17.09.2025 15:51
Fenerbahçe presidential candidate Sadettin Saran announced that if they are elected at the extraordinary general assembly, they will offer Hakan Bilal Kutlualp the position of vice president at Football Inc. In his statement, Sadettin Saran said, "We are establishing a strong Football Inc. I will offer the vice presidency to Mr. Hakan Bilal Kutlualp, and I hope he accepts."
Fenerbahçe Club Presidential Candidate Sadettin Saran was the live guest of the Sports Table program held at the International News Center of Anadolu Agency (AA) in Istanbul.
OFFER TO HAKAN BILAL KUTLUALP Expressing that Hakan Bilal Kutlualp, who withdrew from the candidacy, managed the election process well, Saran said, "I never said anything negative to those who collected signatures. On the contrary, I said, 'It is their democratic right.' I did not give a signature. I stated that I did not find it right for a president to be sent off like this. I did not say anything contrary. They managed the process very well. Mr. Hakan came and made no demands. Mr. Hakan did not say goodbye; he sacrificed. We are establishing a strong Football AŞ. We are forming a strong Football AŞ with Süleyman Orakçıoğlu, Sinan Öncel, and Mr. Recep Uzelli from Ankara. I will offer the vice-presidency to Mr. Hakan Bilal Kutlualp, hopefully, he will accept. We thank him." he stated.
'MOURINHO IS LEFT ALONE' Sadettin Saran conveyed that he thinks the former coach of the yellow-navy team, Jose Mourinho, is "alone," and continued his words as follows:
"If it had been held in June, we would have come with our football intelligence. When he thought of doing it in September, I told Mr. Ali, 'You need to gain trust not in the congress but on the field.' I said, 'Hold the congress in May 2026.' I even said, 'Come out and say if we don't win the championship in May 2026, I will resign, so the community can feel at ease.' He decided on September; it is his discretion. If Mourinho had continued when I came, I would have talked to Mourinho first. One of the issues I criticized was communication. I would listen and ask, 'Why did this happen?' I would decide accordingly. I would not send him away just to make others happy. There is a problem between them. It can never be one-sided. I would try to see if we could change it, and if it seemed impossible, I would decide accordingly."
'I TOLD HIM TO AGREE WITH CONTE' Explaining that when he considered running for candidacy last year, he told Ali Koç, "Agree with Mourinho, agree with Conte," Saran said, "I had agreed with Conte. I thought he wouldn't get along well with Mourinho. I have never seen someone as hungry for success as Conte. I asked Conte, 'What happened at Tottenham?' He said, 'I was left very alone.' I took him by the arm and said, 'You will never be alone in Turkey. I will be by your side, I will be your closest friend, we will be family.' This pleased him. This was one of the reasons he accepted. I think Mourinho was left alone. If we had continued, we would have made champions with Mourinho, and we would have gone to the Champions League as well." he expressed.
'A PRESIDENT NEVER DISPARAGES HIS TEAM' Sadettin Saran stated that the yellow-navy team has a good squad and expressed his belief that they will become champions.
Emphasizing that good transfers have been made, Saran said, "A presidential candidate and a president never disparage their team. This is our team. We will not hide behind excuses. The best team is this team. We will become champions with this team. We will set out this way. If necessary, changes will be made in January. We have created a football intelligence from players who have served Fenerbahçe since the Dortmund days. We are currently observing. When the time comes, we will make adjustments. This team is our team." he stated.
Describing the Fenerbahçe of his dreams, the 61-year-old presidential candidate said, "We will form a team that enters tackles with their heads, has a spirit of brotherhood, and will help us bring back the Fenerbahçe spirit, the 'Kadıköy hell.' We will create a team that is agile, quick, running, and united." he said.
'I AM TRANSFERRING MY SHARES TO A THIRD PARTY' Sadettin Saran stated that he owns a company that is a dealer of chance games and that this would not pose a problem for his candidacy, and he noted:
"We call it a dealer. This is a simple dealer that does not determine the odds. A dealer that works with percentage calculations. What bothers me is this. Those who spread these lies are unfortunately from among us. Those who spread them for their own chair love do not bother to research. We are one of the 3-4 firms in Europe with a significant say in the sports industry. One of our lawyers, Mr. Emin, is a CAS lawyer who represented Fenerbahçe during the conspiracy process. We have lawyers abroad. We have done business worth millions of dollars with FIFA and UEFA for years. The lawyers I have brought to the Fenerbahçe administration are good Fenerbahçe lawyers. They are missing something. Forget about getting an appointment from FIFA; people who cannot even make a phone call or know their place are talking. This saddens me."
