{"id":282017,"date":"2026-01-26T22:02:07","date_gmt":"2026-01-26T22:02:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/?p=282017"},"modified":"2026-01-26T22:07:10","modified_gmt":"2026-01-26T22:07:10","slug":"the-3f-regime-and-footballs-economics-of-inequality","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/the-3f-regime-and-footballs-economics-of-inequality\/","title":{"rendered":"3F Regime and the Economics of Inequality in Football"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Sport's Relationship with the Regime<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">All sports, especially football, should be amateur; resources should be spent on education and health.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This sentence is not a wish. It is not a legislative proposal at all. This sentence, in itself <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a political thesis<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. Because what is being advocated here is not the banning of sport, but the imprisonment of sport. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>liberation from the capitalist regime<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. The objection is not to the ball or the game, but to the organization of body, time and public resources for the market.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Today sport, especially soccer, has severed its historical link to health, a sense of collectivity and public solidarity. It has been replaced by money, spectacle, the myth of the star and spectator pleasure. For this reason, the call for \u201call sports to be amateur\u201d is not a nostalgic throwback; it is clearly <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>counter-hegemonic<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is a choice.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This call directly challenges three areas.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>First, to the sports industry.<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><br \/>\nToday, sports, especially soccer:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is a global entertainment industry,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is a gigantic betting and advertising economy,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is an ideological apparatus that reproduces nationalist and class divisions,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is a non-stop rating machine for the media.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Therefore, the call for amateurism is not hostility to sport; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a political refusal against the exploitation of the body<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Second, on resource utilization.<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><br \/>\nThe annual salary of a football player is equivalent to the budget of dozens of schools, the cost of a stadium to a city hospital, a single transfer fee to the scholarships of thousands of students. This table is not an exaggeration; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a declaration of class priority<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. The common resource of the society is not spent on the common need of the society; it is spent on spectatorial pleasure.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Resources should be spent on education and health\u201d is therefore not an accounting exercise; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a moral and political declaration<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">A classroom instead of a grandstand.<br \/>\nA book instead of a jersey.<br \/>\nTeacher instead of transfer.<br \/>\nA hospital instead of a stadium.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-282019\" src=\"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"853\" srcset=\"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1-696x464.jpg 696w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o1-1-1068x712.jpg 1068w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>Whatever the state allocates money for, it declares what it considers valuable.<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Third, the false myth of success.<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><br \/>\nProfessional sport, especially soccer, sells young people this dream:<br \/>\n\u201cDon't work your way out, get elected.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Instead of education, the talent lottery is celebrated. The millions of losers are rendered invisible, the handful of winners are mythologized. This is not just economic, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a moral question<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. Because failure is individualized, the system is whitewashed.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>3F Formula: Sport as Poverty Management<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">There is an established concept in Latin American political science literature: <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>3F - F\u00fatbol, Fiesta, Fe<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. Football, entertainment and faith. This trio is not to solve the poverty of the people; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>to accept living in poverty<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> for the next generation.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Hunger is replaced by enthusiasm, injustice by ritual, inequality by hope. Reaction is not suppressed; it is postponed. Objection is not forbidden; it is stalled. Thus, power is not exercised through force, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>emotion management<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> sustained.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This is precisely the function of football in Turkey and much of the world today. Football is no longer a sport; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a management technique<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>The Economics of Inequality, the Stellar Regime and the Tangible Account<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>A Concrete Account of Inequality: The Osimhen Case<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The inequality produced by the sports industry is not about abstract concepts, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>in bare numbers<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> understandable. It is therefore necessary to take a concrete example directly. As of the 2025-26 season <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Victor Osimhen<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u2019s total annual revenue - including salary, bonuses, image rights and fringe benefits - is approximately <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>21 million euros<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> level. At today's exchange rate <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Over 1 billion TL<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> of a source <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a single athlete each year<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> means transfer.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">What does this figure alone mean?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Supported by municipalities and local authorities in Europe <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>amateur football clubs<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> average annual budgets <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>80-120 thousand euros<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> band. This structure forms the mass backbone of sports with school leagues, neighborhood clubs and infrastructure activities. According to this calculation <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Osimhen's income for just one year<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>170 to 260 European amateur clubs<\/b><\/span><\/span> <span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>one year budget<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is equivalent.