The Turkish Football Federation (TFF) has been ordered to pay 7,200€ in compensation to the former referee Halil İbrahim Dinçdağ after they revoked his licence for being gay and outed.

An Istanbul court instructed the TFF to pay the compensation for their treatment of Dinçdağ. The sum was lower than the 34, 543€ demanded by Dinçdağ’s lawyers for damages.

In 2009, the TFF Central Referee Board told Dinçdağ his professional licence would not be renewed because he had been excused from his compulsory military service on account of his homosexuality, which was documented in a medical report. According to the sport’s regulations, anyone who fails to complete military service for health reasons is unfit to perform as a referee.

Dinçdağ had been a referee in the Trabzon region of north-eastern Turkey for 13 years when his licence was revoked.

Over the last years, the Turkish former referee has been involved in several actions to raise awareness of the current situation of LGBT people in Turkey and discuss the topic of homophobia in football based on his experience.

In 2015, Dinçdağ participated in the Fare Football People action weeks event officiating two football tournaments for LGBTI refugees in Denizli and İzmir, Turkey, organised by KAOS GL.

From The Guardian