Like Galatasaray's central defender Metehan Baltaci, 29 professional players are suspected this Friday of being involved in illegal sports betting in Türkiye

A new scandal rocked Turkish football on Friday. The Istanbul prosecutor's office announced the arrest of 46 people, including 29 first and second division footballers, as part of a wide-ranging investigation into sports betting on football matches. Twenty-seven of these players are suspected of having bet on matches involving their own teams, the prosecutor's office stated in a press release.

Among them is Metehan Baltaci, defender for Galatasaray, the three-time defending Turkish champions. At this stage of the investigation, this is the only confirmed identity revealed by the Istanbul prosecutor's office. Fenerbahçe midfielder Mert Hakan Yandas is suspected of having placed bets on various matches through a third party.

The court is reviewing a match... without a single shot being attempted!

The justice system, which indicates that 35 of the 46 people wanted have already been arrested, has also ordered the arrest of the presidents of two clubs suspected of having "attempted to influence the result" of a match between them in the 3rd division, during the 2023-2024 season.

This match attracted the attention of the authorities and triggered the ongoing investigation, according to several Turkish media outlets, as neither team attempted a single shot during the 90 minutes of play. Six other individuals, including a player, are also suspected of having conspired to influence the outcome of a second-division match between Ümraniyespor and Giresunspor (in December 2023).

The Turkish Football Federation wants to "clean up" its football

A first-division referee, a former president of the Adana Demirspor club (second division), as well as a well-known sports commentator and his wife, are also to be taken into custody for questioning regarding "suspicious financial transactions." The investigation by the Istanbul prosecutor's office, which has shaken Turkish football, has already led to the imprisonment in early November of six referees and the president of Eyüpspor, a top-flight club.

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF), which claims to want to "clean up" Turkish football, had suspended nearly 150 referees a few days earlier after they were found guilty of betting on matches. All have since been dismissed. Twenty-five first-division players and nearly 1,000 others playing in the second, third, and fourth divisions, also found guilty of betting, received suspensions of up to twelve months in November.