Istanbul art show by UEFA president’s wife scrutinized over €5m donations and lobbying claims

An Istanbul art exhibition by Barbara Ceferin, wife of UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin, has come under scrutiny after allegations that Turkish Football Federation President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu helped fund her art activities and that €5m was raised, with some works allegedly bought for more than their market value. Hacıosmanoğlu attended the opening.

The claims have raised questions about transparency and possible conflicts of interest in football governance. In a column, journalist Fatih Altaylı said Hacıosmanoğlu was trying to position himself for a role at UEFA and was using a clever route. “Hacıosmanoğlu wants to make the jump to UEFA, and he is using a clever tactic: he is not going through UEFA President Ceferin, but through his wife, Barbara Ceferin,” Altaylı wrote. He alleged that Hacıosmanoğlu arranged for works by Barbara Ceferin, an artist, to be shown in an Istanbul gallery, covered all the expenses, and that people close to him bought the works at several times their value.

Barbara Ceferin founded the Slovenia-based Galerija Fotografija, which took part in the Contemporary Istanbul art fair in 2025 and 2026. The events have become the centre of a new debate because of Hacıosmanoğlu’s ties to the organisations and the financial allegations that have been reported.

Hacıosmanoğlu attended the September 2025 exhibition with TFF Vice President Neşe Kavak. In September 2026, he visited Barbara Ceferin’s exhibition at the same fair with his wife, Hatice Hacıosmanoğlu. The TFF also announced the visit. The social ties between Hacıosmanoğlu and the UEFA president’s family, and the allegations about the exhibition’s finances, have prompted further questions about the relationship.

Why was the €5m donation made?

Former FIFA referee Ahmet Çakar claimed on social media that €5m had been donated to Barbara Ceferin’s exhibition. “Why was a total of €5m donated to the art exhibition opened in Istanbul by the wife of UEFA President Ceferin? Which businesspeople made those donations? What were they given in return, and on whose instructions were they made?” he wrote.

According to the allegations, €5m in financial support was provided for Barbara Ceferin’s art activities in Istanbul. It has also been alleged that some works were bought above their real market value and that businesspeople close to Hacıosmanoğlu played an active role. No independent financial documents have yet been produced confirming the amount, the identities of the buyers or any instruction behind the transactions. Clarifying the claims would require establishing which works were bought by whom, on what dates and at what prices.

The timing has also drawn attention. UEFA will elect its president and Executive Committee at a congress in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 22 April 2027. Ceferin announced on 8 October 2026 that he would seek re-election. The controversy has also fuelled speculation that Hacıosmanoğlu wants a role in UEFA management.

UEFA faces tough questions on transparency and conflict of interest rules

UEFA is now facing questions about whether it has explained its transparency rules on conflict-of-interest risks arising from commercial activities linked to senior officials’ families. The questions include: who paid for Barbara Ceferin’s gallery to take part in the Istanbul fairs; what the gallery’s total sales were at the 2025 and 2026 fairs; whether the €5m claim has any basis; whether sale prices matched known market values; whether Hacıosmanoğlu or people linked to him played any direct or indirect role in the transactions; and whether UEFA management was informed about the relationships or carried out a conflict-of-interest assessment.

Transparency around financial relationships involving the close circles of senior figures at European football’s governing body matters both for UEFA’s credibility and for protecting ethical standards in football governance.