Mistrust among fans over institutions that are supposed to safeguard fairness in Turkish football — including referees, the country’s football federation and club leaders — lies at the heart of the crisis in Turkish football, according to industry insiders and analysts.
“Each week there’s a massive discussion about referee calls,” said Özgehan Şenyuva, a professor at Ankara’s Middle East Technical University who has studied Turkish fandom. “There’s always this search for something deeper, some kind of a conspiracy,” he added.
Further links may be drawn to the conspiracy-minded populism of longtime Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who sees shadowy forces out to undermine his leadership in all things--including football, apparently:
The suspicion that shadowy forces are at play in deciding matches reflected Turks’ dwindling faith in politics and society more broadly, according to Şenyuva. It comes amid rising concerns over the rule of law, judicial independence and a crackdown on civic society as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan begins his third decade in power.
Koç’s predecessor at Fenerbahçe, Aziz Yıldırım, was in 2012 found guilty of match rigging and sentenced to six years in jail. Yıldırım was later acquitted, with the government alleging that a group, which it says was behind the 2016 coup attempt against Erdoğan, had initiated a wide-range conspiracy to discredit dozens of leading figures in Turkish football.
As with many things in decline, it is reflected in the finances. In inflation-riddled Turkey, it's obvious:
Turkey’s leading clubs posted a pre-tax loss of €310mn in the 2022-2023 season, according to Uefa, which oversees European football. Collectively Turkish teams recorded €1bn in gross bank debt, with 18 clubs in a negative equity position.
Erdoganism's distrust in officialdom and financial distress stretch far and wide in Turkey.