Greek Basket League

Greek Basket League
	Current season or competition:; Greek Basket League 2012–13
Sport	Basketball
Founded	1927
Commissioner	Giorgos Chalvatzakis
Inaugural season	1927-28
No. of teams	14
Country(ies)	Greece
Continent	FIBA Europe (Europe)
Most recent champion(s)	Olympiacos; (10th title)
Most titles	Panathinaikos; (32 titles)
TV partner(s)	ERT
Level on pyramid	1st Tier
Relegation to	HEBA A2
Domestic cup(s)	Greek Cup
Official website	Esake.gr (English); Esake.gr (Greek); Live Match Center (English)

Main article: Basketball in Greece

The Greek Basket League (GBL), commonly referred to as the Greek Basketball League or Greek Basketball Championship, is the highest professional basketball league in Greece. It is run by HEBA (Greek: ΕΣΑΚΕ). The league is also known as the Greek Basket League OPAP for sponsorship reasons.

It is ranked as one of the top 3 level national domestic leagues in European basketball by the European national basketball league rankings. It consists of 14 teams and runs from October to June, with teams playing 26 games each during the regular season, and the top 8 teams then competing in the playoffs. The first official Greek Basketball Championship was held in the 1927-28 season.

History [edit]

Basketball first came to Greece in the year 1910. By the 1927-28 season, the first official championship began. There have been four different official championship eras. The first era was the Panhellenic Championship (Πανελλήνιο Πρωτάθλημα), which lasted from the 1927-28 to 1962-63 seasons, when the champions of every regional district played each other to decide the Greek Champion. The second era started in the 1963-64 season, when the A National Category (Α' Εθνική Κατηγορία) was founded.

In 1969, the Hellenic Basketball Federation (E.O.K.) took over the duties of overseeing the competition, and did so until the year 1992. The third era of the championship existed between the 1986-87 and 1991-92 seasons, when the first division A1 National Category (Α1 Εθνική Κατηγορία), with a regular season and playoffs, and the second division A2 National Category (Α2 Εθνική Κατηγορία) were formed. The fourth era of the championship began in the 1992-93 season, when the Hellenic Basketball Clubs Association (HEBA) took over the competition and renamed the first division the HEBA A1 (ΕΣΑΚΕ Α1), and the second division the HEBA A2 (ΕΣΑΚΕ Α2).

The Greek League has been one of the most competitive basketball leagues in Europe through the years and it was widely regarded as the second best national league in the world after only the NBA in the 1990s decade. It currently ranks among the best national domestic leagues in the world (excluding the NBA), such as Liga ACB in Spain and Lega A in Italy. It is considered one of the 3 European "A" level leagues under the ULEB League Rankings System. The league has several great powers which belong to the most traditional European basketball clubs, especially the Euroleague giants Panathinaikos and Olympiacos. Other clubs that have had significant successes throughout the history of Greek basketball are AEK Athens and Aris. Along with PAOK, the aforementioned clubs are the most successful and widely supported in Greece.

Despite the championship having been contested 71 times, only nine different clubs have won it so far. The dominating club has always been Panathinaikos, having claimed the championship 32 times. Since its foundation, only two teams have participated in every season of the first division since 1963-64: Panathinaikos and Aris.

Promotion and relegation [edit]

The championship, in its current form, has been organized since the 1992-93 season by the Hellenic Basketball Clubs Association (HEBA). 30 pro Greek basketball teams are split into two different divisions. The first division championship, which is called the "A1", in which 14 teams compete for the Greek National Championship, and the second division championship, which is called the "HEBA A2", in which 16 teams compete for the second division crown. The bottom two place finishing teams each year in the A1 division standings are relegated to the A2 division, due to poor performance. While conversely, the top two teams each year from the A2 division are promoted to the A1 division, due to good performance.

Arena standards [edit]

Currently, Greek clubs must play their home games in arenas that seat at least 1,000 people in order to play Greek domestic league matches. Starting with the 2013-14 season, clubs must play their home Greek League matches in arenas that seat at least 3,500 people. Several Greek clubs have two arenas that they primarily use. One for domestic Greek League matches, and one for European-wide matches.

Greek clubs that play in the Euroleague or the Eurocup, must play their home games in those leagues in arenas that fit the arena standards of those leagues. Currently, a 5,000 seat arena minimum for the Euroleague, and a 3,000 seat arena minimum for the Eurocup.

