| Greek Football Cup | |
| Organiser: | Hellenic Football Federation |
| Founded: | 1931; 93 years ago |
| Region: | Greece |
| Teams: | 119 (2021–22) |
| Current Champions: | Panathinaikos (20th title) |
| Most Successful Club: | Olympiacos (28 titles) |
| Broadcasters: | Cosmote Sport |
| Qualifier For: | UEFA Europa League |
| Current: | 2024–25 Greek Cup |
The Greek Football Cup (Greek, Modern (1453-);: Κύπελλο Ελλάδος Ποδοσφαίρου), commonly known as the Greek Cup or Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons is a Greek football competition, run by the Hellenic Football Federation.[1]
The Greek Cup is the second-most important domestic men's football event, after the championship of Super League. The organizing authority of the institution is the Hellenic Football Federation (EPO). Since its inception in 1931 it has been held 80 times, with a cup winner being crowned on 79 occasions. The final in 1962 being the only occasion when no champion was crowned.[2]
Olympiacos is the most successful club, having reached the final 42 times and earning 28 trophies.
The Greek Cup under EPO began in 1931. In its early years, entry was optional. Teams were paired against each other by the football associations, without a draw taking place. Later on, for many years, a proper draw took place and also two-legged matches were added.
The participation of Olympiacos and Panathinaikos in the 1962 final is counted for both as the presence of a finalist, since the match was stopped due to darkness in overtime (0-0). Due to the incidents between the players of the two teams, the incidents in the stands, the excessive delays and the suspicion that all this was intentional for the match to be repeated and for the teams to make bigger profits, the GGA council decided to punish the EPO with a reprimand and banned the replay of the match as a penalty for both teams[3] [4] [5]
Until 1964, if the final score was a draw (including extra time), the two teams played a replay match, while penalties didn't exist. That year, in the semi-final[6] between Panathinaikos and Olympiacos (1 - 1 at the time),fans of both teams stormed the pitch, damaged the football field and virtually stopped the game, believing that it was fixed to end in a draw, in order to be replayed for financial reasons. Both teams were ejected from the competition and therefore, in 1964 AEK won the title but the final match was not held. AEK also won in similar fashion in 1966 when Olympiacos did not show up in the final.[7]
In 1965, a new rule was applied, to determine that, if the game was undecided even after extra time, the winner would be determined by the toss of a coin. Panathinaikos won this way in the 1969 final against Olympiacos[8] . Afterwards the penalty shootout was applied.Until 1971, teams from all over the country, professional and amateur, had been taking part. Each team first played against clubs from its own association and the winners continued in a nationwide competition. Due to this, strong professional sides met amateur neighbourhood teams, sometimes beating them with high scores; a 23–0 win in an Apollon Athens vs. PAO Neas Melandias match on 23 September 1959 remains a record win for the Greek Cup until today. Since 1971, only teams from professional divisions are allowed to participate, while amateur clubs take part in the Amateur Cup.
In 1991 and 1992 the finals were two-legged matches.[9]
One important match in the history of the competition was the 2009 final[10] between Olympiacos and AEK (3–3 full time, 4–4 after extra time and 15–14 on penalties).
11 clubs have won the Greek Cup.[11]
Notes:
• In 1933–38 and 1940–46, the competition was not held (in 1940–41, only the first round was played).
• In 1961–62, the final match between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos was abandoned and the Cup withheld.
• In 1963–64 and 1965–66, the Final was scratched.
• In 82 editions of the competition, 81 have concluded with a Cup winner, and 80 finals have been played (one was abandoned).
19 clubs have reached the Greek Cup final.[12]
11 clubs have won the Greek Football Cup, from a total of 6 cities.