The chronology of deadly fan violence in Greece
The serious injury of a police officer by a naval flare at a volleyball match in Athens on Thursday night is yet another incident in the bloody cycle of fan violence in Greece.
Since 1983, at least 13 people have died as a result of hooliganism in and around sport.
Below are some of the major incidents from the litany of shame for Greek sports.
1983: Kicked to death
In September 1983, Aristidis Dimitriadis (18) became the first fatality from fan-related violence in Greece. While on a walk with friends, he joked about Aris Thessaloniki’s defeat in a match with Panathinaikos in Athens and was attacked by a large group, who repeatedly kicked Dimitriadis in the head. He died a week later in hospital.
1986: Killed by a flare
In October 1986, the 29-year-old teacher Haralambos Blionas died in the Alcazar stadium in Larissa, where he was attending a match between local side Larissa and PAOK Thessaloniki. Three flares were fired from the PAOK stand, one of which hit the Blionas in the neck, who collapsed in a pool of blood. As there was no ambulance at the stadium, the injured man was placed on an advertising sign and transported to hospital in a pick-up truck, but was pronounced dead upon arrival.
1991: Killed by a flare
In January 1991, 17-year-old Giorgos Panagiotou was killed outside Nea Filadelfia stadium in Athens, where he was heading to watch an AEK-Olympiakos match. Near the stadium, he was struck in the abdomen by a flare, which had been fired from close range. He subsequently died in hospital.
1991: Burned to death in a car
In April 1991, four PAOK fans were driving back to Thessaloniki after watching their team loose to Panionios in the final of the Greek Basketball Cup. In the back seat were Efthymios Liakas (21) and Kostas Dolias (25). The occupants of the car hung a team scarf from the windows. Along the journey, another car approached them and a man, wearing a hood, threw a Molotov cocktail at the PAOK fans’ car, causing it to burst into flames. While driver and front-seat passenger managed to get out and escape with burns, the two young men in the back seats were trapped and killed. No one was apprehended for the killings.
1995: Stabbed to death
In April 1995, 25-year-old Giorgos Karnezis was stabbed in one of the busiest parts of Glyfada, Athens, after a basketball match between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos. Karnezis, a Panathinaikos fan, had been with his friends at an indoor stadium to watch the game. Shortly afterwards, the 25-year-old was spotted by rival fans and was stabbed in his car. He died in hospital a few hours later.
2007: Stabbed to death
In March 2007, Panathinaikos and Olympiakos fans met for a pre-arranged fight at Lavriou Avenue in eastern Attica. Some showed up armed with air pistols, clubs, knuckledusters, daggers and flares. Michalis Filopoulos (22) received multiple stab wounds and blows to the head with a metal bar. He was pronounced dead upon arrival in hospital.
2011: A deadly clash
In September 2011, Panathinaikos and OFI fans clashed in Iraklio, armed with knives, daggers and knuckledusters. Yiannis Rousakis, a 21-year-old Panathinaikos fan, died from injuries to his chest and abdomen. His killer would later claim: “I was cornered and could not react. I had to hit him to escape.”
2014: Beaten to death
In September 2014, at a match between local side Irodotos and Ethnikos Piraeus in Iraklio, Kostas Katsoulis (46) was beaten unconscious by four people when he tried to protect a group of women and children in the stands from an assault by Irodotos fans. He later died in hospital.
2017: Struck by a car
In April 2017, a 24-year-old PAOK fan, Nasos Konstantinou, was returning from a match at Toumba stadium between his side and Panathinaikos when he was attacked by a group of hooded men. In his attempt to escape, the young Cypriot was struck by a passing car and hospitalized with severe head injuries. He died the following month.
2020: A hit and run
In January 2020, 28-year-old Bulgarian Tosko Bozadziski was killed in Thessaloniki. The Bodef Plovdiv fan, which is affiliated with Thessaloniki’s Aris, was in the city on for vacation but also to watch Aris vs PAOK in the soccer derby. In an assault by PAOK fans on seven Bulgarian fans, Bozadziski was killed as a result of being run over by a car while trying to flee the fracas.
2022: Knifed to death
In February 2022, 19-year-old Alkis Kambanos, an Aris fan, and two friends were confronted by rival PAOK. Kampanos was beaten and stabbed in the upper thigh and bled to death while his two friends were injured. Twelve people were later convicted in relation to the killing.
2023: A fatal stabbing
In August 2023, Michalis Katsouris (29) died in violent clashes in Nea Filadelfeia before a soccer match between AEK Athens and Dinamo Zagreb. Stabbed in the arm, Katsouris succumbed to his injuries ten minutes later.
