APOEL FC (; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias, "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") is a Cyprus professional football Sports club based in Nicosia, Cyprus. APOEL is the most successful football team in Cyprus with an overall tally of 29 national championships, 21 Cypriot Cup, and 13 super cups.
APOEL's greatest moment in European competition occurred in the 2011–12 season, when they advanced out of the group stage of the UEFA Champions League (winning a group that included FC Porto, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Zenit St. Petersburg), then eliminated Olympique Lyonnais in the last 16, to become the first Cypriot team to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League.
APOEL FC is part of the APOEL Nicosia Sports club, which was founded in 1926 and maintains departments for several sports including football, basketball, volleyball, APOEL Futsal, table tennis, bowling, cycling, archery, swimming and water polo. APOEL is one of the founding members of the Cyprus Football Association
History
1926–1929: The early years
The club was formed as POEL (,
Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias, Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia) on 8 November 1926. The club's formation came about when a group of forty people, with a common vision, met and set the foundations for creating a football club that would represent the
Greeks residents of the
Nicosia and express their deep desire for Cyprus' incorporation (
enosis) into Greece. The meeting took place at a traditional confectionery, owned by Charalambos Hadjioannou, downtown in
Ledra Street and the first president of the club was Giorgos Poulias.
The first clubhouse was the "Athenians Club" (Λέσχη Αθηναίων) at the end of Ledra Street.
After a journey to the football club in Alexandria, Egypt in 1927 the General Assembly of 1928 decided the players showed that they were not just good footballers but also excellent track and field athletes. Hence it was decided to create a track and field team in addition to the football team. The name APOEL was adopted to reflect this, with the 'A' standing for 'Athletic'. Soon after a volleyball team and a table tennis team were established.
The 1930s : The first league titles
Cyprus did not have any country-wide league until 1932. Football clubs of the time played friendly matches only. In 1932, Pezoporikos Larnaca organised an unofficial league, the first island-wide league, and it was won by APOEL after defeating
AEL Limassol in the final by 4–0. In 1934, there was a disagreement between Trust and Anorthosis Famagusta on the organisation of the fourth unofficial league. APOEL and
AEL Limassol organised a meeting for the foundation of a country-wide governing body and an official country-wide league. The meeting took place in APOEL's clubhouse on 23 September and the establishment of the Cyprus Football Association was agreed. Two years later the APOEL football team celebrated its first championship title of the official Cyprus football league. APOEL also won the championship for the following four years, making this a very successful period for the club with 5 consecutive championships (1936–1940).
The 1948 conflicts
Politics, however, would soon spark conflict within the team. On 23 May 1948 the board of the club send a telegram to the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics (), with the opportunity of the annual Panhellenic Track and Field Competition, which included wishes that "the rebellion" is finished. Several leftist club members perceived the telegram as a political comment on the Greek Civil War and they distanced themselves from the club.
A few days later, on 4 June 1948, they founded
AC Omonia, which until today is the archrival of APOEL and there has been a traditional animosity between the fans of the two teams.
1955–59 period
More conflicts led to further struggles for APOEL. Athletes belonging to the club frequently participated in national clashes. During the 1955–59 national uprising against the British, many of APOEL's athletes and members of the club were active members of
EOKA (the National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters), the most outstanding example being the club's track and field athlete Michalakis Karaolis who was hanged by the British colonial authorities. During this period the football team had their closest brush with relegation as most football players were actively taking part in the national struggle.
Triumph in the 1963–64 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The football team were quickly back to full strength and made their debut in European Competitions (the first not only for APOEL but for any Cypriot team) in 1963, when they faced the
Norway team SK Gjøvik-Lyn in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. Two victories for APOEL over both legs (6–0, 1–0) marked APOEL's successful European debut, as they became the first
Greece team to progress in a European Competition. The next round against the tournament winners Sporting Clube de Portugal met APOEL with their heaviest defeat ever (16–1) and put an end to APOEL's European debut.
The successful participation in pan-Hellenic Greek Championship
Other triumphs followed in the early 1970s. In 1973 the domestic double was achieved with coach Panos Markovic. The following year APOEL became the only Cypriot team to avoid relegation from the pan-Hellenic Greek Championship. That was also the last season that the Cypriot champion played in the Greek Football League the following year due to the volatile situation in Cyprus during 1974.
