Three Turkish clubs get Uefa competition ban

UEFA has banned Turkey’s Besiktas, Gaziantepspor and Bursaspor from European competitions for one year due to financial problems, club officials said yesterday.

Uefa’s decisions, yet to be confirmed by European football’s ruling body, came as a fresh blow to the beleaguered Turkish league amid a court investigation into match-fixing allegations which overshadowed the whole of last season.

Besiktas were fined €200,000 due to delays in payments to players and staff, they said in a statement to the Istanbul Stock Exchange, where shares in the club are traded.

Uefa scrutinised Besiktas’ accounts in the second and third quarters of 2011 and ruled that they breached articles of the ruling body’s financial fair play regulations.

Besiktas had qualified for the second qualifying round of the Europa League and Bursaspor for the pre-qualifying rounds.

No details were available on the punishments for Bursaspor and Gaziantepspor. Media reports said sixth-placed Eskisehirspor could get into the Europa League instead of Besiktas.

Besiktas Chairman Fikret Orman said Besiktas would appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) regarding the ban, but was not very optimistic about a ruling in favour of the 13-times Turkish champions.