Greek basketball scandal: all six suspects to appear before judge on Thursday
What authorities are investigating
The arrest warrants were issued following an assessment of material gathered during the prosecutorial investigation. According to reports, the investigation covers approximately 50 matches spanning from 2016 to 2026, across various levels of the sport — including youth and school competitions. Authorities are also scrutinizing one match played abroad, while the investigation is reported to have uncovered sums of money approaching €800,000.
International referee Vaso Tsaroucha brought to police headquarters
Earlier, on the afternoon of Wednesday, October 21, Vaso Tsaroucha was transferred to GADA following her arrest at Athens International Airport “Eleftherios Venizelos,” where she was detained upon returning from Turkey, where she had officiated a EuroCup match. The international referee was arrested as part of the investigation into alleged match-fixing in Greek basketball, for which a warrant had been issued against her. Camera footage captured her arrival at GADA, with Tsaroucha wearing a hood pulled over her head.
The Amaroussion complaint and the eight witnesses
The case is reported to have originated from a complaint filed in April 2026 by basketball club KAE Amaroussion with the relevant authorities. The complaint concerned the operations of the EOK and its president.
The investigation by the sports prosecutor was subsequently expanded with additional complaints, testimonies, and evidence submitted by figures from within the basketball world, including club officials and referees.
According to sources, eight witnesses have testified in the case. Particular weight is said to be attached to the testimonies of two individuals who came forward voluntarily and disclosed what they knew about alleged illegal practices. According to the same sources, the two witnesses reportedly admitted to having previously received money in connection with fixed matches.
Their voluntary disclosure of information is said to secure them immunity from criminal liability, subject to the conditions set out under applicable law.
The EOK’s response
The Board of Directors of the Hellenic Basketball Federation held an emergency meeting to brief its members on the ongoing legal proceedings.
In its statement, the EOK said: “The EOK Board of Directors convened in an emergency session today, October 21, 2026, in order to update its members on the legal proceedings currently underway in connection with Greek basketball. The situation will be monitored continuously, through official announcements and procedures.”
Panathinaikos AKTOR’s hard-hitting statement
Basketball club Panathinaikos AKTOR reacted sharply to the developments. In an official statement, the club referred to longstanding problems in refereeing and argued that it has suffered injustices, fines, and restrictions targeting its owner, Dimitris Giannakopoulos.
The club argued that the case confirms the need for a thorough investigation into what it has been alleging for years regarding the refereeing system, and announced its intention to pursue legal action in order to reclaim what it believes was wrongfully taken from it on the court.
Meanwhile, Dimitris Giannakopoulos posted on social media using particularly sharp language, speaking of a “war” and directing messages at those he considers to be his adversaries.
The full statement from Panathinaikos AKTOR:
“KAE PANATHINAIKOS has for years endured monstrous refereeing decisions from very specific individuals who have been unlawfully and repeatedly appointed. It has lost titles, been forced to play behind closed doors in an arena it paid for with its own money, and has paid hundreds of thousands of euros in fines — because its owner, Dimitris Giannakopoulos, publicly condemns and cries out against what everyone sees and stays silent about. He was targeted, slandered, banned from watching his own team, and prevented from attending his father’s memorial service.
KAE PANATHINAIKOS stays and plays in matches officiated by referees who have been prosecuted for felonies, by referees who keep hundreds of thousands of euros in cash in their homes, stays and plays with referees who show no respect for the sport, stays and plays within a rotten system that violates everything we love most. Basketball.
You tried to break us, you attempted to overturn every ideal, every logic, every reality. You believed you were succeeding. Yet you forgot something very critical. PANATHINAIKOS is not trophies, titles, jerseys, or faces. PANATHINAIKOS IS VALUES. And those of us who serve it know well that in defending it, we defend its history, its clover, its JUSTICE and its PRINCIPLES.
KAE PANATHINAIKOS will take legal action to reclaim what was stolen under a regime of corruption. We owe it to our supporters who endured this ordeal in real time, and we of course owe it to our athletes and coaches who were deprived of what was rightfully theirs. And we will do it. This will be our next victory against the regime.
Good luck in your darkness.
Good luck in your nothingness.
The light of the sun will always prevail.
P.S.: KAE PANATHINAIKOS is monitoring developments and will issue further statements whenever deemed necessary.”
Panathinaikos’s lawyer weighs in
Margarita Thanou, legal counsel for KAE Panathinaikos AKTOR, expressed her satisfaction and relief over the developments via social media.
In her statement, she thanked the Greek justice system for its work, expressing her confidence in the judicial officials handling the case. She also referred to the complaints and confrontations that, she argued, Panathinaikos has faced for years.
“You destroyed everything we loved for so many years, but today is a beautiful day,” she wrote, commenting on the latest developments.
Her full statement read: “Today we will not speak of stolen things.
Today we will not speak of the dozens of complaints, lawsuits, and legal actions filed by KAE Olympiacos against KAE Panathinaikos and D. Giannakopoulos in defense of EOK, Liolios, Tsaroucha, Papapetrou, and others.
We will not speak of the announcements, the recusal requests, the mockery before sports arbitrators and judges regarding what Panathinaikos and Giannakopoulos have been shouting about for so many years.
We will not say a word about the dozens of months of entry bans, the millions in fines, the attempts to destroy the ‘madman’ when he was shouting and no one was listening.
Today, with genuine emotion, pride, and relief, we say thank you to the independent Greek justice system, which is doing its job with integrity, diligence, and silence — in offices that often lack heating, adequate secretarial support, or even photocopiers. To officials who honor the studies they pursued and the oaths they took. They are the majority, and it is upon them that we Greek citizens rely — they are the shield of our democracy. The work is heavy and disproportionate, but they endure.
You destroyed everything we loved for so many years, but.
Today is a beautiful day.”
The six defendants are expected to be brought before the competent judicial authorities for the warrants to be formally executed, after which the prescribed procedure before the examining magistrate will follow. They are subsequently expected to request additional time to prepare their statements. The case remains ongoing, and the evidence gathered is being assessed by the relevant authorities. The charges were brought by Athens sports prosecutor Apostolos Grammenos. In all cases, the prosecutor determined that the defendants posed a flight risk, which is why expedited arrest procedures were initiated.
