November 8 – The long running judicial investigation into Greek football has partially been resolved with the Judicial Council of dropping four criminal charges against Olympiakos owner Evangelos Marinakis.
The charges of match-fixing against 28 individuals will however go ahead. Marinakis is still included in this list though the chairman of the Judicial Council of Athens said he was not of the opinon that Marinakis should be charged in this case.
The charges against Marinakis that have been dropped have been the much publicised allegations of extortion, arson, fraud and participating in a criminal organisation – the arson charge related to the causing of an explosion at the bakery premises of a Greek referee.
Those charged of match-fixing include former president of the Hellenic Football Federation (HFF), Giorgos Sarris, and former head of legal of the HFF, Theodoros Kouridis.
Those charged include players, club and federations officials as well as match officials.
The list of those charged includes the presidents of the Levadiakos and Atromitos clubs, Giannis Kobotis and Giorgos Spanos; former referees Ilias Spathas, Alexandros Dimitropoulos, Thanasis Giachos, Apostolos Amparkiolis, Kostas Ioannidis, Giannis Kampaxis; former members of the Central Refereeing Committee Giorgos Douros, Thanasis Briakos; former members of the HFF’s Board of Directors Aris Stathopoulos, Nikos Prtountzos, Giannis Papakonstantinou; former owner of the Veria club Giannis Arvanitids; Portuguese former manager of Atromitos, Ricardo Sa Pinto; technical director of Atromitos, Giannis Angelopoulos, team manager of Veria, Giorgos Lanaris and eight former players of Veria.
It is a long list in a case that has taken inter-club and political rivalries in Greece to unprecedented vitriolic levels and caused huge damage to the commercial operations of the Greek Super League as well as losing the confidence of fans in the integrity of the game and attendances dropping dramatically.
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