Beşiktaş appeals UEFA ban

ISTANBUL- Hürriyet Daily News

Fikret Orman, chairman of financially troubled Beşiktaş, speaks at a meeting. AA photo

Beşiktaş filed an official appeal at the Court of Arbitration in Sport (CAS) against a suspension by European football’s governing body, the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), to play in European competitions next season, the Istanbul club announced yesterday.

Last month, Beşiktaş, along with Bursaspor and Gaziantepspor, was excluded from playing in European competitions for financial misdemeanors.

Club lawyer Emin Özkurt has said “the delays in payments to players” were the biggest reason for the ban.

Over the weekend, Galatasaray and Trabzonspor were cleared to play in European competitions, but the UEFA has yet to make an announcement on Beşiktaş and Bursaspor, as well as Fenerbahçe, who was embroiled in a match-fixing scandal.

Turkish Football Federation vice chairman Ufuk Özerten said he “believed” Super League runner-up Fenerbahçe would play in the Champions League qualifiers, but that the UEFA was taking more time to decide on its case because the club’s files “were numerous.”

Last season, Fenerbgahçe had been barred from playing in the Champions League following a TFF decision upon an incentive by the UEFA.