According to reports, Dimitris Melissanidis announced today that he is stepping down from his 11-year ownership of AEK FC and transferring it to shipowner Marios Iliopoulos for €90 million.
“The time has come for me to step back from AEK, to take a small step back! To step aside and fade into the background of history! And, believe me, it is not easy. It is not easy because AEK has never been just a company, a business venture, any kind of job for me,” said “Tigris*,”(*His nickname, meaning Tiger), among other things, in a written statement.
Dimitris Melissanidis’s departure coincides with the 100th anniversary of AEK’s founding.
He took over AEK in 1992 as president and co-owner with Yiannis Karras. The following year, Karras became president. Melissanidis returned to the role in 1994 before stepping down from ownership in 1995. He served again as president from 1998 to 1999 under ENIC Group ownership.
In 2013, he acquired the team after it was relegated to the B and then to the C division due to bankruptcy.
He also initiated the construction of the team’s new stadium, OPAP Arena, which he inaugurated on September 30, 2022. During Melissanidis’s presidency, AEK won two championships (2018, 2023) and two cups (2016, 2023).
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