The Turkish Super Cup final between Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe will not be played this Friday. The match was scheduled to start at 6:30 pm in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the two teams never took the field due to a diplomatic incident.
The game, which was supposed to start more than two hours ago, did not even see the teams take the field.
The Turkish press writes that the Saudi authorities prevented banners and t-shirts with references to the founder and first president of the Turkish Republic, Ataturk, from entering the playing field. Fans of both teams were also prevented from hanging a banner with the phrase “Peace at home, peace in the world.”
In a joint statement, Galatasaray, Fenerbahçe and the Turkish Football Federation explain that the objective was to commemorate the centenary of the Turkish Republic. The Super Cup final still does not have a new date.
“To celebrate the centenary of our Republic and the Turkish Football Federation abroad, we have organized with our clubs to contribute to the brand value of Turkish football and our club. The 2023 Super Cup, scheduled for Friday, December 29 2023, at 8:45 p.m., has been postponed to a later date by joint decision made with our clubs, due to some interruptions in the organization. We thank the Football Federation and the competent authorities, institutions and organizations of the host country for their efforts so far in organizing the Super Cup,” the statement reads.
Source: TSF
