The Turkish Football Federation suspended all its leagues after a president of one of its clubs punched a referee in the face in a shocking scene on Monday.
Rizespor tied the score at one in the 97th minute, and when the final whistle blew, Ankaragucu’s president Faruk Koca ran onto the field and hit referee Halil Umut Meler.
Meler was further assaulted when Ankaragucu fans invaded the pitch and the official was kicked as he fell.
He was helped to the locker room with the help of police.
His assailants remain unidentified.
“The matches in all leagues have been postponed indefinitely,” Turkish FA chairman Mehmet Buyukeksi said in a news conference. “This attack is a night of shame for Turkish football.”
“Football matches are not a war, there is no death at the end,” he added. “Not all teams can become champions at the same time. We all need to understand this. We invite everyone to take responsibility.
“[Ankaragucu] and its managers will be punished most severely.”
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said that two people have been detained in an investigation into the incident, with a detention order issued for Koca.
Meler, 37, is also a FIFA referee and on UEFA’s elite referee list.
He was treated for his injuries but deemed to have none that were life-threatening.
“He only has bleeding around his left eye and a small fracture,” Dr Mehmet Yorubulut said, per BBC. “We will [monitor] our referee until the morning due to head trauma. We will discharge him from hospital after the necessary examinations in the morning.”
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan condemned the attack on Meler.
“Sports means peace and brotherhood,” he said. “Sport is incompatible with violence. We will never allow violence to take place in Turkish sports.”
With the draw, Ankaragucu is 11th in the 20-team TFF at 4-6-5, while Rizespor is in eighth (6-4-5).
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