Current clubs [edit]

The clubs for the 2012-13 season:

Club	Position 2011-12	Greek League Arenas	Capacity	Euroleague/Eurocup Arenas*	Capacity
Apollon Patras	2nd (A2)	Apollon Patras Indoor Hall, Patras	3,500	Apollon Patras Indoor Hall, Patras	3,500
Aris	7th	Alexandrio Melathron, Thessaloniki	5,500^[1]	Alexandrio Melathron, Thessaloniki	5,500
Ikaros	10th	Glyfada Indoor Hall, Athens	4,532	Glyfada Indoor Hall, Athens	4,532
Ilissiakos	11th	Ilissia Indoor Hall, Athens	1,700^[2]
KAOD	9th	Drama Indoor Hall, Drama	2,100
Kavala	6th	Kalamitsa Sports Center, Kavala	1,500
Kolossos	4th	Venetoklio Indoor Hall, Rhodes	1,700
Olympiacos	1st	Peace and Friendship Stadium, Athens	14,905	Peace and Friendship Stadium, Athens	14,905
Panathinaikos	2nd	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250	OAKA Indoor Hall, Athens	19,250
Panelefsiniakos	1st (A2)	Peristeri Arena, Athens	4,300	Peristeri Arena, Athens	4,300
Panionios	3rd	Glyfada Indoor Hall, Athens	4,532	Glyfada Indoor Hall, Athens Helliniko Olympic Arena, Athens	4,532 15,000
PAOK	8th	PAOK Sports Arena, Thessaloniki	8,500^[3]	PAOK Sports Arena, Thessaloniki	8,500
Peristeri	12th	Peristeri Arena, Athens	4,300	Peristeri Arena, Athens	4,300
Rethymno Aegean	5th	Rethymno Indoor Hall, Rethymno	1,600

*Arenas that meet ULEB European arena requirements, and where the clubs play their home games at if they are competing in the Euroleague and/or the Eurocup.

2012-13 Greek Basket League season club locations.

Champions [edit]

1927-28 to 1962-63: Panhellenic Championship
1963-64 to 1985-86: A National Category
1986-87 to 1991-92: A1 National Category
1992-93 to present: HEBA A1

Season	Team
1927–28	Iraklis
1928–29	Panellinios
1929–30	Aris
1930–31	not held
1931–32
1932–33
1933–34
1934–35	Iraklis
1935–36	Near East
1936–37	Athens University
1937–38	not held
1938–39	Panellinios
1939–40	Panellinios
1940–41	not held due to World War II
1941–42
1942–43
1943–44
1944–45
1945–46	Panathinaikos
1946–47	Panathinaikos
1947–48	not held
1948–49	Olympiacos
1949–50	Panathinaikos
1950–51	Panathinaikos
1951–52	not held
1952–53	Panellinios
1953–54	Panathinaikos
1954–55	Panellinios
1955–56	not held
1956–57	Panellinios
1957–58	AEK Athens
1958–59	PAOK
1959–60	Olympiacos
1960–61	Panathinaikos
1961–62	Panathinaikos
1962–63	AEK Athens

Season	Team
1963–64	AEK Athens
1964–65	AEK Athens
1965–66	AEK Athens
1966–67	Panathinaikos
1967–68	AEK Athens
1968–69	Panathinaikos
1969–70	AEK Athens
1970–71	Panathinaikos
1971–72	Panathinaikos
1972–73	Panathinaikos
1973–74	Panathinaikos
1974–75	Panathinaikos
1975–76	Olympiacos
1976–77	Panathinaikos
1977–78	Olympiacos
1978–79	Aris
1979–80	Panathinaikos
1980–81	Panathinaikos
1981–82	Panathinaikos
1982–83	Aris
1983–84	Panathinaikos
1984–85	Aris
1985–86	Aris

Season	Team
1986–87	Aris
1987–88	Aris
1988–89	Aris
1989–90	Aris
1990–91	Aris
1991–92	PAOK
1992–93	Olympiacos
1993–94	Olympiacos
1994–95	Olympiacos
1995–96	Olympiacos
1996–97	Olympiacos
1997–98	Panathinaikos
1998–99	Panathinaikos
1999–00	Panathinaikos
2000–01	Panathinaikos
2001–02	AEK Athens
2002–03	Panathinaikos
2003–04	Panathinaikos
2004–05	Panathinaikos
2005–06	Panathinaikos
2006–07	Panathinaikos
2007–08	Panathinaikos
2008–09	Panathinaikos
2009–10	Panathinaikos
2010–11	Panathinaikos
2011–12	Olympiacos

