That's how strong the Athenian trio is. And the mutual derbies between the rivals from the Greek capital are also massive events. AEK are the reigning champions, but the most intense derby in the city, and indeed in all of Greek football, is the clash between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos. The 'Derby of eternal enemies' is this weekend.
Athens - the capital of (not only) football
Athens is the capital and largest city in Greece. It is situated on the Attica peninsula on the shores of the Saronic Gulf of the Aegean Sea. Athens itself has a population of around 650,000, but the Greek capital forms a large agglomeration with other nearby settlements such as the port of Piraeus. The entire metropolitan area of Athens has a population of over four million people, which is about 35% of the entire Greek population.
In addition to the population, the government, the main Greek institutions and businesses, Athens is also home to the best football clubs. In addition to the trio of Greek football 'gods' (Olympiacos, Panathinaikos and AEK), the capital is also home to other top-flight teams.
In the 2023/24 season, Atromitos and Kifisias are part of the Super League. Kifisias, a club that was founded only in 2011, are complete newcomers to the top competition. And so far, they're not doing too badly. After seven rounds, despite having to play their home games in an asylum, they have six points from three draws and one win, which they took in the 'little Athens derby' against Atromitos.
Olympiacos - Greek football's Olympus
Olympiacos was founded in 1925 in Piraeus, a port city that is now part of the vast conurbation of Athens. It was formed as the last team of the Athens Big Three but clearly reigns supreme in terms of titles in all of Greek football. It has already achieved 47 league championships and many other successes.
The club's power and size seem to be predetermined by the symbolism chosen by its founders - the name and the profile of the Olympian in the club's emblem speak volumes. Olympiacos is built on the noble values of the Olympic idea and the best possible sporting quality.
Panathinaikos - A pure club with Irish symbolism
Panathinaikos was founded in 1908 as the 'Athens Football Club.' It was later renamed the 'Panathinaikos Athletic Club,' which brought together athletes from several disciplines and, as the name of the club implies, represented the whole of Athens. The symbolism of the club is also related to the privileged Greek sporting heritage, the Olympic Games. But not as directly as in the case of the great rival Olympiacos.
The green as the main club colour and the trefoil as the main symbol of Panathinaikos was created in honour of the winner of the 1906 marathon race in the so-called 'Intermediate Games' (Greece at the time resisted the Olympics becoming part of the various world exhibitions, as was the case with the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris and the 1904 Summer Olympics in St. Louis in the United States, and so organised a 'protest' Olympics in Athens).
The results of this competition were later removed from the official statistics by the International Olympic Committee, but the marathon - another purely Greek sporting event - was then won by Canadian endurance athlete Billy Sherring. Because he was of Irish descent, he wore a shamrock, the Irish national symbol, on his tank top. The members of Panathinaikos at the time were so impressed with Sherring's performance that they wanted to adopt his perseverance, fighting spirit and winning spirit via the green shamrock symbol into their club.
AEK - The refugee club
In 1924, a club was founded in Athens by new residents of the city. These were refugees of Greek origin from Constantinople (today's Istanbul) who were part of the massive population migration (up to two million people were involved) after the Greco-Turkish War between 1919 and 1922.
The war between the Greeks and the Turks was fought on the territory of the former Ottoman Empire, which had disintegrated after the First World War. These territories in Asia Minor were won by Turkey. The subsequent exchange of populations between Greece and Turkey was mainly based on religion.
AEK stands for 'Athlitikí Énosis Konstatinoupóleos' - the Athletic Association of Constantinople. The club's emblem, which is a double-headed eagle - the symbol of Constantinople - also refers to the former home of the immigrants. Incidentally, the same historical roots - founders, name and emblem - are shared by PAOK Thessaloniki.
The Athens derby
The clubs of Athens' Big Three have played each other in some of the best and most intense matches in the history of Greek football. Most of the time, the matches are fought for the title or to decide the winner of one of the Greek cups. In 2013, however, the situation was different. The derby between AEK and Panathinaikos led to AEK being relegated from the top Greek competition for the first time in its history.