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In Turkey, the picture is much harsher. The expenses of amateur football clubs in Turkey are often underestimated by the public. However, especially <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Super Amateur League<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Regional Amateur League (BAL)<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> level of a club's seasonal expenses:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Field and facility rents,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">License, registration and federation fees,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Away transportation and accommodation costs,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Technical team fees,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Athlete expenses and basic health expenditures<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">taking into account <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>700 thousand TL to 1.5 million TL<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> ranges between In addition to this at the BAL level <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>hundreds of thousands of pounds of collateral and participation obligations<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> are also available.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Viewed in this reality, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>one year's income of a single footballer<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Hundreds of amateur clubs in Turkey<\/b><\/span><\/span> <span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>to survive for a season<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> to provide the necessary services.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This picture cannot be explained by a \u201ctalent gap\u201d.<br \/>\nThis is not the natural functioning of the market at all.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This is a direct <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>for whom social resources are mobilized<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is the question.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>Wages Reality: What Does 75 Million Euros Mean?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Inequality is not only in salaries, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>in the cost of the<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> even more naked. The price paid for Osimhen <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>an estimated 75 million euros in wages<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, is a huge one-time transfer of resources.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">What could have been done with this money?<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>In Europe<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, with an average annual budget of <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>100 thousand euros<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> which is <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>750 amateur clubs<\/b><\/span><\/span> <span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>all activities for one year<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> could be financed.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>In Turkey<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, seasonal expense <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>1 million TL<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> around <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>More than 700 amateur clubs<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, with this source <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>one full season<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> was sustainable throughout.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It's not just the continuation of sport;<br \/>\nin hundreds of cities, thousands of neighborhoods, tens of thousands of children <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a public sports ecosystem where people can come into contact with sports<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is a resource that will make it possible.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Therefore, Osimhen's ability is not the issue.<br \/>\nIt is not about the \u201cnature\u201d of the market at all.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The point is this:<br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Is the social resource being used for social need or for showcasing?<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>The Star System and Lottery Ethics<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The case of Osimhen is no exception; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is the norm of the star system<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. At the center of professional sport is the \u201cstar\u201d. The star is not just the athlete who plays well on the field, but a showcase produced by the media, capital and advertising.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This showcase sends a clear message to young people:<br \/>\n\u201cNot with education, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>by selecting<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> get rid of it.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This message produces a morality that silently eliminates millions of young people. The story of the losers is not told; the success story of the winners is sanctified. In this way, inequality is naturalized, even glorified. Success becomes a virtue, poverty a personal vice.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This is the neoliberal order in the field of sport. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>lottery ethics<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Amateur Sports Comparison between Turkey and Abroad: A Conscious Gap<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In Europe, amateur sport is not an afterthought that is squashed beneath the professional showcase. School leagues, municipal clubs and local sports arenas are not a part of public sport policy. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>its main body<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> creates. Support is continuous, infrastructure is secure, sport is not a privilege <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a public right<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">truck.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In Turkey, the picture is reversed. Amateur clubs<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is condemned to unsustainable aid,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is made dependent on the personal efforts of local administrators,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is sustained by the sacrifices of athletes and families.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Professional soccer, on the other hand, has been boosted by tax exemptions, public land, debt restructurings and stadiums built with public funds. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>systematically fed<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. This is not a difference in income in sport; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a regime inequality<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> it produces.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is no coincidence that amateur sport has been left weak. For the professional shop window to shine, the ground must remain in the dark. Inequality in sport is therefore not a consequence; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a conscious design<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>The Citizen Turned into a Spectator<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The complementary element of this order of inequality is the transformation of the citizen into a spectator. The spectator does not question. A fan does not object. A fan is not a citizen.