The 1980s: European Cup 1986–87 withdrawal
The 1980s were a relatively fruitless period for APOEL. They have only won two championships (1980,1986), one
Cypriot Cup (1984) and two super cups (1984, 1986). In 1986 APOEL was drawn against Beşiktaş J.K. for the second round of the European Cup. This was the first time that a Cypriot team faced a Turkish team in a European football competition. The Cypriot government prohibited APOEL from playing against the Turkish team, so APOEL was punished with two years disqualification from any
UEFA competition.
This penalty was later reduced to one-year.
The 1990s: The unbeaten "double" in 1995–96
The 1990s
were a successful decade for APOEL with 3 championships (1990, 1992, 1996), 5
Cypriot Cup (1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999) and 4 super cups (1992, 1993, 1996, 1999). The most successful season in the 1990s was 1995–96 in which APOEL achieved a celebratory double while remaining undefeated in the league. The basketball team won a double on the same season, making this the ideal season for a 70th anniversary celebration.
The formation of APOEL FC Company
APOEL Football (Public) Ltd was established in May 1997, after the decision of APOEL committee.
This had a significant effect on the club because it separated the activities of the football team from those of the
APOEL Nicosia.
The formation of the company was necessitated by the financial difficulties the team faced at the time. The company began its operations with a capital of CY £600,000.
2000s–2010s: Domestic domination
APOEL is the most successful football team in Cyprus since the 2000s. In seventeen years, the club won twelve championships (2002, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019), four
Cypriot Cup (2006, 2008, 2014, 2015) and seven super cups (2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2019). In the 2013–14 season, APOEL achieved a historical domestic treble by winning all the Cypriot competitions trophies, the league, the cup, and the super cup. The next season (2014–15), the club won their second consecutive double. In the 2016–17 season, APOEL managed to win their fifth consecutive league title and equalled the club's record which was set 77 years before (1936–1940).
2020s
The 2020–21 season marked the end of APOEL's dominance in Cyprus as they failed to make the championship playoffs for the first time in the club's history. The following season, APOEL finished third, missing out on Champions League qualification in the last matchday, and instead qualifying for the Europa Conference League. They missed out on the 2022–23 championship, finishing in second place, despite being first at the end of the regular season. APOEL returned to domestic glory in 2024, winning the championship for a record-extending 29th time. It has been revealed that APOEL has debts of 50+ million euros and so far they are trying to find investors in order to save the club from debts, unsuccessfully.
European ambitions
APOEL's first great run in European competitions came in 2002, when the team was knocked out on the third qualifying round of the UEFA Champions League, entered the UEFA Cup and reached the second round of the competition. The following years, APOEL qualified four times for the UEFA Champions League group stages (2009–10, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2017–18), and managed to reach the quarter-finals in the 2011–12 season.
The team also participated in the group stages of the 2013–14, 2015–16 & 2016–17 UEFA Europa League, managing to reach the last 16 of the competition in the 2016–17 season.
APOEL FC as a company
The football department of APOEL is legally owned by APOEL Football (Public) Ltd (), a public limited company,
since 1997. The company's main activity is the management, operation and commercial exploitation of APOEL Football club. The company owns all the rights for the football department under an agreement with
APOEL Nicosia and pays the club CY£100,000 annually for the privilege.
The agreement between the company and the club is renewed every five years. The company has 1745 shareholders
and besides the football club, also maintains a team boutique (Orange Shop), the APOELFC (FC) magazine and the
apoelfc.com.cy website among others.
Youth Academy
APOEL's youth academy is a separate legal entity from the football club. They are responsible for the under 21 teams for football, basketball and volleyball and they have their own board of directors and budget. The football academy has produced many quality Cypriot players over the years. Players started from the academy and had great contribution APOEL are:
Marinos Satsias, Constantinos Charalambides, Nektarios Alexandrou,
Michalis Morfis and Marios Antoniades. All of them have also competed at international level with the Cyprus national football team while Charalambides and Alexandrou have played for teams in the Greek Super League in the past.
UEFA Youth League participations
APOEL's U19 team participated for the first time in the UEFA Youth League group stage during 2014–15 season, drawn in Group F alongside
FC Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and
AFC Ajax.
APOEL managed to collect only one point after drawing 0–0 with
AFC Ajax at home
and lost their other five Group F matches. They lost twice to
FC Barcelona (2–3 at home, 0–3 away), lost twice to Paris Saint-Germain (0–3 at home, 0–6 away) and also lost to
AFC Ajax 1–4 away, finishing fourth in their group.