Panathinaikos won this derby 2-0, but that was not the biggest problem for AEK yet. They were still above the relegation zone. However, the club was deducted three points for the rampage of their fans in this derby, and only because of that AEK experienced relegation.
It was no accident. The club was in a difficult situation financially at the time (the then economic crisis, which had lasted since 2009, had hit other Greek clubs hard). Because of the debts, AEK did not even enter the second league and went straight to the third-tier competition.
However, by 2015, the double-headed eagles were flying in the first league again. In 2018, they managed to win the league for the first time since 1994, and after last season's win (2022/23), AEK are currently the reigning champions of Greece.
For AEK, Panathinaikos is also the main rival because of this incident (but also historically). And Panathinaikos are the biggest rivals of Olympiacos as well. It is the rivalry between Panathinaikos and Olympiacos, two of the best teams in the country, that is considered the main and most fierce Greek derby.
The mother of all battles
The derby between Panathinaikos and Olympiacos is called the 'Derby of Eternal Enemies' or also the 'Mother of All Battles.' Beyond the sporting achievements and strengths of the two clubs, the competition and resentment between them is also pushed by the fact that they both historically represent different social classes.
Panathinaikos is an entity that hails directly from the centre of Athens and has traditionally represented the upper class and ruling class of the entire country, being considered as the bearer of the legacy of the traditional cultural society of the capital.
Olympiacos, on the other hand, as an entity from the port city of Piraeus, has historically been connected with the working-class people. Simply because Olympiacos stands against 'those from the centre', from the capital, against the rich, the powerful and the ruling class, it has gained and (depending on the situation) continues to gain fans all over Greece.
This kind of tension used to be much more fundamental in the past, when the gap between the different classes was more pronounced for social and political reasons.
Nowadays, the 'reins' of the rivalry are often held by very tough groups of hooligans of both clubs. The fact that both Panathinaikos and Olympiacos are Greece's biggest clubs in sports other than football adds another dimension to the Eternal Enemies Derby. Big derbies between the Greens and the Red and Whites also take place in basketball, volleyball and even water polo.
The next derby between the old enemies will take place on Sunday, October 22nd at the Olympiacos stadium, which can hold more than 33,000 fans. It is a duel between the current first (Olympiacos) and second (Panathinaikos) teams in the table. Follow the match on Flashscore (starting from 18:30 CET).
Other derbies of the week
Friday, October 20th
Ireland - Division 1 (League 2)
Athlone Town vs. Longford Town
Midlands derby
In the Midlands region of Ireland (in the central part of the island country), the two big football rivals are currently second-division sides Longford Town and Athlone Town. Athlone Town won the last derby in August 3-2 at Longford and have a five-match unbeaten run in the competition.
Northern Ireland - NIFL PremiershipLarne FC vs. Carrick Rangers
East Antrim derby
There will be one derby in neighbouring Northern Ireland on Friday. The teams from the towns of Larne and Carrickfergus, which lie 15km apart in County Antrim, will clash in the top football competition there. Larne won the last derby 4-1. Carrick has been waiting for a win against its rival since 2019 (14 games).
Saturday, October 21st
Australia - A-LeagueSydney FC vs. Melbourne Victory
The Big Blue
There is a great rivalry between Australia's two biggest cities - Sydney and Melbourne. The football derby between the two cities' biggest teams is called The Big Blue because the club colour of both teams is blue, and also because in Australian English the word blue means fight, brawl or quarrel.
England - Premier LeagueLiverpool vs. Everton
Merseyside derby (Liverpool derby)
The derby between Liverpool FC and Everton, two clubs from Liverpool, is named after the county of Merseyside (and after the River Mersey, which empties into the Irish Sea in Liverpool). It is the longest-played derby in the English top flight. It has been played continuously since the 1962/63 season.
Northern Ireland - NIFL PremiershipColeraine FC vs. Ballymena United
A26 derby
The next Northern Ireland derby of the weekend is the contest between Coleraine FC and Ballymena United. Their clash is named after the A26, the highway that connects the two towns in the north of the country. Coleraine FC won the first derby of the season 2-1. Ballymena have just six points after 11 rounds and are last.
