APOEL
Founded on November 8, 1926 as POEL (standing for Podosfairikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias, or, Football Club of the Greeks of Nicosia), the club is a founding member of the Cyprus Football Federation. The club's formation came about when a group of forty people, with a common vision, met and set the foundations for creating a football club that would represent all the Greeks of the capital and whose base would be in Nicosia. The meeting took place at a traditional confectionary, owned by Charalambos Hadjioannou, down town in Ledra Street and the first president of the club was Giorgos Poulias.

After a journey to the football (soccer) club in Alexandria, Egypt in 1927 the General Assembly of 1928 decided the players showed that they were not just good footballers but also excellent track and field athletes. Hence it was decided to create a track and field team in addition to the football team. The name APOEL was adopted to reflect this, with the 'A' standing for 'Athletic'.

In 1934, APOEL played a constructive role and helped immensely in setting up the Cyprus Football Association and was one of the founding members. Two years later the APOEL football team celebrated its first championship title of the official Cyprus football league, the first of many trophies APOEL would celebrate in the years ahead.

Politics, however, would soon spark conflict within the team and in 1948 the club was divided over its position regarding the Greek Civil War. This led to the withdrawal of certain members and athletes of the club who went on to create Omonia Nicosia Football Club in 1948. This newly created team was to become the arch rival of APOEL and until today there has been a traditional animosity between the fans of the two teams.

More conflicts led to further struggles for APOEL. Athletes belonging to the club frequently participated in national clashes. During the 1955-59 national up-rise against the British, many of APOEL's athletes and members of the club were active members of EOKA (the National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters), the most outstanding example being Michalakis Karaolis who was hanged by the British colonial authorities. It was during this period that the APOEL football team had their closest brush with relegation as most of their football players were actively taking part in the national struggle.

The football team were quickly back to full strength, however, and made their debut appearance in European Competitions (the first not only for APOEL but for any Cypriot team) in 1963, when they faced the Norwegian team Gjovik Lyn in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup. Two victories for APOEL over both legs (6-0, 1-0) marked APOEL's successful European debut, as they became the first Hellenic team to progress in a European Competition.

Other triumphs followed in the early 1970s. In 1973 the domestic double was achieved with coach Panos Markovic. The following year APOEL became the first Cypriot team to avoid relegation from the pan-Hellenic Greek Championship (Until the mid-1970s the champions of Cyprus played in the Greek Football League the next year).

From 1974 till today APOEL counts 7 Championships (1980, 1986, 1990, 1992, 1996, 2002, 2004), 10 Cups (1976, 1978, 1979, 1984, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2005) and 6 Super Cups (1984, 1986, 1992, 1993, 1999, 2002). From 1936 till 2005 APOEL counts 43 titles: 18 Championships, 18 Cups and 7 Super Cups.

APOEL achieved a celebratory double in 1995/96, the season of their 70th anniversary, by winning the national championship, finishing unbeaten in the process, as well as winning the basketball championship.

Most recently, in 2002, the football team embarked on an impressive European run, playing ten games before being knocked out, an impressive feat for a Cypriot club.

For more information visit the: Apoel FC official website