The next two seasons, APOEL's U19 team participated again in the UEFA Youth League. The 2015–16 season they competed in the first round of the Domestic Champions Path, being drawn to face Puskás Akadémia from Hungary. After a dramatic 3–3 draw in the first leg in Nicosia, APOEL U19 suffered a heavy 6–1 loss in Felcsút and were eventually eliminated. The 2016–17 season they competed in the first round of the Domestic Champions Path, being eliminated by Italian side A.S. Roma after losing 0–3 at home and 1–6 in Italy.
Colours and badge
APOEL's colours are blue and yellow. Blue symbolizes
Greece and yellow symbolizes
Byzantine Empire.
The logo is a blue and yellow shield with the name of the club written diagonally in blue. After the club won their 20th championship (2008–09 season), two stars were added above the logo to symbolize the 20 championship titles (one star for every ten championships won). Other than that, the badge has remained the same since the establishment of the club.
Stadium
APOEL's home ground since 23 October 1999, is the 22,859 seater
GSP Stadium. It is the largest stadium in Cyprus and they share it with local rivals
AC Omonia and Olympiakos Nicosia.
Before moving to GSP Stadium, APOEL used as home grounds the Makario Stadium (from 1978 until 1999) and the old GSP Stadium (prior to 1978).
Supporters
APOEL is one of the most popular teams in Cyprus.
APOEL fans are right-wing in their majority but there are no strong ties between the organised fans and any political party.
That wasn't always the case but during the past years they have actively avoided association with any political party.
The main supporter group is PAN.SY.FI (). PAN.SY.FI was founded in 1979
The club record for ticket sales in a single season is 141,268
APOEL holds the record of the highest home attendance for Cyprus First Division in the game against AC Omonia with 23,043
The club holds also the record of the highest attendance of a Cypriot team for a UEFA game with 22,701
On 8 December 2009, APOEL fans created another impressive record. More than 6,000
During the 2009–10 season APOEL sold in total 244,977 tickets for its home matches in all competitions (Championship, Cypriot Cup, Champions League), which is the biggest number of tickets sold by a Cypriot club in a single season.
Rivalries
Nicosia derby
The
Nicosia derby (or the
Derby of the eternal enemies) refers to the
Nicosia's
local derby, football matches played between APOEL and
AC Omonia. It is the classic rivalry of the Cypriot football, as the two teams are the most successful and most popular football clubs of the island. The rivalry is also indicative of social, cultural and political differences and originates from 1948 when the board of APOEL sent a telegram to the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics (Greek: Σ.Ε.Γ.Α.Σ.), with the opportunity of the annual Panhellenic Track and Field Competition stating its wish for the "communist mutiny" to be ended. Club's players considering this action as a political comment on the Greek Civil War distanced themselves or were expelled from APOEL and a month later they formed
AC Omonia.
The first derby was played on 12 December 1953 and ended in a goalless draw.
Current squad
Out on loan
Club officials
Board of directors
|
|
| Chairman | Prodromos Petrides |
| Vice-chairmen | Nicos Kouyialis |
| Harris Photiou |
| Members |
| Stelios Zampas |
| Charis Panayides |
| Marios Panayiotou |
| Thanasis Christoforou |
|
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Personnel
|
|
| General manager | Efthymios Agathokleous |
| Football Director | |
| Financial Controller | Alexis Demetriou |
| Operations Manager | Marios Christodoulou |
| Marketing manager | George Lykouris |
| Youth Academies General Manager | George Markides |
| Head of Communications Department | Nectarios Petevinos |
| Team manager | George Savvides |
| Accountant | Antigoni Lambrou |
|
