Azerbaijani football club PFK Turan Tovuz has been barred from participating in next season’s Conference League, following a ruling by European football’s governing body, Uefa.
The decision, which was announced on Wednesday, cites the club’s involvement in activities aimed at influencing match outcomes.
Uefa’s Appeals Body chair confirmed that Turan Tovuz failed to meet admission criteria due to “being directly and/or indirectly involved in activity aimed at arranging or influencing the outcome of a match at national or international level.”
This ruling comes despite the club securing a third-place finish in Azerbaijan’s top flight, a position that would typically guarantee a spot in the Conference League qualifying rounds.
PFK Turan Tovuz stated the ban stems from a 2019 disciplinary case, where seven of its players were prohibited from all football-related activities for match-fixing by the country’s football association (AFFA).
In a defiant statement, the club asserted: “In the 2025-26 season, we finished the season in third place, following all sporting principles, and earned the right to play in the Conference League, which we are entitled to.”
They added: “The Uefa Disciplinary Committee conducted an investigation into whether our club met the criteria. It should be noted that the AFFA Disciplinary Committee banned seven players of our team, who played in the I Division in the 2019-20 season, from all football-related activities.”
The club has vowed to pursue “all legal steps” and intends to appeal Uefa’s decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas) in a bid to secure their participation.
Despite the ban, Turan Tovuz confirmed: “There are no changes in our preparation plans for the Conference League”, adding that team members would “gather and go to Turkey for a training camp” this month.
Next season’s Conference League is set to be the sixth edition of the tournament that was first played during the 2021-22 season.
English clubs have won the competition three times already, with West Ham becoming the first Premier League side to claim victory in 2023.
Chelsea got their hands on the trophy last year by thrashing Real Betis in the final, while Crystal Palace earned their first piece of European silverware by overcoming Rayo Vallecano in last week’s final in Leipzig.
