Turkey football betting scandal: Arrest warrants issued

An Istanbul court issued arrest warrants for the eight suspects, including a club president and several referees, the state-owned Anadolu news agency reported on Tuesday.

Murat Ozkaya is the president of Eyupsport, who play in Turkey's topflight Super Lig. Eleven other suspects who had also been taken into custody on Friday have been released on bail.

The suspects stand accused of abuse of office and match-fixing, among other things.

The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) says that it has summoned 1,024 players before its disciplinary committee on charges of betting on matches.

For the past two weeks, all matches in Turkey's third and fourth divisions, in which more than 900 of the summoned players play, have been canceled.

Twenty-seven of the players ply their trade for clubs in the Super Lig, including at Istanbul giants Galatasaray and Besiktas.

Defender out of Turkey squad

Among those named is Galatasaray left back Eren Elmali, who has been dropped from the national team for its upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Bulgaria and Spain over the affair.

On Monday, Elmali used an Instagram post to state that the allegation against him stemmed from a single bet he placed years ago and did not involve his own team.

"Throughout my entire career, I have never violated the ethical principles of football, sportsmanship, or the values ​​of my club," he wrote.

149 officials suspended

The match-fixing scandal came to light at the end of October, when the TFF disclosed allegations that 152 match officials had placed bets on football matches.

The TFF has suspended 149 head referees and assistant referees for between eight and 12 months.

In a joint statement, the suspected referees have denied the allegations, describing them as "outrageous." They also said that none of them had ever bet on matches they had officiated.

Edited by: Matt Pearson

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