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Technical staff
|
|
| Head coach | Pablo García |
| Assistant coach
Assistant coach, Head Analyst | Mirosław Sznaucner
Giannis Ampatzides
|
| Assistant coach, Assistant Analyst | Benjamin Garcia |
| Fitness coach | Theocharis Komsis |
| Goalkeeper coach | Vasilis Petropoulos |
|
| Head Scout | Giannos Dimosthenous |
|
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Medical staff
|
|
| Head of Medical | Dr. Alexander Rezerov |
| Physiotherapist | Georgi Gospodinov |
| Physiotherapists | Panagiotis Kakkoulis |
| Minas Tsiaoukka |
| Masseur | Evangelos Kanellos |
| Nutritionist | Chrysostomos Eiades |
| Caregivers | Costas Stefanou |
| Damith Poddiva |
| Sidhu Gurpreet |
| Andreas Christoforou (greenkeeper) |
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Sponsorship
Main sponsors
-
Main Sponsor – Stoiximan
-
Sponsor of Sports Material – macron
-
Official Broadcaster – cablenet
-
Official sponsor – TA MERI FINANCE
-
Official sponsor – ISX
-
Official sponsor – LONDOU BROS
-
Official sponsor – Nurofen
-
Official sponsor – Jointace
-
Official sponsor – G.u.m
-
Official sponsor – PRODROMOU & MAKRIYIANNIS INSURANCE
-
Official sponsor – Osteocare
-
Supporter – Pizza Hut
-
Supporter – PASTA STRADA Pasta & Salad Bar
-
Supporter – PANAYIOTIDES Gifts Textiles
-
Supporter – Hope CARE
-
Supporter – LifeFitness
-
Supporter – elvetiko DIAGNOSTIC CENTER
-
Supporter – Vittel
-
Supporter – TYMVIOS LABS Klinika Chimeia
-
Supporter – REANDA
-
Supporter – PETROLINA
-
Supporter – Landas COLOUR Signs & Digital Printing
-
Supporter – LYLE & SCOTT EST 1874
-
Supporter – 1210 media
-
Supporter – SEAPHIRE Ribco
Source: apoelfc.com.cy
Managerial history
Last Update: 7 October 2022
Presidential history
APOEL has had numerous presidents over the course of their history. Since the establishment of APOEL Football Ltd, the presidents of the board of directors of the company (chairmen) have assumed all presidential duties for the football club. Here are complete lists of both:
Presidents:
-
1926–1958 – Georgios Poulias
-
1958–1967 – Εfthyvoulos Αnthoullis
-
1967–1968 – Michalakis Triantafyllides
-
1968–1969 – Takis Skarparis
-
1969–1971 – Constantinos Loukos
-
1971–1974 – Michalakis Zivanaris
-
1974–1975 – Kikis Lazarides
-
1975–1983 – Iakovos Filippou
-
1983–1988 – Michalakis Zivanaris
-
1988–1991 – Andreas Papaellinas
-
1991–1992 – Kykkos Fotiades
-
1992–1994 – Mike Ioannides
-
1994–1996 – Christos Triantafyllides
-
1996–1999 – Ouranios Ioannides
-
1999–2000 – Dinos Palmas
-
2002–2004 – Dinos Fisentzides
-
2004–2007 – Yiannos Ioannou
-
2007–2008 – Costas Schizas
-
2008–2009 – Christodoulos Ellinas
-
2009–2011 – Prodromos Petrides
-
2011–2012 – Aris Vasilopoulos
-
2012–2014 – Christoforos Potamitis
-
2014–2016 – Marios Charalambous
-
2016–present – Christoforos Potamitis
Chairmen:
-
1997–1998 – Mike Ioannides
-
1998–2000 – Christos Triantafyllides
-
2000–2001 – Harris Papanastasiou
-
2001–2006 – Prodromos Petrides
-
2006–2008 – Kyriakos Zivanaris
-
2008–2013 – Phivos Erotokritou
-
2013–present – Prodromos Petrides
Former players
List of former players with national team appearances or having won multiple titles with the club:
- Cyprus
- Albania
- Algeria
- Argentina
-
Fernando Cavenaghi (2015–2016)
-
Esteban Solari (2005–2007, 2010–2012)
-
Tomás De Vincenti (2014–2016)
- Armenia
-
Romik Khachatryan (2002–2003)
- Australia
- Austria
-
Alfred Hörtnagl (1997)
-
Christoph Westerthaler (1997)
- Belarus
-
Renan Bressan (2016–2017)
- Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Brazil
-
Aílton Almeida (2010–2012)
-
William Boaventura (2010–2012)
-
Carlão (2014–2017)
-
Zé Carlos (2007–2008)
-
João Guilherme (2013–2016)
-
Kaká (2011–2012, 2014–2015)
-
Gustavo Manduca (2010–2015)
-
Veridiano Marcelo (1998–2000)
-
Marcinho (2010–2012)
-
Emerson Moisés Costa (2007)
-
Marcelo Oliveira (2011–2014)
-
Jean Paulista (2008–2010)
-
César Santin (2014)
-
Marcos Tavares (2007)
- Colombia
- Costa Rica
- Croatia
