Where a president of a club completely freaked out and trashed a referee. Where two incredibly aggressive accomplices kicked the referee who was lying on the ground. Where fanatical fans still threw objects at the referee and the security guards accompanying him?
There should be a discussion here about the reputation of referees in general in Turkey. We should talk about the ever-degenerating, endless discussion (including in the media) about referee decisions, which is also spreading more and more in this country due to the introduction of VAR and is being brought more and more to the fore.
I don’t even think there is a problem with the reputation of the referees. There is a problem in Turkish football with negative game outcomes.
But this is not new, I just remember the U21 qualification in 2003 when the German players were attacked by police and law enforcement, among others, or in 2005 when similar scenes were seen in the game against Switzerland.
a target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”https://www.spiegel.de/sport/fussball/pruegelpartie-in-istanbul-haben-wir-hier-krieg-a-274595.html
a target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TYJLfl80cjQ
But in general, Turkey is probably on a different level than the other major football nations when it comes to fan violence.
a target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”https://fussball.news/a/torwart-schläge-spielabbruch-tuerkei
I cannot estimate to what extent the willingness of fans in Turkey to use violence differs from other nations. I do not deny that this exists. The Istanbul derbies in particular have often made headlines in the past. Since the introduction of the personalized ticket system Passolig and camera surveillance in the stadiums, the number of riots has decreased noticeably
Most of the time it is the officials and media representatives who add fuel to the fire. This should not be an excuse for violence. Just don’t let yourself be provoked. Then of course the players are responsible for the fans’ dissatisfaction. Things can escalate very quickly, but fortunately this has also declined in recent years. I can’t say anything about the Turkish amateur sector or the lower leagues, as I don’t know anything about them.
But there are pack formations on the pitch everywhere, it’s not a Turkish problem. Fan riots and game cancellations are also everywhere. All you have to do is look at Belgium, the Netherlands or Serbia or somewhere else. Nevertheless, there is no point in pointing the finger at others; the football association simply has to take rigorous action against it and, on the whole, there are already harsh penalties for officials and club employees for statements that violate fair play. There is no question that this can be expanded.
Nevertheless, it is not a general Turkish problem that football fans are generally becoming more violent or their inhibitions are lowering. And that is, among other things, a consequence of the economic importance of individual games. When you have a lot to lose, the pressure increases. And unfortunately many people cannot handle this pressure.