Turkey’s sports world, led by the football community, has raised a united voice against the failed coup attempt that targeted the country’s democratic parliamentary system.
“As the Turkish Football Federation, we believe a military uprising is unacceptable in the democratic Turkish Republic. There can be no power over the will of our people,” theTurkish Football Federation (TFF) said in a written statement posted on its official website.
“We trust in our nation to embrace democracy in these important days and wish success to all our institutions [fighting for democracy],” the statement read.
Turkey’s football clubs also condemned the coup attempt.
“Long live democracy, no to coups,” Beşiktaş tweeted.
“We are always on the side of democracy, not on the side of coups,” Fenerbahçe’s official account tweeted, while Galatasaray said “We stand by democracy,” using the hashtag #DarbeyeHayır (No to coups).
Famous athletes also joined the condemnations, with many – including former NBA star Mehmet Okur, Barcelona’s Arda Turan, Borussia Dortmund’s Nuri Şahin and West Ham United’s new-signing Göhan Töre – posting photos of Turkish flags on their social media accounts.
Meanwhile, a charity match to mark the 10th anniversary of the Samuel Eto’o Foundation, scheduled to be played on July 16 in the Mediterranean province of Antalya, was called off after the failed coup attempt.
Former and current stars who were set to play in the match made it safely to their homes over the weekend.
“Already back in Barcelona after what happened in Turkey. We have spent some time in uncertainty but we’re fine,” former Barcelona star Charles Puyol wrote on Twitter on July 16. (Hürriyet Daily News)
