AUTONOMY AND HISTORIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS

The Turkish Football Federation earned autonomy in 1992. The developments and changes in football showed that it was more than a sport. The financial values increasingly created by football and the widening interest in football showed that football had to be governed by an autonomous organization. Law No. 3813, adopted on 17 June 1992, and granted autonomy to the Turkish Football Federation. Pursuant to Article 1 of the Law, the Turkish Football Federation was established as an autonomous organization and as being subject to private law for the purposes of conducting and organizing football activities in line with national and international rules and representing Turkey in and outside Turkey in the field of football. Ever since its establishment as an autonomous organization, the Turkish Football Federation ("TFF") has been continuing its operations successfully.

The Pool System, which was introduced in 1997, helped our clubs generate broadcasting revenues in hundreds of millions of US Dollars. The successful results obtained, particularly those of our National Team, in the following years paved the path towards sponsorship and helped TFF sign huge agreements, providing added value of millions of US Dollars to Turkish football economy. The importance of football economy was also realized by club managements which later signed sponsorship agreements.

1993 was also an active year for TFF. TFF hosted U-16 European Championship and introduced the Fair Play principle in the Turkish Leagues. Also, the anti-doping programs implemented in the same year paid off well. TFF President Senes Erzik was elected UEFA Vice-President and member of FIFA Executive Committee during the meeting held in Vienna in 1994.

In the same period, Lale Orta, a Turkish female referee, was accredited by FIFA, and the construction of a number of facilities, including the Atatürk Education and Research Center in Beylerbeyi, TFF Headquarters in Levent and the "National Teams Camping and Training Facility" in Riva, were completed. Many of our clubs took similar initiatives and started to construct new facilities with the funding projects offered by TFF. ?enes Erzik was the first person elected in 1996 to hold the presidential office of TFF.