Turkey Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia called off amid Ataturk T-shirt row
Al Jazeera
Istanbul rival teams Galatasaray and Fenerbahce were scheduled to play in Riyadh on Friday.
The Turkish Super Cup final between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce scheduled to be played in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh was called off over an apparent disagreement about the players’ jerseys.
The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) and the two teams – who returned to Istanbul on Saturday after Friday’s postponed match – said the decision was made because of “some problems” in the event’s organisation.
Haberturk television and other Turkish media said players from both Istanbul football teams wanted to wear T-shirts that featured an image of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the revered founder of the modern Turkish republic, during a prematch warm-up, but were not authorised to do so by Saudi organisers.
Turkish media also reported that Saudi authorities did not allow banners featuring political slogans and Ataturk T-shirts to be displayed ahead of the match, including those with Ataturk’s “peace at home, peace in the world” slogan.
The clubs refused to play in the final at the King Saud University venue, which is also known as Al-Awwal Park stadium.