Turkey - Super Lig
Galatasaray-Besiktas derbisi
Galatasaray and Besiktas along with Fenerbahce form the strongest trio of football clubs in Turkey. In addition, all three are based in Istanbul. A great rivalry exists between all three. Galatasaray is historically the second-best team in the country (25 titles), and Besiktas the third (21 titles).
USA - Major League Soccer
Colorado Rapids vs. Real Salt Lake
Rocky Mountain Cup
Real Salt Lake and Colorado Rapids compete in the North American Major League Soccer not only for a better position in the table but also for the so-called Rocky Mountain Cup, the physical trophy that bears the name of the Rocky Mountains that rise between Salt Lake City, Utah and Denver, Colorado.
Sunday, October 22nd
Netherlands - EredivisieHeracles Almelo vs. FC Twente
Twentse derby (Overijssel derby)
The Dutch province of Overijsselse, rich in first-division football, is set for another regional derby. This time Twente Enschede (currently 3rd in the table) and Heracles Almelo (8th) will face each other. The cities of Enschede and Almelo are separated by 30 km in the very east of the Netherlands.
Norway - Eliteserien
Lillestrom SK vs. Valerenga IF
VIF-LSK derby
Lillestrom and Valerenga are two of the biggest and most traditional clubs in Norwegian football. Their rivalry is also traditional. It is a derby because Valerenga is a total from Oslo and Lillestrom is located in the city of the same name, which is part of the agglomeration of the Norwegian capital.
Croatia - HNLNK Istra 1961 vs. HNK Rijeka
Derby della Učka (Derby of the Učka Mountains)
We wrote about the derby between the clubs from Croatian Istria - Istra 1961 vs. HNK Rijeka - in one of the August Derby Weeks. In their last match in the summer, Rijeka gave their rival a 'canary,' 6:0. Istra is not the favourite this time either. Rijeka leads the league, Istra is second to last.
Sweden - AllsvenskanDjurgardens IF vs. Hammarby IF
Stockholmsderbyt II (Stockholm derby II)
The league season is coming to a close in Sweden. There are four rounds to go. In the 'Second Stockholm derby', Djurgarden, currently fourth in the table, and Hammarby, fifth, will face each other. Their last meeting brought a goal shootout, which Hammarby won 4:3.
Germany - Bundesliga1. FC Koln vs. Borrusia Monchengladbach
Rheinische Derby (Rhine Derby)
Multiple clashes between clubs based in North Rhine-Westphalia are referred to as the "Rhine Derby". The biggest teams from this densely populated part of Germany are 1. FC Koln, Borussia Monchengladbach, Bayer Leverkusen, Fortuna Dusseldorf (2nd league), MSV Duisburg (3rd league), Rot-Weiss Essen (3rd league).
Slovakia - Fortuna Liga
Spartak Trnava vs. Slovan Bratislava
Traditional derby
The match between Slovan Bratislava and Spartak Trnava has long been the biggest match in Slovak football. It represents not only a sporting rivalry, but also the competitive relationship between the capital, Bratislava, and Trnava, just 50 km away. The last derby in the Slovak Cup final was won by Trnava after extra time.
Belgium - Jupiler Pro LeagueStandard de Liege vs. Anderlecht
Classique de Belgique (Belgian Clásico)
Belgium is divided (administratively and culturally) into Flanders, Wallonia and the Brussels Capital Region. The match between Anderlecht Brussels and the Walloon Standard Liege (Standard de Liege in the original French) is the most important match for the Walloon (Francophone) part of Belgium.
Brazil - Serie AAtletico Mineiro vs. Cruzeiro
Clássico Mineiro (Derby Sao Paulo)
Atletico Mineiro and Cruzeiro are clubs from Belo Horizonte, the capital of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Their derby is referred to by the adjective 'mineiro,' a so-called demonym for something that comes from Minas Gerais. Clássico Mineiro has been played more than 500 times.
Brazil - Serie A
Clássico dos Milhoes
The derby between Flamengo and Vasco da Gama, the two big teams from Rio de Janeiro, is called the "Clasico Millions", where the "millions" represent the huge fan bases that both teams gained back in the 1920s. In fact, at that time they dominated football in the Rio area (no national competition was yet played).