Performance by club [edit]

Club	Champions	Winning years
Panathinaikos	32	1946, 1947, 1950, 1951, 1954, 1961, 1962, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
Olympiacos	10	1949, 1960, 1976, 1978, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 2012
Aris	10	1930, 1979, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
AEK Athens	8	1958, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1968, 1970, 2002
Panellinios	6	1929, 1939, 1940, 1953, 1955, 1957
PAOK	2	1959, 1992
Iraklis	2	1928, 1935
Near East	1	1936
Athens University	1	1937

A1 Finals [edit]

Season	Home court advantage	Result	Home court disadvantage	1st of Regular Season	Record
1992–93	Panathinaikos	1–3	Olympiacos	PAOK	22–4
1993–94	Olympiacos	3–2	PAOK	Olympiacos	22–4
1994–95	Olympiacos	3–2	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	24–2
1995–96	Olympiacos	3–2	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	24–2
1996–97	Olympiacos	3–1	AEK Athens	Olympiacos	21–5
1997–98	Panathinaikos	3–2	PAOK	Olympiacos	21–5
1998–99	Olympiacos	2–3	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	21–5
1999–00	Panathinaikos	3–0	PAOK	Olympiacos	21–5
2000–01	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	22–4
2001–02	AEK Athens	3–2	Olympiacos	AEK Athens	23–3
2002–03	Panathinaikos	3–1	AEK Athens	Panathinaikos	21–5
2003–04	Panathinaikos	3–0	Maroussi	Panathinaikos	22–4
2004–05	Panathinaikos	3–1	AEK Athens	Panathinaikos	22–4
2005–06	Panathinaikos	3–0	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	24–2
2006–07	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	24–2
2007–08	Panathinaikos	3–2	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	23–3
2008–09	Olympiacos	1–3	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	25–1
2009–10	Panathinaikos	3–1	Olympiacos	Panathinaikos	25–1
2010–11	Olympiacos	1–3	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	26–0
2011–12	Olympiacos	3–2	Panathinaikos	Olympiacos	23–1

By Club [edit]

Club	W	L	Total
Panathinaikos	13	4	17
Olympiacos	6	9	15
AEK Athens	1	3	4
PAOK	0	3	3
Maroussi	0	1	1

Number of seasons in the A and A1 National Categories by club (1963-64 - 2012-13) [edit]

The number of times that clubs participated in the top A National Category, while it existed from the 1963-64 season to the 1985-86 season. As well as the number of times that clubs have participated in the top A1 National Category, since it began with the 1986-87 season. Only two clubs, Panathinaikos and Aris, have played in the top division every year since its formation.

1963-64 to 1985-86: A National Category
1986-87 to 1991-92: A1 National Category
1992-93 to present: HEBA A1

Club	Times
Panathinaikos	50
Aris	50
PAOK	49
AEK Athens	48
Olympiacos	47
Panionios	42
Iraklis	41
Sporting	31
Panellinios	30
Apollon Patras	28
Maroussi	24
Peristeri	22
Pagrati	17
Larissa	16
XANO	12
Ionikos Nikaias	12
Dimokritos	9
Dafni	8
Iraklio	8
Kolossos	7

Club	Times
Ilissiakos	7
Near East	7
Papagou	7
Olympia	6
Makedonikos	6
Esperos	6
Kavala	5
BAO	5
Ionikos NF	4
Triton	4
Amyntas	4
Ikaros	3
KAOD	3
Rethymno Aegean	3
Egaleo	3
Aetos	3
Trikala	2
Olympias Patras	2
Anatolia	2
HAN Nikaias	2

Club	Times
Apollon Kalamarias	2
Niki Volou	2
Philippos	2
Milonas	2
Ambelokipi	2
Peiraikos	2
Panelefsiniakos	1
MENT	1
Pierikos	1
Serres	1

The best regular season records in the history of the A and A1 National Categories (1963–2011) [edit]

