UEFA Could Ban Fenerbahce for Three-Years if Found Guilty of Match-Fixing

October 6, 2011

UEFA, Europe’s top soccer authority, may ban Turkish club Fenerbahce from its competitions for three years if Turkish authorities find the league champions guilty in a match- fixing probe.

Penalties for such crimes range from one to five years, and because the Istanbul-based club didn’t voluntarily withdraw from the Champions League, Europe’s top soccer competition, it missed an opportunity to disqualify for one year, Aksam said, citing UEFA regulations. The football association will reach a decision by May and a three-year ban might cost Fenerbahce more than 100 million euros ($133.5 million) of revenue, Aksam reported.

The Turkish Football Federation withdrew Fenerbahce and sent runner-up Trabzonspor to the competition. Trabzonspor and cup winner Besiktas, which is competing in the UEFA Cup, may be banned from European competitions for long as five years if found guilty of rigging matches, Aksamreported.