ANKARA: A huge investigation into insider betting in Turkiye’s soccer leagues is likely to widen and include coaches, commentators and club chairmen, a prosecutor was cited as saying on Thursday.
Earlier this month, Turkiye’s football federation suspended 149 referees and assistants after an investigation found that officials in the professional leagues were betting on games.
The net widened last week with the arrest of eight people, including the chairman of a top-tier club, and the suspension of 1,024 players from all leagues, on whom the football federation (TFF) imposed bans. Matches in the second and third-tier leagues were suspended for two weeks.
“We may carry out another operation in the coming days. We want to clean our football, absolutely,” Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Akin Gurlek was cited by NTV and other media on Thursday as saying.
“Whoever was involved in cheating, we are chasing them. There will be club chairmen and club executives in the probes ... There may be ties between chairmen and referees, coaches and commentators. We are investigating everything.”
Turkiye was working with European soccer governing body UEFA and global police body Interpol, Gurlek said. Authorities were also monitoring Turks suspected of illegal gambling in Montenegro, Cyprus, and Georgia.
Gurlek also said that his office was waiting for responses from some foreign betting companies abroad whose platforms were used by Turkish suspects for illegal bets.
There was no immediate comment from the TFF, but its president, Ibrahim Haciosmanoglu, has acknowledged a “moral crisis in Turkish football.”
The federation’s own investigation showed that 371 of 571 referees in Turkiye’s professional leagues had betting accounts.
Under Turkiye’s sports disciplinary regulations, if someone is found to have impacted the outcome and progression of a match or received forms of payment for this, they are banned from the sport indefinitely.
If these violations are carried out by club executives, the club is relegated and those involved face fines.
Turkish crackdown on insider gambling to widen, prosecutor says
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Turkish crackdown on insider gambling to widen, prosecutor says
- The net widened last week with the arrest of eight people, including the chairman of a top-tier club
- “We may carry out another operation in the coming days,” Istanbul Chief Prosecutor Akin Gurlek said
Desert Vipers hold nerve to edge Abu Dhabi Knight Riders in ILT20 thriller
- Key contributions from Shimron Hetmyer and Khuzaima Tanveer prove decisive as the Vipers weather tense finish to overhaul target of 171
- Knight Riders start well, reaching 87 in 10 overs, but momentum shifts in second half of their inning as the Vipers’ spinners struck back
SHARJAH: Desert Vipers made it two wins out of two in the DP World International League T20, as they held their nerve to secure a dramatic two-wicket victory over Abu Dhabi Knight Riders at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Shimron Hetmyer’s counterattacking 48 off 25 balls, and a late-order cameo from Khuzaima Tanveer, who hit 31 off just 12 deliveries, proved decisive as the Vipers weathered a tense finish to overhaul a target of 171.
Sent in to bat, the Knight Riders made a confident start through Phil Salt and Alex Hales, with the latter anchoring the inning to top-score with 53 off 37 balls.
Despite reaching 87 in 10 overs, however, the momentum shifted in the second half of the inning as the Vipers’ spinners began to strike regularly. Qais Ahmad and Noor Ahmad led the middle-overs fightback, dismissing Hales and triggering a collapse as the Knight Riders lost five wickets.
Andre Russell’s unbeaten 36, and useful contributions from Alishan Sharafu and Unmukt Chand, at least helped Abu Dhabi reach a competitive total, but they were unable to fully capitalize on the side’s strong opening.
The Vipers began explosively in reply, smashing a tournament-record 19 runs from the first over. However, early wickets then left them wobbling on 44/3. Sam Curran and Dan Lawrence rebuilt the attack before the latter combined with Hetmyer for a crucial 68-run stand that swung the contest back in the their favor.
Late strikes from Ajay Kumar and Russell, the latter dismissing Hetmyer for his 500th T20 wicket, set up a tense finish, but Tanveer delivered under pressure. Needing eight runs off the final over, he sealed victory with a six and a boundary.
“It was, in many ways, a fortunate escape but an outstanding result for us,” said Curran, the Vipers’ stand-in captain.
“ADKR possess a very powerful batting lineup, and I believe our bowlers performed exceptionally well throughout the innings. The dismissals of Hetmyer and Dan introduced an unexpected twist but the team showed commendable composure in the crucial moments.”
Knight Riders’ stand-in skipper Sunil Narine felt his side had been lacking with the bat: “We were 15-20 runs short. We began well in the powerplay and that phase was crucial for us.
“The conditions eventually worked in their favor and the dew made it challenging for our spinners. But at the end of the day that’s part of the game.”
The result leaves the Vipers well placed at this early stage of the tournament, while the Knight Riders were left to reflect on missed opportunities after such a strong start.
