Turkey is set to resume league football on Tuesday after a week-long break, but FIFA chief Gianni Infantino says the violence that erupted in a Super Lig game over the weekend remains unacceptable. The president of a Turkish club, Ankaragucu, Faruk Kodja, ran onto the pitch after their 1-1 draw with Caykur Rizespor and punched referee Halil Umut Meler. The incident led to the Turkish Football Federation suspending league matches.
But in a tweet on Monday, Infantino said the “violence in the Turkish Super Lig is unacceptable and has no place in our sport or society.”
The match was played at Papara Park in Trabzon as home supporters stormed onto the field after the final whistle. The visiting Fenerbahce players retaliated, with images showing ex-Chelsea striker Michy Batshuayi kicking one of the pitch invaders and Nigerian defender Bright Osayi-Samuel punching another to the ground. In a video that has gathered momentum on social media, security personnel also struggled to restore order as fans ran toward the visiting team, and clashes continued outside the tunnels.
Turkey’s interior minister, Ali Yerlikaya, called on police to identify those who stormed the field. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, he said 12 fans had been detained following the incident, which he described as “unacceptable.”
In his tweet, Infantino noted the “horrific scenes of violence that took place during and after the match” and urged authorities to ensure that the league resumes without further incidents. “The necessary criminal sanctions will be imposed on those responsible,” he said.
Meanwhile, Ankaragucu’s head coach, Ismail Kartal, defended his team’s actions after Sunday’s brawl. The former Chelsea and Crystal Palace striker criticized the incident but added that his players did not provoke the fans.
In other tweets, he pointed out that the TFF has not punished Ankaragucu for their behavior after the match and added, “We don’t believe in such a punishment for our team.”
The league had been suspended on December 22 following an attack on referee Meler by Koca and a separate attack on a second referee, which was condemned as ‘unacceptable’ by FIFA’s ruling council.
The Turkish league was due to reopen on Sunday night and is now scheduled for Tuesday, with the top two teams, Galatasaray and Istanbul Başakşehir, each on 30 points. Third-placed Trabzonspor is still eight points adrift of the leaders. The TFF says the league will continue to be suspended if there are further incidents of “behavior that does not reflect sportsmanship.” The TFF has been under pressure for months over the violence at matches but has made little progress in reducing the amount of hooliganism among the country’s fans.
