Professional football across Turkey has been suspended after the president of top division club MKE Ankaragucu punched a referee on Monday night. Halil Umut Meler was attacked at the final whistle of the 1-1 draw in Ankara, a match where a player was sent off on both sides before Rizespor scored an equalizer in the seventh minute of injury time.
Images show president Faruk Koca hitting Meler in the face, sparking a mass brawl of players and officials. The referee was also kicked at least once while down on the floor. Meler told police that his attacker had threatened to kill him, according to Reuters.
"Faruk Koca punched me under my left eye; I fell to the ground. While I was on the ground, other people kicked me in the face and other parts of my body many times," Meler said. "Koca said to me and my colleagues, 'I will finish you'. Addressing me, he said, 'I will kill you'."
Koca, who has been remanded into custody, is reported to have told an Ankara court: "This incident developed due to the wrong decisions and provocative behavior of the referee. My aim was to react verbally to the referee and spit in his face." Two other individuals have also been remanded, Turkey's justice minister Yılmaz Tunc has said.
In response to the "shameful" incident, the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) said it is postponing matches in all leagues indefinitely. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the attack, adding that sports are about "peace and brotherhood". Koca has twice been elected as a member of the Turkish parliament, representing Erodgan's ruling AK Party. FIFA president Gianni Infantino issued a statement on Tuesday morning, saying that Koca's actions were "totally unacceptable and have no place in our sport or society", warning that "without match officials there is no football".
The TFF statement placed the blame for the incident not only on the MKE Ankaragucu but also a wider culture towards match officials. "The irresponsible statements of club presidents, managers, coaches and TV commentators targeting referees have paved the way for this vile attack today," said the governing body. "In coordination with our state, all the criminal proceedings they deserve have begun to be implemented against those responsible and instigators of this inhumane attack.
"The responsible club, its president, its managers and all criminals who attacked Meler will be punished in the most severe way. By the decision of the TFF Board of Directors, matches in all leagues have been postponed indefinitely."
Meler, 37, is a member of UEFA's elite list of referees, officiating both in the Champions League and last season's Europa Conference League semifinal first leg between West Ham and AZ Alkmaar.
Writing on X, MKE Ankaragucu said: "As MKE Ankaragucu Sports Club, we are saddened by the incident that took place this evening. We apologise to the Turkish football public and the entire sports community for the sad incident that occurred after the Çaykur Rizespor match at Eryaman Stadium."
