Ali Koç Declares TFF Election Null and Void for Fenerbahçe

At the ordinary financial and electoral general assembly of the Turkish Football Federation, Fenerbahçe President Ali Koç made statements.

Congratulating the National Team for their results in EURO 2024, Ali Koç said, “We are about 300 delegates, and no one has the excitement to speak or any excitement at all. This is a painful situation for us. I want to congratulate our national team for their success in EURO 2024. We thank Mr. Montella, the technical staff, and our players for the victories and football displayed in the tournament. With these young generations, it is possible for us to reach much better places. We all condemn the punishment given to our player for a symbolic gesture, which targets no one, at the end of the Austria match in Turkish history.”

“THIS ELECTION IS NULL AND VOID FOR US”

Ali Koç continued, “Firstly, we want to state this clearly. As Fenerbahçe Sports Club, this election is null and void for us. It has no value whatsoever. The events leading up to the election day were anti-democratic. Our free will has been usurped. A commendation is also due to Mr. Büyükekşi, the federation president, and those lobbying for him. You are a candidate for president, known as the worst federation president in our football history, with a management style unacceptable to any part of society, who did not take responsibility despite the crises caused by the TFF’s incompetence in process management and blamed others. Congratulations on your candidacy, even though you cannot enter the stadiums of Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş.”

Referring to the signature campaign initiated by clubs for the TFF elections, Ali Koç said, “A signature campaign was launched due to the discomfort of football stakeholders. At the beginning of the process, many clubs, including the big four, supported this campaign, and 147 signatures were collected. While our TFF president should consider this, he dismissed it as the initiative of a minority of 3-5 clubs, which is disrespectful to the will of you delegates.”

Ali Koç also said, “Are we not at all disturbed by this direction of our free will? Since this federation took office, it has believed that problems would solve themselves and managed the process accordingly. This understanding has led to a situation from which chaos cannot be escaped. The injustice in Turkish football deepens day by day.”

ALI KOÇ: “NOT A FAIR ELECTION”

“It is an extremely anti-democratic election environment. Why do I say anti-democratic? I would very much like to say, ‘Sovereignty belongs unconditionally to the nation,’ ‘The will of the nation has been imposed.’ What is the will of the nation here; the delegates. Who are the delegates? The presidents and executives of teams supported by millions of fans. If you are pressuring your delegates, giving them instructions to collect votes, or using every means at your disposal to prevent another delegate from signing, and succeeding in this, then this is not a fair election.”

“UEFA SHOULD LOOK INTO THESE MATTERS INSTEAD OF PENALIZING THE WOLF SIGN”

“Who is Servet Yardımcı? The person representing Turkey on the UEFA Executive Committee. In other words, the person at the highest level in football holding a Turkish passport. If that person is saying this, what kind of blackmail, fabric, what kind of conspiracy is this? What kind of blackmail? UEFA should look into these matters instead of unfairly penalizing us for the wolf sign.”

“UEFA AND FIFA HAVE COME LOADED THIS TIME”

“Here, UEFA and FIFA are present. Generally, they don’t come this loaded, but they have come loaded this time, let’s see what comes out of it. Our esteemed elder, Mr. Şenes Erzik, had a conversation with the federation president and executives in a friendly environment. Just to create an advantage in the elections, they served it to Anadolu Agency.”

“WE SUPPORT NO ONE”

“When you come here, you have to use your vote. Our vote is a blank vote; we support no one.”

Fenerbahçe executive Hulusi Belgü‘s statements at the general assembly were as follows:

“HOW DO YOU ACCEPT THIS!”

Today we will talk about the future of Turkish football and more importantly decide who will manage it in the coming period. It is sad that one of the candidates presented to us is what the Galatasaray Club calls, which we also agree with, ‘The worst and most incompetent president in history,’ and the other candidate is the one who said before April 4, the period when the Fenerbahçe bus was shot at, ‘We will take such an action that I may not be able to continue as the president of Trabzonspor Club.’ We all know why I say there are two candidates presented to us; we have all seen and experienced how politicians, calling club presidents and mayors, influenced the Football Federation elections, which should be independent, and how they made some candidates withdraw their candidacy by instruction.

Dear delegates, look, even in our council, the friends currently on duty are politicians, we have a friend from the municipality who is also a politician. How do you accept this, how do you hold such an election, I find it difficult to understand. As we say ‘let football be free, let it be fair,’ unfortunately, we are always going backward, as we go backward every year, the suspicion in football increases, unrest increases, and fights increase. As long as clubs, administrators, and even athletes do not feel justice, they want to administer their own punishments, speeches lead to insults, statements lead to fights. Apart from a few clubs, everyone here thinks football is not managed fairly, clubs participating in the election do not want the elected president and management boards to serve certain teams and individuals, they have only one request, and that is our request too; fair and equal management.

“FENERBAHÇE AND FENERBAHÇE PRESIDENT HAVE ALWAYS BEEN TARGETED”

However, this year, the current president and his administration made history: Fenerbahçe was made second with 99 goals and 99 points. No one can explain this to me by saying both teams were good. One team was pushed, and one team was pulled. In this country, Fenerbahçe was framed, fought against the cursed organization called FETÖ, was attacked on May 12, and its bus was shot at. Some club presidents in this hall today said, ‘Fenerbahçe can bear the consequences if it doesn’t play the matches.’ Today, we want to send a message of unity and solidarity, but we have never experienced this before.

This was not enough; this season, Fenerbahçe was almost lynched in Trabzon. Apart from one or two clubs, no one even issued a ‘get well soon’ message. What did the Federation president and administration do? They tried to punish the players who acted in self-defense because this TFF administration always had fighting Fenerbahçe in their minds, and unfortunately, it was not an honest fight. Today, those who try to harm Fenerbahçe are no different from those who attacked Fenerbahçe, the unshakable fortress of the Republic of Turkey, the protector of Atatürk’s principles and the Republic, on July 3.

Fenerbahçe and its president have always been targeted, first Aziz Yıldırım and now Ali Koç, but do not think that Fenerbahçe is limited to these two leaders. With 65 thousand General Assembly delegates and 35 million supporters, we will not allow anyone to take away our presidents and principles. Today, in an unfair environment, I want to ask both presidential candidates; looking at what has happened and what you have caused, how can you be candidates, how do you look in the mirror and find yourself suitable for this position, the presidency of the Turkish Football Federation, which should be equal and fair?

“WE FENERBAHÇE FANS HAVE BEEN RESISTING WITH HONOR SINCE JULY 3”

We know that your communities applaud you on the street, but don’t you ever think about what the rest of the society thinks and says about you? Dear delegates, today you are being forced into a coercive election, and please do not accept this coercion, stand up and reject it. We Fenerbahçe fans have been resisting with honor since July 3.

Neither candidate is fit to lead Turkish football, show this by casting blank votes or not voting at all. Football is an escape point from all problems for Turkish society, so please act responsibly, stand against this imposed order. My final word is to the politicians. Please see the reality, as you intervene in football and its management, all the negativities are attributed to you, those around you are misleading you.

There will be no happiness where there is no justice, equality, and most importantly, freedom, and an unhappy people will attribute the result to politics. Please do not interfere with the will of the clubs and delegates. Let the Turkish Football Federation be free and independent, and believe me, when it is, both the national teams and club teams will develop more and achieve more success, and you will get the credit for it.”