The Turkish Cypriot football federation (CTFA) has given its approval for FIFA’s proposal to unify football across the island after a unanimous vote on 29th November.
The text was signed on 5th November in Zurich by both the Presidents of both the CTFA and the Greek Cypriot football federation. However, just after signing, CTFA’s President Hasan Sertoglu said the signed text was only a draft and the Turkish side intended to ask for revisions of the document, so ending the isolation of the clubs in the North.
42 clubs in the North voted unanimously to accept the deal.
“The unanimity shows how the football clubs are approaching the issue. It also shows their confidence to the federation. This is a beginning, but we will walk on the path together,” Sertoglu said following the vote. He added that implementation of the agreement would begin early next year.
According the deal, Turkish clubs will join the Greek Cypriot Federation and the football division will be unified under Greek Cyprus leagues’ umbrella. The transition will be led by a committee composed of eight members, four from for each side, which will be responsible for implementing the conditions of the deal.
Following on, Turkish Cypriot clubs will be able to compete in European tournaments – if qualified – and will also be able organise friendlies with clubs from other countries, which was previously banned due to embargos.
The football union is also seen as a significant step amid initiatives for the restart of talks aimed at reunifying the island.
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