A high-profile arrest in Turkey! Former Premier League referee Anthony Taylor to take over as head of the refereeing committee

Turkish football has been rocked by a major scandal involving corruption, the falsification of refereeing exams and manipulation of match appointments.

Details: Renowned English referee Anthony Taylor is set to be temporarily appointed head of Turkey’s Central Refereeing Committee (MHK) in the coming days. The news was reported by the respected Turkish newspaper Hürriyet.

The emergency change at the top was prompted by the arrest of current refereeing chief Ferhat Gündoğdu. The official was one of seven people detained by police as part of an investigation into large-scale abuses, including illegal interference in the referee classification process, manipulation of qualification scores and the allocation of match appointments.

Anthony Taylor has served as MHK’s director of elite referees since August this year. The English specialist moved to Turkey immediately after officially ending his refereeing career in the Premier League and English football.

It is worth noting that 47-year-old Anthony Taylor refereed matches in England’s top flight from 2010 to 2026, regularly officiated at European Championship and World Cup tournaments, and also took charge of Europa League and UEFA Super Cup finals.

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