'THERE IS NOTHING TO BE A PROBLEM' The presidential candidate of the yellow-navy club, Saran, continued as follows:
"This wind of lies is made to influence the undecided, to affect people's attendance at the congress. The worst thing that could happen is deprivation of rights. Unfortunately, in Turkey, those who do not have deprivation of rights are not called presidents. We applied for the council election date on August 22 before it was officially announced. Necessary applications have been made. People are talking. Let's say something incredible happened, and I was banned. Again, there is nothing that could happen to Fenerbahçe. They are throwing incredible accusations, saying 'trustee.' The public is also wondering, 'Could it be?' When it comes to that point, if necessary, I will close it down. Nothing will happen to Fenerbahçe. Unfortunately, our president Mr. Ali also says, 'He is transferring to his daughter; this is a problem.' I am transferring my shares in Tuttur to a third party. I am not transferring to my daughter. My family has always been my first priority in my life. It will be like this until I die. My second priority is my companies, and my third priority is Fenerbahçe. From this point on, two and three are switching places. After being elected, I am transferring my shares in Saran Holding to focus on our successes at Fenerbahçe. Please allow this. I established it 36 years ago, with my own efforts. We operate in 67 countries. We are leaders in the sectors we are in. Please allow me to transfer it to my daughter. There is a very small share belonging to Tuttur in Saran Holding. It will indirectly belong to my daughter. It will not pose any problem. FIFA gives you a period. It expects a good faith indicator. It becomes 57 in TFF and 27 in FIFA. There is nothing to be a problem."
'PEOPLE ARE TIRED OF GOING BACK AND FORTH BETWEEN TWO PRESIDENTS' Sadettin Saran expressed that he sees himself as lucky in the election race, stating, "We are working well.
We are listening to everyone. While working day and night, 30% of our efforts are to win, and 70% are to succeed after winning. Knowing the problem is 50% of the solution. People say, 'A change.' People are tired of going back and forth between two presidents for 27 years. I see serious support," he said.
Describing the current president Ali Koç's significant financial achievements, Saran stated, "Kill the brave, but do not take away his rights. Mr. Ali is extremely successful in financial matters. He will also leave the Banks Association. Once he leaves, and we close the remaining debts, no one will be able to seize our revenues. There is no club or company without debt. The important thing is that there is no problem, and that revenues are not seized. This club has a revenue of 300 million dollars. Therefore, we do not see any issues. The current management is quite successful in these matters."
'SUCCESS DOES NOT COME WITHOUT UNITY AND TOGETHERNESS' Sadettin Saran explained that his biggest dream is to experience championship with the yellow-navy blue team and to raise the hands of three presidents (Aziz Yıldırım, Ali Koç, and Sadettin Saran) in the air.
Emphasizing the importance of unity and togetherness for success, Saran said, "My biggest dream is to make us champions and raise the hands of three presidents. When you make someone a champion, you need to do this for sustainability. I am dealing with many things because I am a candidate. These words of unity and togetherness become insincere. I am extremely against this. I am a former national athlete; I was a team captain. I studied abroad on a sports scholarship. Success here does not come without unity and togetherness. No matter how much you train, it won't work. If we lose, the goodwill we showed during the election will not be damaged. We will never hit below the belt. Our support will continue to increase. Let there be no doubt about that."
Sadettin Saran talked about the importance of sponsorships, stating, "Mr. Ali is undoubtedly a good Fenerbahçe fan. We have very valuable friends who understand these matters. We are also forming a committee made up of professionals. We will add to the existing sponsorships. We will increase them even more. We will be equally distant to everyone. There are those who are upset; we will win them back. We do not see any problems in this regard."
RESPONSE TO HAKAN SAFİ Sadettin Saran also responded to the words of Fenerbahçe Club Board Member Hakan Safi about him.
Saran expressed that Hakan Safi was not his counterpart, saying, "It was an unfortunate statement. When I withdrew in their favor, I was a great Fenerbahçeli, a great man, and I kept my word. Then they came to me and offered me a managerial position. They said, 'Take charge of football.' It wasn't like that back then, but now that I am a competitor, is this what has come out? Is this your understanding of unity, togetherness, and sincerity? Unfortunate statements that harm Fenerbahçe. Some of these are also statements born out of fear."
Sadettin Saran emphasized that he would increase the club's revenues, stating, "Salaries are not paid by the managers; the club pays. We are coming with a team that will put their hands under the stone and give everything for the good of Fenerbahçe and its championship. We are coming with a young team. We are comfortable in this regard. There is also disinformation about this."
'BEING PRESIDENT IS A GREAT HONOR' Noting that there are people in the management team who could become president in the future, Saran said, "During this time, we will open the way for the youth. They will learn something from us. They will be better presidents than me. I will think about the future of Fenerbahçe. Being president of Fenerbahçe Club is a great honor. The people who will come here need to say, 'I can come here.'"
