Halis Özkahya

Halis Özkahya — Biography

Halis Özkahya is a Turkish referee who spent years officiating in the Süper Lig and in UEFA competitions, and who received his FIFA badge in 2009. He announced his retirement from refereeing in 2021, though UEFA appointments kept his name in the news afterwards. His main profession is physical education teacher.

He grew up in Kütahya as the son of a teacher who had also been a provincial referee, and played football at Yeşilay Spor Kulübü between the ages of 11 and 16; when doctors banned him from football because of a growth-related knee problem he turned to basketball for a while and then to refereeing. He began at 16 as a provincial referee, rose through the classifications to the Süper Lig in the second half of the 2000s. His first Süper Lig match was Konyaspor against Antalyaspor. In 2011-12 he took charge of 17 matches; his first derby was Fenerbahçe against Beşiktaş, in which the cards shown were debated for a long time. Before 2015-16 he was one of nine referees with whom the TFF signed its first professional contracts.

His international career stood out with the 2012-13 Europa League match between Lyon and Ironi Kiryat Shmona, and his first 2014 World Cup qualifier was Germany against Kazakhstan. He was given Europa League duty in 2019, the Azerbaijan - France under-21 match in 2020 and Conference League matches in 2021. When he quit in November 2021 he said the environment had become chaotic. In July 2025 the TFF announced that he had received a new appointment from UEFA.