The Turkish Super Cup final between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce scheduled to be played in Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh on Friday was postponed over what the clubs described as “some problems” in the event’s organisation.
At the heart of those issues, according to media reports, was the wish of the two Istanbul teams to wear t-shirts featuring the founder of modern Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, during the warm-up ahead of the evening kick-off.
Turkish media said Saudi officials had rejected this demand, though it was not clear why, and that the clubs refused to play in the Super Cup final at the King Saud University venue, which is also known as Al-Awwal Park stadium, as a result.
Saudi state TV cited a statement by organisers the Riyadh Season saying the cancellation of the final was the result of the teams not adhering to match regulations.
“We were looking forward to holding the match on time in accordance with the international soccer rules and regulations that require the sport to be presented without any slogans outside its scope, especially since this was discussed with the Turkish (Football) Federation in the framework of the preparatory meetings for the match,” the statement said.
“Despite this agreement, it was unfortunate that the two teams did not adhere to what had been agreed upon, which led to the match not being held,” it added.
The scheduled final coincides with the 100th anniversary of the foundation of the secular Turkish Republic. There was no immediate comment from Saudi officials.
Summary: Erdoğan did not want Atatürk to be shown in the 100th anniversary super cup. He knew that he could not ban this in Turkey, so he wanted to blame it on the Saudis. As a result, it exploded in his ass. It drives them crazy that young people remain loyal to Ataturk and secularism, even though they have been propagating Islam for 20 years :)
