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The contribution of refugees in Greek sports clubs
The heart of Smyrna and Istanbul resonates in the greek refugees sports clubs
by Vasileia Giamali
After the Asia Minor Disaster in 1923, a lot of refugees came to Greece due to the exchange of populations, bringing with them their culture, their customs and… their passion for sports. Some Greek sports clubs already existed in the regions of the exchange, and some were reestablished after settling in Greece.
AEK and PAOK are the most popular sports associations that were founded in Greece by refugees, while Panionios and Apollon Smyrnis were uprooted from Asia Minor and revived again. Most of the emigrants from Turkey (Istanbul, Cappadocia, Izmir) were now living in the region of Macedonia (Greece) and Athens. For this reason these regions took the names of the regions where they used to live before the exchange of populations, adding the term “new”. For instance, “New Smyrni” (New Izmir), with the historic sports club called Panionios or “New Ionia” with the most age-old greek sports club, called Apollon Smyrnis. The importance of these sports clubs for the Greek refugees was non-negotiable, because in this way they could keep some connection with their roots.
Apollon Smyrnis; “Three centuries - Two homelands - One team, this is Apollo”
The oldest Greek sport team is Apollon Smyrnis. It was founded in Smyrna in 1891, its colors are blue and white, which symbolize the desire of the Greeks of Ionia for an union with Greece. After the Asia Minor, the club was uprooted and brought to Athens, where its first home ground was located near the Greek Parliament. In 1948, Apollon changed its headquarters to Rizoupoli and it is still based there. Although Apollon hasn’t won many titles, it still has one of the most loyal fans. As their slogan says; “Three centuries - Two homelands - One team, this is Apollo”.
Panionios; “It has marked my life as a stamp”
Panionios is a refugee sports association, founded in Smyrna, Ionia in 1890. Its first name was “Orpheus” and was aimed to cultivate musical education. Eight years later, Orfeas joined the club “Gymnasio”. Thus, in October 1898, Orpheus and Gymnasion merged again to form Panionios GSS, which had cultural and sports departments in its potential. After the Asia Minor, Panionios settled in “Nea Smyrni”, Athens suburb that was mainly inhabited by Greek Asia Minor refugees coming from Smyrna.
AEK; “AEK, the mother of the refugees”
ΑΕΚ (Athletic Union of Constantinople) is a Greek professional football club established in Nea Filadelfeia in 1924, by Greek refugees from Constantinople, after the exchange of population. AEK is one of the three most successful teams in Greek football (along with Olympiacos and Panathinaikos). The immigrants from Constaninople had settled in the new suburbs of Athens, Nea Filadelfia, and their aim was to create a club that would keep their identity alive. Thus, the team adopted yellow and black as their colours, and the two-headed eagle, both symbols of the Byzantine flag.
In 2003, the stadium of AEK in Nea Filadelfia was demolished and the fans were left without a “home”. However, as the president of AEK, Dimitrios Melissanidis said: “We will build a new stadium, exactly where the old one was located. We don’t want commercial uses, supermarkets, etc. We want a stadium that will include the best refugee museum in our country. A stadium whose founding name will be Agia Sophia”. In fact, 19 years later their dream did come true, and AEK returned back “home”. Back to Nea Filadelfia, where the first flag in the stadium had the chant “Grandpa, we came back home”.
The fans can now enjoy a brand new stadium, with high quality facilities and with many elements of Istanbul and its history. “Agia Sophia is not just a stadium, but a center of memory, culture and sports. Children, parents, everyone will learn about the refugees that came from Turkey. The fans that cross the stadium are going to pass through the gates with the names of the cities of the unforgettable homelands. We want them to “go through” their homeland”.
P.A.O.K.; «PAOK we live to see you to play in Constantinople again”
PAOK was founded on 20 April 1926 by Greek refugees who fled to Thessaloniki from Constantinople in the wake of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922). Their name, along with the club’s emblem, the Byzantine-style double-headed eagle with retracted wings, honours the memory of the people and places (mostly from the city of Constantinople) that once belonged to the Eastern Roman Empire.
The club’s colors have always been black and white, black for the sorrow related to countless thousands of Asia Minor Greeks who left their land where they had been living for centuries, and white for the hope of a new beginning that came with settling in a new home. Lastly, the club’s policy was to be open to every citizen of Thessaloniki, as it is a refugee team and wanted to “embrace” all people.
Apollon Kalamarias; “Apollon, the team of Pontus”
Apollon Kalamarias is another team, located in Thessaloniki, Kalamaria, whose history interweaves the refugees of Pontus.Pontus is a region on the southern coast of the Black Sea, located in the modern-day eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey and includes the regions of (Asia Minor, Capadoccia). When thousands of Pontic Greek refugees settled in Thessaloniki after the Greco-Turkish War and the subsequent population exchange, the main aim was to establish a new club in order to keep and spread their “rich” musical culture. Hence, a group of them formed a musical club to continue their local traditions.
Growing in popularity amongst the inhabitants of Kalamaria, the club soon expanded with a theatrical department, and later, a sports department. It was around this time that the club colors, red and black, were chosen.
Also, on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the asia minor disaster, the Mayor of Kalamaria, Giannis Dardamanelis declared: “The Pontians of Kalamaria are identified with Apollon Kalamarias. All these years we have been proud of our children in its sports academies, in almost all sports. We are proud that such a historical club is in our city, as this year marks 100 years since the arrival of the refugees after the Asia Minor Destruction”.
These five sports teams (Apollon Smyrnis, Panionios, AEK, PAOK, Apollon Kalamarias) have a strong refugee element, but they are not the only ones. Until the Second World War (1940), more than 500 sports teams were founded by the refugees coming from Asia Minor to the country. Only in Attica (Athens) can be found more than 335 refugee sports clubs.
In a nutshell, the refugees that arrived –as a result of the exchange of population between Greece and Turkey- in different regions in Greece, had a crucial impact on the Greek sports, but also spread their culture through the sports team that they (re)established.
