Athens Kallithea F.C. The Little Club with Big Ambitions

 Athens Kallithea F.C. The Little Club with Big Ambitions 

By Stephen Kountourou

There have been some very well-documented takeovers of Greek clubs in recent years that have raised a few eyebrows. Volos FC, was formed after it was decided that Pydna Kitros would be dissolved and renamed with owner Achilleas Beos, intending to try and upset the traditional big clubs at the top of the Greek Super League table, currently with little success. 

Most recently in late 2022 American businessman Maciek Kaminski, who previously attempted to buy Premier League side, Everton, instead bought Super League mid-table side Panetolikos with the aim to push the Argino side higher in the table as well as improving infrastructure and the academy. 

But one club with arguably the biggest and toughest long-term aspirations is Super League 2 side Athens Kallithea FC. The side from Southern Athens has gone through a big rebrand on and off the pitch over the last couple of seasons and it is certainly a fascinating story as to how they were taken over and what their new owner American businessman Andrew Barroway’s aspirations for the club are. 

Before the buyout by Barroway, Kallithea FC was formed in 1966 after a merger between five smaller clubs in the area. Esperos, Iraklis, AE Kallitheas, Kallithaikos, and Pyrsos. Four years later their stadium was named after Greek liberal politician and peace activist Grigoris Lambrakis. The club would not see themselves playing in the top flight of Greek football until 2001/02. Kallithea would remain in the Alpha Ethniki until 2005/06 when they would eventually be relegated to the second tier and have not returned since. 

After falling as far down as the fourth tier in recent history and climbing back up to Super League 2, Andrew Barroway bought 90% of Kallithea FC for 300,000 Euros. The American business tycoon, whose net worth is estimated at a staggering $1 Billion, also has a minority stake in the NHL side.  

The club's first season under new ownership was a successful one as they finished 2nd in Super League 2 Group B, seven points behind Levadiakos. Despite missing out on promotion to the Super League this was a huge success for the small Athenian side and their best finish in the Greek football pyramid in nearly two decades. After the success of the previous season, Barroway overhauled the club and rebranded them as Athens Kallithea FC in September 2022. 

The badge was also given a radical makeover with the club's initials, AK, with five points to represent the original five founding clubs and the year that the club was first founded, 1966. The club even hired German studio Bureau Borsche to create a new kit, who had also taken charge of the rebranding for Inter Milan and Venezia FC. The intention was to maintain the traditions of the club with its blue and white colours but also have a more modern style with an updated blue, and gold was added as a complementary colour. The design of the kit has been widely praised by numerous football shirt sites and fans alike. 

After a successful 2021/22 campaign Athens Kallithea, the expectation now is to push for a return to the top flight of Greek football with a new look, new owner and chance to maybe cement themselves as a Super League side. At the time of writing, they are currently in 5th after eight games and five points behind League B leaders Kifisia. There is still a long way to go in the Greek Super League 2 season, so maybe we might still see Athens Kallithea promoted at the end of the campaign. That is when Greek football fans will see just how far this club can go. 

@SteveKountourou

Hellas Football