Claim of 5 Million Euro Donation to Ceferin's Wife's Exhibition

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin's wife, Barbara Ceferin, took part in the Contemporary Istanbul art fair in 2025 and 2026 with Galerija Fotografija, a Slovenia-based gallery she founded. Journalist Fatih Altaylı wrote that TFF President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu wants to join UEFA's management and is pursuing this through Barbara Ceferin. According to Altaylı, Hacıosmanoğlu arranged for Barbara Ceferin's works to be displayed at a gallery in Istanbul, covered all the expenses himself, and bought works from her relatives at several times their value.

Hacıosmanoğlu attended the September 2025 exhibition together with TFF Deputy President Neşe Kavak. In September 2026, he visited Barbara Ceferin's exhibition with his wife, Hatice Hacıosmanoğlu. The TFF officially announced this visit.

Former FIFA Kokart referee Ahmet Çakar claimed on his social media account that a total of 5 million euros was donated to Barbara Ceferin's exhibition. According to claims reported in the public domain, some works were bought above their real market value, and businesspeople close to Hacıosmanoğlu were involved in these transactions. However, no independent financial document has yet been presented to verify the identities of the buyers or any direction of these transactions.

UEFA will hold presidential and Executive Committee elections in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 22 April 2027. It is reported that Ceferin officially announced on 8 October 2026 that he will run again. It is important for UEFA, which governs European football, to publish its transparency principles on the risks of conflicts of interest arising from commercial activities linked to the families of senior executives.