‘Keep Turkish football going to prevent divorces’

ISTANBUL: The head of Turkish soccer club Trabzonspor has opposed any delay of Super League matches over coronavirus fears, arguing that otherwise divorce cases would increase.

"We are the leader right now ... Trabzonspor should be declared champion," the Turkish media reported Ahmet Agaoglu as saying Tuesday. "If the league is suspended and played without spectators, one month later we won’t find a judge in this country who can look at divorce cases," he said.

Agaoglu was seen in a video wearing a protective mask as he spoke to the media. Trabzonspor -- one of the major non-Istanbul-based clubs -- is currently at the top of Turkey’s Super League.

Turkey has taken several measures to contain the spread of the new coronavirus, including travel restrictions on 20 countries, ordering sports event without spectators and banning mass prayers until further notice. The country, which has a population of 83 million people, has confirmed 47 cases of the coronavirus but so far has reported no deaths.