Kalamata F.C.

Kalamata Football Club (Greek: Π.Σ. "Η Καλαμάτα") is a Greek professional football club based in Messenia, Kalamata. They compete in the Football League, the third tier of the Greek football league system. The club's home ground is the Kalamata Metropolitan Stadium.

Kalamata
Full nameΠοδοσφαιρικός Σύλλογος "Η Καλαμάτα"
Nickname(s)Μαύρη Θύελλα (Black Storm)
Founded1967 (1967)
GroundKalamata Municipal Stadium
Capacity5,613
OwnerGeorge Prassas
ChairmanGeorge Prassas
ManagerNikos Anastopoulos
LeagueFootball League Greece
2019–20Football League Greece, 13th
WebsiteClub website

Creation and early years

Kalamata FC was formed in 1967 when local teams Apollon Kalamata FC and Kalamata Club were forced to merge by the Greek Junta.[1]. The Phoenix, which was the emblem of the dictatorship, was chosen as the team's crest and was removed after the Greek restoration of democracy in 1974.

History

The team has competed in the Greek first division seven times, in 1972–73, 1974–75, from 1995–96 to 1997–98, and from 1999–2000 to 2000–01.[2]

Kalamata F.C. achieved its first two promotions to the first division, in 1972 and 1974, under President Lykourgos Gaitanaros. Its first two promotions in the early 1970s are considered the team's first golden era. The team could not stick in the top flight though, and would not have a resurgence until the 1990s.

Nikos Liberopoulos

Businessman Stavros Papadopoulos bought the team in 1992, while the club was stuck in Gamma Ethniki, the third division. Upon his arrival, Papadopoulos began pouring a substantial amount of money into the club, and by 1995 the team had achieved promotion to the first division. The team dropped back to the second division for one season in 1997, but again achieved promotion to the first division the very next year, and remained in the top flight until Papadopoulos sold the team in 2000. After Papadopoulos' departure Kalamata fell to the second division and has since stayed in the lower divisions.

The Papadopoulos era of Kalamata F.C. saw the signing of many international players from Ghana, such as Samuel Johnson, Afo Dodoo, Ebenezer Hagan, Peter Ofori-Quaye and Derek Boateng. Johnson later transferred from Kalamata to Anderlecht and later played for Fenerbahçe, Hagan transferred to Iraklis and then to PAOK, Ofori-Quaye was sold for a club record US$3.5 million to Olympiacos, and Derek Boateng left for Panathinaikos. Kalamata FC is credited with starting the trend among Greek clubs of signing African talent since the late 1990s. The Papadopoulos era also saw the uncovering of a wealth of young Greek talent, including Greek international player Nikos Liberopoulos, who made his name at Kalamata before moving to Panathinaikos, and from there to AEK and Eintracht Frankfurt.

After being demoted to the second division in 1997, they eventually started to bring in young Brazilian talent, as well as some veterans of the biggest teams in Brazil. The Brazilians helped the team gain promotion to the first division right away in 1998. According to Brazilian media and insiders, Papadopoulos' son Daniil, a former high level amateur athlete in America, was supposedly instrumental in spotting some of the Brazilian talent and sending them to Kalamata FC. One of them, Hilton Assis (1999-2000), turned out to be the first cousin of Brazil and Barcelona FC super star Ronaldinho. Hilton was once a promising player in Brazil who starred for Internacional of Porto Alegre, but serious knee operations curtailed his career. When he was healthy he was Kalamata's top goal scorer, but he returned to the Brazilian first division after Papadopoulos sold the team.

Kalamata's long-standing rivals are Paniliakos and Egaleo, a poor and industrial suburb of Athens. Kalamata FC is also claimed to have some of the most passionate and dedicated fans in all of Greece.

Crest and colours
Historic crest

Kalamata F.C.'s official colours are black and white, and the team is known in Greece as the "Black Storm" (Mαύρη Θύελλα).

Stadium

Kalamata plays its home matches at Kalamata Metropolitan Stadium in Kalamata. The stadium was completed in 1976, and currently has a seating capacity of 5,400.[3]

Supporters

Kalamata F.C.'s most famous supporters' club is the "Bulldogs Fan Club".[4]

Rivals

Kalamata's long-standing rivals are Paniliakos, located in Pyrgos in the western Peloponnese, and Egaleo, in Athens suburb of Egaleo. Messiniakos is Kalamata's cross-town rival, but Messiniakos generally competed in lower leagues.

Sponsors

As for the 2019–20 the main sponsor of the team is the Greek electrical company Volterra SA and the kit provider is Capelli Sport.

Players

Current squad
As of 22 July 2020

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
3 DF  GRE Giannis Galoupis
8 MF  GRE Michalis Zacharopoulos (captain)
13 GK  GRE Giannis Mantzaris
14 MF  GRE Alexandros Natsiopoulos
17 FW  GRE Vangelis Alexopoulos
20 DF  GRE Konstantinos Panagou
24 DF  GRE Panagiotis Konstantinopoulos
No. Pos. Nation Player
29 FW  GRE Konstantinos Iliopoulos
31 GK  GRE Dimitris Kasotakis
34 FW  NED Daoud Bousbiba
35 DF  GRE Anastasios Kantoutsis
67 MF  GRE Giorgos Petsitis
77 DF  CMR Jérôme Guihoata
80 MF  GRE Vasilis Triantafyllakis
— DF  GRE Alexandros Galitsios

Honours

Domestic

League titles
Winners (2): 1971–72 (Group 1), 1973–74 (Group 2)
Winners (2): 1984–85, 2010–11

Regional

League titles
Winners (2): 1980−81, 2016−17

Cups
Winners (4): 1953−54, 1982−83, 2016−17, 2017−18

European matches
Season Competition Round Club Home Away
2000 UEFA Intertoto Cup 3rd Round FK Chmel Blšany 0−3 0–5

Former notable managers
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References
  1. "History of Kalamata FC". fckalamata.gr. 2004-08-18.
  2. "Greece - Final Tables 1959-1999". rsssf.com. 2003-08-03.
  3. "Kalamata Stadium". Stadia.gr.
  4. "Bulldogs Fan Club". Bulldogs Fan Club. Archived from the original on 2009-02-06.
  5. "Greece - List of Second Division Champions". rsssf.com. 2004-06-03.
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