Foreign video assistant referees will officiate at key Turkish Super Lig games from this week, the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) said Friday, Agence France-Presse reported.
The move follows claims of bias by title-chasing Fenerbahçe against referees — they trail arch-rivals Galatasaray by two points in the championship race.
“A foreign Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will be assigned in the critical matches of the week … until the end of the league” in May, the TFF said in a statement.
Fenerbahçe’s Sunday fixture against Fatih Karagümrük and Galatasaray’s Monday game against Alanyaspor will both be affected.
A foreign VAR official will also cover a Saturday Ankaragücü-Gaziantep match-up as both teams are embroiled in a relegation battle.
The TFF said it had struck deals with the Italian, Spanish, German, Dutch and Portuguese federations.
Fenerbahçe president Ali Koç claimed Sunday there was an “underground network in Turkish football that decides how the championship will go, using the referees.”
The club were fined 115,000 euros ($123,175) Thursday for walking out of the Sunday Super Cup final against Galatasaray in protest against alleged unfair treatment.