Referring to Fenerbahçe Club President Ali Koç's discussions with the ministry to expedite some processes, Saran said, "When he said he would talk to the ministry, I thanked Ali Koç. He called the minister twice because he did not want Fenerbahçe to enter an unnecessary crisis and thought about the good of the club. I hear some things from the right and left. I have not received anything. When I said, 'There are those who talk to the ministry behind my back,' I did not mean Ali Koç. They said, 'He cannot be a candidate.' We became candidates. They said, 'He cannot be president.' We will be. They will say, 'They cannot be champions.' We will be champions."
RESPONSE TO ALİ KOÇ'S 'NO PROJECT' STATEMENT Responding to Ali Koç's statement about him, "He has no project other than winning the championship and lifting Block E," Saran noted:
"I was saddened. Of course, we have a project. In fact, I heard the statement, 'How will he lift Block E? There is a right given there.' We will do it as he did in his time. We are listening to people. We saw that there is such a need. We will do what is necessary. We will increase the number of season tickets from 20,000 to 40,000. We will bring back the 'Kadıköy Hell' and 'Fenerbahçe Spirit.' We have real estate projects. We have projects for the youth. We have projects for the club channel and digital platform. We will also do what is necessary for our elderly. They had a place in Dereağzı, but they had to leave."
'I SEE A PROBLEM IN FOOTBALL THINKING' Addressing the reasons why Fenerbahçe has not been able to become champions in the last 11 seasons, Saran stated, "I see a problem in football thinking. I see a problem in the decision-making authority. We were without a coach for 348 days. I also see a communication problem. There is a communication problem not only with the fans and media but also with Samandıra. The solution to these is love for people. We will do these."
Emphasizing the importance of corporate memory, Saran said, "One of the mistakes made in previous periods is the excessive change of personnel. This harms corporate memory. When I come, I will look at merit. I will talk to everyone. There may also be those we will not continue with afterward."
Stating that an Investment AŞ will be established, Saran said, "My friends have projects. Every job should be left to its expert. We have friends who understand finance and law. We will establish Investment AŞ. We will further develop the beautiful projects done by previous administrations. We expect more than 200 million dollars in revenue."
'THEY NEED TO BE TOUCHED TOO' Addressing the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) management and referee decisions, Saran said:
"I believe in external influences.Sure! Here is the translated text while preserving the original HTML structure, including the translation of the `title` and `alt` attributes in the `img` tag:
It is a great injustice to say that there are no external factors to the management. Saying 'There are external factors.' and then resorting to excuses is also a weakness. I find this wrong. We are entering a vicious cycle. This situation affects the incoming coach and the players. If you are strong, if you are building a team that can take a kick to the head and you are not making excuses, everything is possible. The previous federation president left. We saw a big difference. This means that these things are possible. Last year, we were almost champions. A minister is visited in Ankara, discussions are held, and then they leave. There is a general director there, a deputy general director, and a department head. When I enter a building, I shake hands with everyone. You need to be like that. A top-down perspective backfires. When they say from above, 'Do this,' they won't do anything. When you go to the federation, there are observers, a disciplinary board, and the Central Referee Board. We need to talk to all of them. There are very large Fenerbahçe fans in Ankara. We need to reach out to them too.
'WE ARE A WORLD CLUB' Stating that they are a world club, Saran said, "Recently, when I spoke with the president of one of the biggest clubs in the world, I said, 'We are a world club.' He sarcastically asked, 'How?' I asked him, 'How many athletes did you send to the Olympics?' We carry the pride of this, but we have forgotten our own glory. We need to remind ourselves of this first."
Saran, who stated that he did not want to criticize Ali Koç, said, "Ali Koç is a very good Fenerbahçeli. He has done very nice things. I find the comparison wrong. I just think I will make a difference. I came from scratch. I am the child of a civil servant. I manage more than 40 companies. I love my team, and they love me too. The turnover rate in my companies is the lowest in the media sector. 54% of our managers are women. We value merit. We love people. We empathize and love people. I do not have difficulty making decisions and I am not impulsive. These are enough to bring the championship."
'I AM A CANDIDATE TO MANAGE FENERBAHÇE' Addressing the club's congress members, Saran concluded his remarks as follows:
"Let's show how big a community we are. Please, everyone come to the polls. I am not a candidate to manage Fenerbahçeliler, but Fenerbahçe itself. I believe I will make a difference. I believe I will break the mold not only in success but also in failure. There are many people supporting me. If I see a disappointment in them, I will leave anyway. During this campaign process, we tried to conduct the work as gentlemanly as possible. I must be an example to our youth. I am not a person who fears struggle and conflict, but true strength is being able to stay calm. I want to show this."
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