Altay Faces Administrator Appointment as Presidential Candidates Emerge

The historic Turkish club Altay, with 112 years of history, is on the brink of having an administrator appointed after its extraordinary general assembly concluded without any presidential candidates stepping forward. This situation follows a similar outcome on May 11, when the meeting was adjourned for the same reason.

Following the latest failed election, the current president, Sinan Kanlı, who decided not to seek re-election, is now eligible to petition the court to appoint an administrator under Law No. 7405 on Sports Clubs and Sports Federations. The meeting, which could only be attended by 63 general assembly members (out of 93 who attended the previous session), ended with members singing the Altay anthem in a somber atmosphere.

Kanlı revealed that negotiations with former Beşiktaş president Ahmet Nur Çebi, who had shown interest in leading Altay, failed due to the club's debt. Çebi initially inquired about settling the debt for 5 million Euros, but after negotiations, Altay proposed a figure of 6.3 million Euros. Çebi then requested a further reduction to 3.5 million Euros, which Kanlı deemed impossible. Kanlı stated that an agreement on manager receivables was largely reached, and settling all club debts in Turkish Lira would have resulted in significant savings, amounting to 750 million TL against a total debt of 350 million TL.

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He asked us if we could finish the debt at 5 million Euros. After our negotiations, we told him we could close the debt at 6 million 300 thousand Euros. This time he asked us to lower the figure to 3 million 500 thousand Euros. This is not possible.

Despite efforts to persuade Çebi, including involving figures like Mustafa Denizli and Mahmut Özgener, the talks collapsed. Kanlı mentioned that Çebi had apologized to his inner circle for not being able to finalize a deal with Altay.

During the assembly, members voiced their concerns. One member indicated that a group was seeking sponsorship to put forward a candidacy, requesting more time. Another expressed fears that the team was nearing dissolution, suggesting that withdrawing from the league might be more logical than suffering heavy defeats. Reports suggest that Altay needs an immediate 2 million TL to prevent key players from becoming free agents.

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We had largely agreed on manager receivables. We could have closed all our debt in Turkish Lira for 350 million TL, there would have been a saving of 750 million TL. Better than this is not possible.