- Czech Republic
- Denmark
- England
- France
- Germany
- Ghana
- Greece
-
Georgios Amanatidis (2003–2004)
-
Dionisis Chiotis (2008–2015)
-
Giannis Gianniotas (2016–2017)
-
Alexandros Kaklamanos (2005–2006)
-
Michalis Kapsis (2007–2008)
-
Christos Karipidis (2012–2013)
-
Christos Kontis (2006–2011)
-
Nikos Machlas (2006–2008)
-
Spiros Marangos (2000–2002)
-
Marinos Ouzounidis (2001–2003)
-
Anastasios Papazoglou (2014–2015)
-
Savvas Poursaitides (2008–2012)
-
Miltiadis Sapanis (2007–2008)
-
Ilias Solakis (2001–2002)
-
Alexandros Tziolis (2012–2013)
-
Georgios Vakouftsis (2002–2005)
- Hungary
-
József Kiprich (1995–1997)
-
Kálmán Kovács (1995–1996)
-
István Kozma (1995–1997)
-
Barnabás Sztipánovics (2002–2003)
-
Roland Sallai (2017–2018)
-
Norbert Balogh (2018–2019)
- Ireland
- Israel
- Jordan
- North Macedonia
- Morocco
- Netherlands
- Nigeria
- Northern Ireland
- Norway
-
John Arne Riise (2014–2015)
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Poland
-
Kamil Kosowski (2008–2010)
-
Wojciech Kowalczyk (2003–2004)
-
Marcin Żewłakow (2008–2010)
- Portugal
-
Paulo Costa (2009)
-
Ricardo Fernandes (2005–2008)
-
Tiago Gomes (2013–2015)
-
Paulo Jorge (2009–2012)
-
Daniel Kenedy (2005)
-
Hélio Pinto (2006–2013)
-
Mário Sérgio (2012–2016)
- Romania
-
Daniel Florea (2006–2009)
- Serbia
-
Dragiša Binić (1993–1994)
-
Siniša Gogić (1989–1993, 2000–2002)
-
Saša Jovanović (2005–2006)
-
Vesko Mihajlović (1993–1994)
-
Nenad Mirosavljević (2008–2011)
-
Svetozar Šapurić (1989–1993, 1995–1996)
- Slovakia
-
Mário Breška (2009–2010)
-
Branislav Rzeszoto (2004–2005)
- Slovenia
- Togo
- Tunisia
Honours
- Source:
-
Cypriot Championship
-
Winners (29) (record): 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1939–40, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1951–52, 1964–65, 1972–73, 1979–80, 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1995–96, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2023–24
-
Cypriot Cup
-
Winners (21) (record): 1936–37, 1940–41, 1946–47, 1950–51, 1962–63, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1972–73, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1983–84, 1992–93, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2013–14, 2014–15
-
Cypriot Super Cup
-
Winners (15): 1963, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2019, 2024
Records
Last update: 16 March 2017
-
Record League win: 17–1 vs Aris Limassol (4 June 1967) — 1966–67
-
Record League defeat: 6–1 vs Nea Salamina (2 May 1998) — 1997–98
-
Record European competition win: 6–0 vs SK Gjøvik-Lyn (8 September 1963) — UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, Preliminary round 1st leg, 1963–64
6–0 vs HB Tórshavn (28 August 1997) — UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, Qualifying round 2nd leg, 1997–98
-
Record European competition defeat: 16–1 vs Sporting CP (13 November 1963) — UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, 1st round 1st leg, 1963–64
-
Most consecutive League games unbeaten: 34 — From 18 September 1946 to 23 November 1949
-
Most consecutive League games won: 16 — From 21 December 2008 to 11 April 2009
-
Most League points in a season:
- 3 for win: 83, 2015–16
- 2 for win: 51, 1976–77
-
Most League goals in a season: 91, 2015–16
-
Record average League home attendance: 9,582 — 2012–13
-
Record League home attendance: 23,043 vs AC Omonia (7 December 2002) — 2002–03
-
Record European competition home attendance: 22,701 vs Olympique Lyonnais (7 March 2012) — UEFA Champions League, Last-16 2nd leg, 2011–12
-
Most League appearances for club: 371 — Yiannos Ioannou
-
Most League goals for club : 191 — Yiannos Ioannou
-
Most European competitions appearances for club: 91 — Nuno Morais
-
Most European competitions goals for club : 9 — Aílton José Almeida
League and Cup history
IFFHS Club world ranking
|
|
| 76,00 |
| 75,50 |
| 75,50 |
| 75,25 |
| 75,25 |
| 75 |
| 279 | | 75 |
Last update: 7 July 2024
Source: IFFHS
External links
