In Saudi Arabia, Turkish football players were banned from entering the Turkish Super Cup match wearing T-shirts with Ataturk

The Turkish Super Cup match between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce in Riyadh has been canceled by decision of the Saudi Arabian authorities. According to the TV channel Haberturkthe reason for the cancellation of the match was that local authorities prohibited players from entering the field wearing T-shirts with the image of the founder of Turkey, Kemal Ataturk.

As the TV channel reports, citing the management of the clubs, the players also planned to take to the field with banners in honor of the 100th anniversary of the republic, sing the Turkish national anthem and honor the memory of the fallen Turkish soldiers with a minute of silence. According to Haberturk, after the match was cancelled, Turkish Youth and Sports Minister Osman Bak and the team leaders held two-hour talks. Based on their results, no decision was made; the players were instructed not to come to the stadium.

At the same time, the Center for Combating Disinformation under the Turkish Presidential Administration claims that the information about the cancellation of the match is unreliable. “The claims made in some media and circulated on social networks that our national anthem and the Turkish flag will not be allowed at the Turkish Super Cup final match to be held in Riyadh are untrue,” the center said in a statement. .

Haberturk reported that the decision to cancel the match had not been finalized. According to the TV channel, the match will be rescheduled for another day, but it has not been announced which day. The management of the clubs decided to return to Turkey, the players will arrive in Istanbul tonight, the TV channel notes. Later “Match TV” reported, citing the organizers of the meeting, that the match was finally cancelled.