Sport in Greece - Football

Football

Association football is the most popular sport in Greece. Its national governing body is the Hellenic Football Federation founded in 1926, which is member of FIFA and UEFA. The Greek national futball team rose to prominence in the UEFA Euro 2004, when they were crowned European champions in one of the biggest shocks in international football history. Ranked 13th in the world as of 2009, they have qualified two times for the FIFA World Cup in 1994 and 2010, four times for the UEFA European Championship in 1980, 2004, 2008 and 2012, and one time for the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2005. Greece has great tradition in youth teams, which have been successful; the Under-21 team were runners-up in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship in 1988 and 1998, the Under-19 team were runners-up in the UEFA European Under-19 Championship in 2007, while the Under-17 team were runners-up in the UEFA European Under-17 Championship in 1985, took the third place in 1991 and the fourth place in 1996 and 2000.

The official national championship was held for a first time in the season 1927–28. Super League Greece is now the highest professional league in the Greek football league system. It is currently ranked 12th in the UEFA coefficient, while it was placed among the top ten strongest leagues in Europe from 1996 to 2006, with its peak being the 6th place in 2002 and 2003. The Greek Football Cup has been the main domestic cup competition, inaugurated in season 1931–32. Both competitions have been dominated by Olympiacos, which is the most successful football club in Greece, followed by the other two big Greek football clubs Panathinaikos and AEK Athens. The Greek football clubs have not won any major UEFA competition yet; the only club that have reached a final so far is Panathinaikos, who were European Cup runners-up in 1970–71, while they have also reached the semifinals in two occasions. Olympiacos and AEK Athens have made it to the quarterfinals in the top European clubs' competition, while these three clubs have reached the quarterfinals in the other major UEFA competitions as well, with AEK Athens' best performance being a semifinal appearance in the UEFA Cup.