When the Euroleague season began, I wanted Panathinaikos, Olympiacos or both in London at the Final Four.
I knew it was a long shot but I wanted it so that British fans could experience what true and passionate basketball support really was when the Euroleague’s finale came to the O2 Arena.
When on form, these two sets of supporters are the best in the world. NBA support doesn’t even come close.
Now after Sunday’s shocking and terrifying scenes in what was an anticipated Greek Cup final, and the knowledge that this has happened before, I think the Euroleague should work with the Greek A1 league and take action against incidents such as the ones we saw, and especially when Panathinaikos fans shamelessly shot a flair gun, which struck Olympiacos’ Kyle Hines and causing him to go down to the floor in pain.
For Gate 13’s infamous green-clad mob … no sympathy, what followed instead was a taunt directed to the Olympiacos fans opposite them.
This has not been the first time that this has occurred. At last year’s Final Four in Istanbul, during the CSKA Moscow, Olympiacos warm-ups, Panathinaikos supporters, still seething from the fact that their bitter rivals were in the final and they were not took it upon themselves to aim green flair guns at the Olympiacos section and even catapult objects their way as well. One of them happened to be an unopened can of drink, which ended up dangerously close to striking CSKA Moscow’s Nenad Krstic.
The Olympiacos fans are no saints themselves, as seen on Sunday, fighting with police and even amongst themselves. Seeing that reminded me of the finals day in Istanbul, last year where they hurled stones and sticks at police outside the Sinan Erdem Arena.
Who could forget the postponement of the two sides’ playoff game a week after the Final Four last year due to Panathinaikos’ team bus becoming a target of motorcyclists armed with rocks and other various objects with a view to destroy the bus with no regard to whom was inside the vehicle. Naturally the blame was leaned towards the Olympiacos faithful but no proof was found.
In the case of Sunday’s game, law and order was eventually restored but the scenes off the court are becoming sadly popular and the spectacle of basketball, played between two of Europe’s top sides is a mere sideshow.
With the game expanding and the Euroleague, along with the NBA becoming closer partners in promoting the game and pushing it as much as possible, maybe it’s time for these sorts of incidents to be stopped; for good.
Fines, bans, even possible expulsion from the Euroleague for a period of time, perhaps? Mob rule can’t lead the way with Greece’s biggest basketball clubs, and the same goes for Serbian sides and who ever thinks that violence and racism can take center stage and not the beautiful game that we pay money to see on the court.
The conduct of the Olympiacos fans in Paris for the Final Four in 2010 was fantastic. They were loud, proud and were the definition of true supporters. The same can be said of the Panathinaikos supporters in Barcelona a year later.
Just a shame that despite the rivalry, they don’t actually focus on the sport they supposedly love when they’re in the same arena.
London – you’ve been warned. Just in case they both make it there, in one piece, of course.