^[4]^[5]

1963-64 to 1985-86: A National Category
1986-87 to 1991-92: A1 National Category
1992-93 to present: HEBA A1

Season	Team	Regular Season Record	Playoff Record	Final Record (Including Playoffs)	Final Season Result
1985-86	Aris	26-0	0-0	26-0	Champion
1967-68	AEK Athens	22-0	0-0	22-0	Champion
1975-76	Olympiacos	22-0	0-0	22-0	Champion
1986-87	Aris	18-0	3-0	21-0	Champion
1987-88	Aris	18-0	3-0	21-0	Champion
1979-80	Panathinaikos	16-0	12-2	28-2	Champion
2010-11	Olympiacos	26-0	6–3	32–3	Finalist
1984-85	Aris	25-1	0-0	25-1	Champion
2009-10	Panathinaikos	25-1	8-1	33-2	Champion
2008-09	Olympiacos	25-1	6-3	31-4	Finalist

The best regular season records of the HEBA A1 (1992–2012) [edit]

Season	Team	Regular Season Record	Playoff Record	Final Record (Including Playoffs)	Final Season Result
2010-11	Olympiacos	26–0	6–3	32–3	Finalist
2009-10	Panathinaikos	25-1	8-1	33-2	Champion
2008-09	Olympiacos	25-1	6-3	31-4	Finalist
2011-12	Olympiacos	23–1	8–2	31–3	Champion
2005-06	Panathinaikos	24-2	8-0	32-2	Champion
2010-11	Panathinaikos	24-2	8-1	32-3	Champion
2006-07	Panathinaikos	24-2	8-2	32-4	Champion
1995-96	Olympiacos	24-2	8-3	31-5	Champion
1994-95	Olympiacos	24-2			Champion
1994-95	Panathinaikos	24-2			Finalist

Greek basketball clubs in European-wide competitions [edit]

Greek basketball clubs in the Euroleague [edit]

The years in which clubs from the Greek Basketball League competed in Europe's first tier continental-wide professional club basketball competition, the Euroleague:

Rank	Club	Appearances	Years
1.	Panathinaikos	33	1962, 1963, 1968, 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001†, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
2.	Olympiacos	24	1961, 1977, 1979, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
3.	AEK Athens	14	1959, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1971, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006
4.	Aris	11	1980, 1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 2007, 2008
5.	PAOK	7	1960, 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
6.	Iraklis	2	1996, 2001†
7.	Panionios	2	1997, 2009
8.	Peristeri	2	2001, 2002
9.	Panellinios	1	1958
10.	Maroussi	1	2010

Greek basketball clubs at the Euroleague Final Four [edit]

Panathinaikos has made 11 Euroleague Final Four appearances (with 12 top 4 place finishes), has played in the Euroleague Final 7 times, and has won the Euroleague championship 6 times. Olympiacos has made 8 Euroleague Final Four appearances, has played in the Euroleague Final 6 times, and has won the Euroleague championship three times. AEK Athens has made 3 Euroleague Final Four appearances and has played in the Euroleague Final once. PAOK has also played in the Euroleague Final Four once.

Team	Finish
Team	Champion	Finalist	3rd Place	4th Place
Panathinaikos	1996, 2000, 2002, 2007, 2009, 2011	2001†	1994, 1995, 2005	1972, 2012
Olympiacos	1997, 2012, 2013	1994, 1995, 2010	1999	2009
AEK Athens	—	1998	2001	1966
Aris	—	—	1989	1988, 1990
PAOK	—	—	1993	—

† Panathinaikos and Iraklis played in the FIBA SuproLeague during the 2000-01 season.

Greek basketball clubs in the Saporta Cup [edit]

Greek clubs that finished in the top 2 places of the now defunct Saporta Cup (1966-67 to 2001-02), which was the second-tier European-wide continental competition:

Team	Finish
Team	Champion	Finalist
AEK Athens	1968, 2000	—
PAOK	1991	1992, 1996
Aris	1993	—
Maroussi	2001	—

Greek basketball clubs in the Korać Cup [edit]

Greek clubs that finished in the top 2 places of the now defunct Korać Cup (1971-72 to 2001-02), which was the third-tier European-wide continental competition:

Team	Finish
Team	Champion	Finalist
PAOK	1994	—
Aris	1997	—