Asteras Tripoli F.C.
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| Full name | Asteras Tripolis Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) |
"The yellow-blue" "Galacticos" | ||
| Founded | 1931 | ||
| Ground |
Kolokotronis Stadium Tripoli, Greece | ||
| Capacity | 7,616 | ||
| Owner |
 Dimitris Mpakos Giannis Kaimenakis | ||
| Chairman |
Giorgos Borovilos | ||
| Manager |
Staikos Vergetis | ||
| League | Superleague Greece | ||
| 2012–13 | Superleague Greece, 3rd (4th in the play-offs) | ||
| Website | Club home page | ||
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PAE Asteras Tripolis (Greek: ΠΑΕ Αστέρας Τρίπολης) is a Greek football club from the town of Tripoli in Arcadia, Greece. The club was founded in 1931 and since the 2007–08 season they play in the Greek Super League, the highest professional league in the country. The word "Asteras" means "star".
History
Early years
Asteras was founded in 1931, in the area near Tripoli's railway station and was formally recognised forthwith. However, the club stayed inactive and during 1932 all football clubs in Tripoli were temporarily dissolved. At the same time, Minas Tsavdaris founded a football club and named it "Keramikos" after his home area.[1] Despite his efforts, Keramikos was never formally recognised, and in 1938 Tsavdaris decided to transfer all of the club's players to Asteras Tripolis, which was still legally recognised.[1] This signified the revival of the club and Asteras managed to compete in the inaugural season (1939–40) of the regional Arcadian League. However, the subsequent German occupation of Greece ended all league competitions abruptly and the club was dissolved once again.
Post-World War II
After World War II, Asteras was reformed under the name "Neos Asteras" and was accordingly recognised by Tripoli's courts on 23 June 1947.[1] Asteras won five consecutive titles in the Arcadian League (1957–1962). The team won consecutive promotions and managed to play for two seasons in the Greek Second Division (1961–1963), thus becoming the first team from Tripoli to ever participate in such a high division.[1] In the summer of 1963, Asteras merged with Aris–Atromitos and the new team was named "Athlitikos Omilos Tripolis" (Athletic Club of Tripoli, AOT). AOT's function was based in Asteras' statute and the new club continued its activities until 1968, when it was dissolved once again and was subsequently merged with Arcadikos to form Panarcadikos.
Recent history and era of success
Asteras was reformed again in 1978.[1] The club participated in the regional Arcadian League until 2003. At 2001 the club entered a new era and led an outstanding streak of performances. They remained unbeaten at home for over 5 years (from 2001 to November 2006) and they managed to move up four divisions, earning the promotion for the Greek Super League as Second Division champions on 12 May 2007.
Asteras made a spectacular start in their first season in the Super League. Their first ever win was against Panathinaikos (1–0 in Tripoli)[2] and their first away win against OFI in Crete (3–0). The season was marked by some outstanding performances with the most memorable being the 1–0 home victory against champions Olympiacos. They also managed to win 2–1 against AEK Athens and 2–0 against PAOK at home. Asteras Tripolis became the first and only newly promoted Superleague team that managed to beat Olympiacos, Panathinaikos, PAOK (home and away) and AEK Athens in its first ever appearance in the top division.
Coach Paulo Campos left Asteras on 24 February 2008 with assistant manager Panagiotis Tzanavaras taking over for the rest of the 2007–2008 season. Asteras finally ended 7th, missing the European spot in the last games. In the summer of 2008 Asteras announced Carlos Carvalhal as their new manager. He was sacked in mid-season due to poor results which led the team near the relegation zone.[3] He was succeeded by former AEK caretaker manager, Nikos Kostenoglou. In 2009 Asteras signed the Argentine former Internazionale assistant Roberto Carlos Mario Gómez as their new coach.
The 2012–2013 season was the most successful in Asteras' history. They finished third in the Super League (and fourth in the play-offs), securing a place for the 2013–2014 Europa League. Meanwhile, they reached the first Greek Cup final in their history, losing 1–3 to Olympiacos after extra time.[4]
Stadium
Theodoros Kolokotronis Stadium formally Asteras Tripolis Stadium is a privately owned football stadium in Tripoli, Greece. It is the home stadium of Asteras Tripolis and its capacity is 7,600. The stadium was renamed on 22 November 2012 in honour of the hero of the Greek War of Independence, Theodoros Kolokotronis.
European record
Last update: 8 August 2013
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Aggregate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012–13 | UEFA Europa League | 2Q |  Inter Baku |
1–1 | 1–1 | 2–2, 4–2 (p) |  |
| 3Q |  Maritimo |
1–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 (a) |  | ||
| 2013–14 | UEFA Europa League | 3Q |  Rapid Wien |
1–1 | 1–3 | 2–4 | |
Honours
Domestic competitions
- Greek Super League
- 3rd place (1): 2013
- Greek Cup
- Runners-up (1): 2013
- Greek Second Division
- Winners (1): 2007
- Greek Third Division
- Winners (1): 2006
- Greek Fourth Division
- Winners (1): 2005
- Arcadian Championship
- Winners (8): 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1988, 1990, 2003
- Arcadian Cup
- Winners (3): 1990, 2004, 2005
- Arcadian Double
- Winners (1): 1990
Professional history
- 7 seasons in the Super League Greece
- 3 seasons in the Second Division
- 2 seasons in the Third Division
- 5 seasons in the Fourth Division
Current squad
- As of 1 November 2013
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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For recent transfers, see List of Greek football transfers summer 2013
Out on Loan
Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
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Managers
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External links
Official sites
- (Greek) Official website
- Asteras Tripolis TV channel from Goal4Replay.net (English) (Greek)
- Asteras Tripolis Stadium in English
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Asteras Tripolis history" (in Greek). asterastripolis.gr.
- ↑ "Asteras Tripolis – Panathinaikos 1–0". transfermarkt.
- ↑ "Asteras give Carvalhal the boot". goal.com.
- ↑ "Asteras sees off PAOK to face Olympiakos in Cup final". ekathimerini.com.
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