The president of a top Turkish football club has resigned after punching a referee to the ground at the end of a match.
Faruk Koca, who has also been arrested, said he was “embarrassed” and “saddened” by the incident.
The MKE Ankaragucu president hit the referee Halil Umut Meler at the end of a match in the country’s highest league, sparking a melee of players and officials either joining the chaos or trying to intervene.
As Meler lay on the ground he was also kicked in the head at least once.
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Club president punches referee
Koca announced his resignation in a statement on the club’s website.
“Nothing can legitimise or explain the violence that I committed,” he said.
“Sports fields should be the venue for gentlemanly competition. Any attitude that casts a shadow on fair play, including my own, should not be present in stadiums,” he said.
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