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Football as it is is not entertainment; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a usurpation of time and attention<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. People discuss not unemployment but the referee, not injustice but offside. Anger vents but changes direction. Real political demands become invisible.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Betting Regime, Moral Decay and the Discreditation of Sports<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Illegal Betting: Structural Consequence, Not Deviation<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The current state of professional soccer is not only about economic inequality, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>with moral decay<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> must also be defined. The illegal betting investigations that have come to the agenda one after another in recent years show that the dark areas surrounding football are not the \u201cexception\u201d, on the contrary <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>structural<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> that it is.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The intertwining of the game played on the field with illegal betting networks off the field is not an aberration. It is an aberration of a sporting system where billions of euros are at stake, oversight is weakened, and the star system is sanctified. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is the natural consequence<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. The betting economy has become not a secondary area around football, but a central revenue and steering mechanism.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Footballers who place illegal bets or are associated with these networks are often discussed in terms of \u201cindividual moral weakness\u201d. However, the issue is not individual. The athlete is not just a player in this system; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a high-risk financial asset<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. Betting, match-fixing and mafia are therefore no exception; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a by-product of the market-centered sports regime<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Astronomical salaries and bonuses on the one hand, and an unregulated betting market on the other... These two areas are not disconnected. On the contrary, they are different faces of the same capitalist logic.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Where Has Morality Disappeared?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Professional sport does not produce morality per se. Morality is not a natural outcome of the market. On the contrary, the logic of the market <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>consumes<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, erodes it and makes it a secondary element.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In today's football system, success is measured not by honesty, continuity of labor or social responsibility, but by visibility, speed and profit. In this environment, the implicit message to the athlete is clear: \u201cAs long as you win, there is no problem.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Illegal betting is therefore not an \u201caccident of morality\u201d; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>where morality is systematically excluded<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is the result of a system. The crime is individualized, the system is whitewashed. A few soccer players are targeted, but it is the system <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>economic and institutional structure<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is not questioned.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-282020\" src=\"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1280\" height=\"853\" srcset=\"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1.jpg 1280w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1-18x12.jpg 18w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1-696x464.jpg 696w, https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/o2-1-1068x712.jpg 1068w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>The Gap between the Republic's Understanding of Sports and Today<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">At this point, the gap between the founding sports mentality of the Republic and today's picture becomes apparent. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Mustafa Kemal Atat\u00fcrk<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">\u2019s understanding of sport was not only about physical development; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>moral and mental integrity<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> based on.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Atat\u00fcrk's words are not a wish, but a clear <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a statement of public principle<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>I like athletes who are intelligent, agile and moral.\u201d<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In this sentence, morality does not follow intelligence and agility; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>with them<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is referred to. Because sport is not only about performance; it is also about <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>social exemplar<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. The athlete is a figure who stands in front of society and therefore gains meaning not only through the matches he wins but also through the values he represents.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Today's professional sports organization has reversed this principle.<br \/>\nWit, market cunning;<br \/>\nfetishism of agility, speed and power;<br \/>\nmorality is reduced to advertising texts.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Footballers who place illegal bets are therefore not \u201ccorrupt individuals\u201d; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>are the products of a corrupt order<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>Betting Economy and Attendance Regime<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Betting transforms not only the player but also the spectator. The match is no longer a sporting event; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>an object of financial forecasting<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> becomes a user. The fan is reduced to a user who follows the odds, not a spectator of the game.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This transformation further poisons the social impact of football. Sport is not unifying, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>disintegrator<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> This process of betting is the reason why it plays such a role. It is not only the individuals who lose money; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is the public reputation of sport<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>Amateurism A Moral Imperative<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The call for amateurism is therefore not only against economic inequality; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>against moral decadence<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is also oriented. Amateur sport is not about the athlete as a star; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>as a citizen<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and not the betting economy. It makes it part of public responsibility, not part of the betting economy.