[4] He made his international refereeing debut in the 2008–09 UEFA Cup, taking charge of two games including the group stage fixture between FC Twente and Schalke 04 in December 2008.

He oversaw Fulham's second-leg win against Hamburger SV in the 2009–10 UEFA Europa League semi-finals,[5] one of seven matches he refereed in total in the competition that season.

On 18 June, he also officiated the Euro 2012 match between Italy and Ireland where he was very precise when it came to ensuring the correct distance from the ball to the defenders' wall,[8] though he also angered the Irish by sending off Keith Andrews one minute before the end of the game.

On 14 December 2012, he was appointed to referee the 2012 FIFA Club World Cup Final, between Corinthians and Chelsea, which was played in Yokohama.

Çakır officiated the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final match between Juventus and Barcelona at Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany on 6 June 2015 and showed his yellow card three times.

In the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League, Çakır officiated the group stage match between Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain in December 2017,[13] as well as the round of 16 game between FC Barcelona and Chelsea at the Stamford Bridge on 20 February 2018.

[16] and the famous Liverpool F.C semi final comeback vs FC Barcelona in the 2018/19 season of the Champions League On 5 August 2022, via the official website of the Turkish Football Association his retirement was announced; from now on, his role will consist in training young referees.