2023-12-12T09:25:42+00:00
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/ Today, Tuesday, the Turkish authorities arrested a club president on charges of assaulting a referee during a Premier League football match, an incident as a result of which the local championship was suspended indefinitely.
The official Turkish Anadolu Agency announced, “Three suspects, including the president of Ankaragucu Football Club, Faruk Koca, have been imprisoned in the case of assaulting referee Halil Umut Meler.”
The Turkish Football Federation decided, earlier Tuesday, to stop all local competitions indefinitely, after the president of the Ankaragucu club stormed the field and punched the referee in the face, following the end of the team’s match at its home stadium after the “Rizspor” team scored the equalizer.
Events developed quickly after Ankaragucu fans stormed the stadium and attacked the referee by kicking as well.
Federation President Mehmet Buyukci said that Turkish football “suffered a shameful blow tonight.”
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan also commented on the incident through his account on the X website, saying that he “will never allow acts of violence to occur in Turkish sports.”
Justice Minister Yilmaz Tun said: “A judicial investigation has been opened against those responsible for the incidents in which the match referee was assaulted.”
The chief doctor at the hospital to which Al-Hakam, who was attacked, was transferred, said, “He is fine and there is nothing threatening his life, and he suffers from bleeding and cracks around the eyes.”