Two Süper Lig Referees Due for Court Referral in Turkey Betting Probe

Süper Lig referee Yasin Kol and assistant referee Göktuğ Hazar Erel remain in police custody while their statements are completed. Habertürk, citing the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, said the referral is planned for Monday after investigators reviewed seized digital devices and carried out a detailed analysis of MASAK financial-intelligence records.

The same report says Kol denied placing bets, telling investigators that questioned transfers were loans to people he knew.

MASAK Review Came Before the Detentions

Kol and Erel were detained on October 1 as part of the investigation known in Turkey as the “Hakemler dosyası.” Anadolu Agency reported that the two are being investigated over alleged violations of Law No. 7258, participation in document forgery and abuse of office.

Those are allegations, not findings of guilt. The case sits with the Istanbul prosecutor’s Illegal Betting and Sports Crimes Bureau. The October 5 referral would move the two officials from the police stage of the investigation into the judicial process.

Kol Was Still on Süper Lig Duty in September

A 15M check of the Turkish Football Federation’s referee database adds some scale without tying any particular match to the allegations. Kol is listed as a “Top Class Referee” with 469 assignments in the TFF database. He took charge of four Süper Lig matches in the current 2026/27 season through September 13, including Samsunspor-Fenerbahçe on August 30. His latest listed assignment came a week later, as VAR in a TFF 1. Lig game on September 20.

His 2025/26 schedule was more striking. A count of the TFF records shows Kol refereed four league derbies involving two of Turkey’s traditional big three – Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş. They were Galatasaray-Beşiktaş, Fenerbahçe-Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe-Beşiktaş and Galatasaray-Fenerbahçe.

None of those fixtures has been identified by prosecutors as manipulated. The point is narrower: an official now under investigation was handling some of Turkish football’s highest-profile matches only months ago.

A Different Betting Case

This is separate from the TFF disciplinary case reported last week, when 448 current and former club officials were sent to the Professional Football Disciplinary Board over alleged betting activity. Kol and Erel are being investigated by prosecutors rather than the federation. Their case also involves MASAK records and evidence taken from digital devices.

Both are due at the courthouse on October 5. A judicial decision could follow later the same day.