Greece has indefinitely suspended its football league, a day after the owner of PAOK Thessaloniki entered the field with a gun following a disputed goal during a match.
FIFA has urged Greek authorities to take swift action against PAOK owner Ivan Savvidis or face possible suspension.
Savvidis entered the field twice accompanied by bodyguards and appeared to be carrying a pistol in a holster around his waist.
At no time did he attempt to use the weapon.
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Fernando Varela had just scored in the 90th minute on Sunday for PAOK against AEK Athens, giving the hosts a 1-0 lead in the northern city of Thessaloniki.
The referee signaled a goal but then appeared to disallow it for offside. The match was ultimately abandoned.
“The FIFA Monitoring Committee (…) strongly condemns the recent incidents in Greece and urges all stakeholders in national football to act immediately to put an end to the unacceptable situation prevailing in Greek football,” a FIFA statement said.
Giorgos Vasileiadis, Greece’s deputy sports minister, met with the Greek prime minister and said the championship was suspended, adding that it would not resume “if there is not a new clear framework agreed by everyone so that we can move forward with the conditions and regulations.”
Ivan Savvidis approaches an official of the opposing team. (P.A.)
“The Greek press exaggerates the facts”
Greece have faced a particularly volatile league championship this season, with traditionally dominant Olympiakos – who have only managed to win the title twice in the last 21 years – in third place, behind leaders AEK and PAOK.
Police said Monday they were investigating Savvidis, who holds a firearms license, for illegal entry onto grounds and possession of an object likely to cause damage at a sports venue.
Tatyana Gordina, deputy general director in charge of corporate communications at Savvidis’ Russia-based Agrocom Group, stressed that Savvidis had not made any threatening gestures.
“Ivan Savvidis did not make any threats, including using a weapon, during yesterday’s match,” she said.
“There was an emotional entry onto the field, probably a violation of sporting regulations, and nothing more.
“Most of the headlines in the Greek press exaggerate the facts.”
Vasileiadis said Greek sports authorities were “in open contact with UEFA” and would hold meetings with the Greek football federation later on Monday to discuss further measures.
“The government has fought major battles over the past three years to clean up the struggling football sector,” the minister said.
“We have gained a lot, but there is still a lot to do.
“In any case, we will not allow all these efforts to be jeopardized, we will not allow phenomena from the past to be resurrected.”
Savvidis, who took over PAOK in 2012, is a Russian-Greek businessman born in Soviet-era Georgia who made his living through the privatization of a cigarette factory in southern Russia in the 1990s.
His company Agrocom has numerous interests in tobacco, agriculture and real estate.
He served two terms in the Russian Parliament from 2003 to 2011.
P.A.