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Amateurism reunites sport with the body, health and solidarity. Its morality is not a by-product; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>founding principle<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> into a man.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">As long as the professional sports system continues, the \u201cmoral athlete\u201d will remain an exception. Because morality is not a by-product of the market; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a public choice<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Liquidation, Nationalization and a New Sports Regime<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Radical but Logical Conclusion: Professional Sport Must Be Eliminated<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"Bookmark\"><\/a> <span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The conclusion of the discussions up to this point is clear. Professional sport - especially football - in its current form is beyond reform. The problem is not a few bad managers, a few corrupt soccer players or a few shady betting networks. The problem is that sport <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a capital-centered regime<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is organized as.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The logical conclusion of this text is therefore clear:<br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Professional sports clubs should be liquidated.<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This sentence is not an outburst of anger. It is not a call for a ban at all. It is an indictment of the order of inequality, decay and exploitation in which sport is placed. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>structurally unsustainable<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is the determination that it is.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Professional clubs today:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Turning public resources into private profit,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Generating privileges through tax exemptions and incentives,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Turning sports workers into contracted commodities,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Reducing citizens to fans and sports to spectator pleasure<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">institutional structures. As long as these structures exist, equality, health, morality and publicity in sports are not possible.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>What does it mean to close? Not to Destroy, but to Publicize<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The concept of \u201dclosure\" is particularly susceptible to deliberate distortion. What is being proposed here is:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is not to erase club histories,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is not to ban partisanship,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">It is not to stop exercising.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">What is proposed is that clubs <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>company status<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>profit-oriented structure<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>market logic<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is to liquidate it. In other words, privatized sport <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is expropriation<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">In this framework:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Professional leagues are dissolved,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Club companies are liquidated,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Facilities, sites and infrastructure are expropriated,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Sport through local authorities, schools and public sports associations <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>free, accessible and amateur<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> to make it so.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The aim is not to destroy sport; it is to <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is to liberate from capital<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>The Icelandic Model: Is Success Possible without Professionalism?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Iceland<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> model is one of the most tangible examples of breaking the myth that soccer must necessarily become a fully professional industry. In a country where a large-scale soccer economy is unsustainable due to the small size of the population, the top leagues are largely <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>semi-professional<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> structure. A significant number of soccer players are also <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>teacher<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>officer<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> or <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>student<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">sport is not the only and privileged way out of life, but a natural part of public life.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Despite this, Iceland has achieved remarkable success in European and world football in the last decade. This success is not based on star signings, astronomical salaries or transfer markets, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>school-based infrastructure<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>continuous and planned support of municipalities<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>public sport policies<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> based. The Icelandic example clearly shows that football does not have to become a centralized and absorptive professional industry for international success. On the contrary, public and amateur-based organization of sport can provide a stronger basis for both social health and sporting continuity.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Why can't Turkey become Iceland?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The reason why Turkey cannot establish an Icelandic model of public-amateur sports is neither climate, nor population, nor \u201clack of talent\u201d. The real reason, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>political and economic choices<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. From the very beginning, sports policy in Turkey was established as a showcase regime centered on professional football rather than strengthening the amateur base.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Resources were not allocated to school sports, neighborhood clubs and municipal infrastructures, but to stadiums, broadcasting tenders and the debts of professional clubs. Amateur sports have been deprived of continuous public support, while professional football has been protected and expanded by the state. For this reason, professional football in Turkey has gone from a showcase to a structure that has swallowed the entire system.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Sport in Iceland, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a social right<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> as a sport, whereas in Turkey, sport is largely seen as a <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a space for spectator consumption<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">in Iceland. In Iceland, the soccer player is also a citizen and a laborer; in Turkey, the soccer player has been transformed into the market's lottery of salvation. The difference is not cultural; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>regime<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Why Professionalism = Quality\u201d is Wrong?