyet published on Oct. 5, Hacıosmanoğlu said the federation is closely monitoring the criminal probe launched by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Sept. 29.
“We will be in full cooperation with all relevant institutions of our state to ensure this process is carried out healthily,” Hacıosmanoğlu told Hürriyet. “When necessary for the future of Turkish football, we will put not just our hands, but our entire bodies under the rock.”
The investigation marks the latest crisis to hit Turkish football, a multimillion-dollar industry heavily scrutinized in recent years for referee controversies, on-field violence and administrative instability.
Last weekend, Ferhat Gündoğdu, the head of the Turkish Football Federation’s Central Refereeing Committee (MHK), resigned following his arrest on charges of illegally obtaining and recording personal data. Four other officials were arrested as part of the same probe.
Hacıosmanoğlu dismissed critics and commentators driving “perception operations” on television and social media, saying the federation has no time for those who pontificate from the sidelines. He emphasized the massive financial investments clubs made and the tens of thousands of livelihoods tied to the sport.
Defending his record, the TFF chief pushed back against attempts to link his administration to the current scandal.
“Let no one attempt to blame my friends and me on the board of directors ... for the 15, 20, maybe 30 years of football rot and immorality,” he said.
“İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu has always exposed the truth in this community with all its distortions. He has always stood tall.”
The TFF chief said his initial silence on the investigation was out of respect for the ongoing judicial process, warning critics not to mistake it for weakness or use it as an opportunity to grab the spotlight.
“I am someone who has risked every kind of fight, whatever the cost, throughout my life,” Hacıosmanoğlu said.
The federation has laid out all plans for the upcoming weekend matches, he added, aiming to manage the crisis with common sense to protect the country’s international reputation.
“We trust our state. We invite our people to remain calm,” he said.
“I state clearly and unequivocally to the Turkish people that we will take every possible measure and implement all necessary steps within the scope of this process,” he added.