<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The most common argument in football debates is this: \u201cWithout professionalism, quality will suffer.\u201d However, this assertion does not mean that quality <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>For whom<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>at what cost<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is produced. What professional soccer elevates is often not the quality of the game; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is the brilliance of the spectacle<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">When quality is measured by the number of stars, inequality becomes inevitable. In contrast, quality in public and amateur-based systems; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Participation<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Access<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">, <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Continuity<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> and <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>community health<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> through the sporting and social aspects of the sport. The Icelandic example shows that this second definition is more sustainable both from a sporting and social perspective.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Therefore, the issue is not whether professionalism exists or not. It's about whether professionalism <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a center that swallows<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> or <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a limited showcase<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> or not. When professionalism takes over the shop window and destroys the public sphere, there is no real quality and no real sport.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>The Labor of Athletes: Public Labor, Not Star Labor<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The most common objection is: \u201cWhat about the athletes?\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">The answer to this question is clear. Athlete labor is not ignored; on the contrary <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is secured<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">. But it is not starified, it is not commodified.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Athletes<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>Public athlete<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> status,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">They are included in public employment as coaches, trainers and sports laborers,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">While practicing sport, it is also made part of the education system.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This model takes the athlete out of the mercy of the market. It prevents post-injury collapse. It eliminates futility. The athlete is not an investment; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a social subject<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> it happens.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>From Stadium to Sports Campus<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Today, stadiums, built by spending billions of liras, are showgrounds that are used one day a week. The rest of the time they are idle, closed and disconnected from the public.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">These areas<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">School sports,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Public health programs,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Disability sports,<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Free courses for women and children<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">open <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>multi-purpose sports-culture-education campuses<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> must be transformed.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Thus, the stadium ceases to be a showcase that produces spectatorial pleasure; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>a living public space<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> it becomes.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>A Question of Resources: Morality, Not Money<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201c<span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Resources should be spent on education and health\u201d is not a technical budget debate. This demand is a direct <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a debate on morality and civilization<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Whatever the state allocates money for, it declares what it considers valuable. Today, if money is allocated for stadiums, broadcasting tenders and club debts, this is not for the citizens. <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>that there is investment in the audience<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> shows.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">A classroom instead of a grandstand.<br \/>\nA book instead of a jersey.<br \/>\nTeacher instead of transfer.<br \/>\nA hospital instead of a stadium.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">This is not a call for a ban; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>is a call for priority<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>Conclusion: 3F versus 3H<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Against the Latin American 3F formula-F\u00fatbol, Fiesta, Fe-a new equation is necessary today:<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><i><b>People - Right - Dignity<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Sport must belong to the people.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Resources must be distributed equitably.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Human dignity must not be sacrificed to spectacle.<\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Otherwise, stadiums will be full and schools empty, screens bright and the future dark.<br \/>\nAnd we still call it \u201csport\u201d.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: large;\"><i><b>Last Word<\/b><\/i><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Professional sport, especially soccer, is no longer an innocent game. It is one of the most effective ideological apparatuses of our time. This is why the issue is not soccer hostility; <\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>defending public reason, social priorities and human dignity<\/b><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"> is a matter of.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\">Sport either serves public health,<br \/>\nor the spectacle of capital.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: Times New Roman, serif;\"><span style=\"font-size: medium;\"><b>He cannot do both at the same time.<\/b><\/span><\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A Political Evaluation on the Amateurization of Sport<\/p>","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":282018,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[286],"tags":[289],"class_list":{"0":"post-282017","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-yazarlar","8":"tag-manset"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282017","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=282017"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282017\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":282024,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/282017\/revisions\/282024"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/282018"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=282017"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=282017"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/halkweb.com.tr\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=282017"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}