Greek Football Report - Part 1: Greek Club Demographic Information
In part one of AGONAsport’s four-part ‘Greek Football Report’ series, we take a look at certain demographic information laid out in a recent CIES study on European football.
Watch LIVE GREEK TV including full GREEK SPORTS coverage with Go Greek TV!
A recent report by the The CIES Football Observatory, a research group within the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) gave demographic information on football leagues throughout Europe.
This study forms the basis of this piece which is part one of our series called ‘Greek Football Report’. The four-part series takes a look at differing parts of the game in Greece as we try to provide statistical breakdowns and accompanying analysis of various segments of the sport in Greece.
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a massive impact on football throughout the world. The CIES Football Observatory recently compiled a Demographic Atlas report in European football by taking data from July of last year up until when most leagues shut down in March (the exact dates used are 7/1/19-3/18/20).
The report was broken down into five areas including average age, percentage of club-trained player minutes, percentage of expatriate player minutes, percentage of substitutes’ minutes, stability, and height. What follows below is a breakdown of that report specifically with regard to clubs in the Greek Super League 1.
AGE
Measuring average age of players on the pitch
The average age of Super League clubs this season ranged from 25.4 years old to 29.8 years old. This number was based on a team’s average on the pitch, so essentially players who were actually receiving minutes rather than just the whole squad in general.
The youngest team in the division was Panathinaikos with that average of 25.4, while Lamia were the oldest with their average on-pitch player age hovering close to 30.
Panionios, a club with a tradition of developing young players, had the second-youngest collection of players with an average of 26.1. Undefeated Olympiacos were in the middle of the pack with their average on-pitch age being 27.3 while other Greek powerhouses PAOK and AEK were close behind at 27.5 each. Aris were the second oldest side in the top-flight in terms of who played with their average player age figuring at 29.3.
Lamia had the eighth oldest average playing side in Europe, while Aris were the 20th oldest team on the continent.
CLUB-TRAINED
Measuring the % of minutes by players who have been in the employer club for at least three seasons between the ages of 15-21
The data for percentage of club-trained players is quite striking upon closer inspection. Three clubs had no club-trained players with the criteria provided (i.e. having been at the club for three seasons between the ages of 15-21) and they were Olympiacos, Lamia, and Volos. Three other Super League sides had less than five percent including PAOK (3%), OFI (0.3%), and Aris (0.1%).
Leading the way was Panathinaikos with 25.4% of player minutes this season coming from club-trained players that fit the criteria of the study. In second place was Panionios at 15.3% followed by Atromitos (13.3%), and Larissa (12.6%)
EXPATRIATES
Measuring the % of minutes by footballers playing in a different association from that where they grew up
Greek sides generally scored low with the percentage of club-trained players, however in the category of expatriate players the numbers were incredibly high. This indicates that foreign-born players figure more prominently as a percentage rather than Greek-born talent being brought through the ranks.
Aris had the highest percentage of expatriate players as a percentage of minutes with a whopping 85% of those individuals featuring on the pitch for the club this season. Panetolikos (84.7%), PAOK (77%), Xanthi (75.4%), Olympiacos (74.5%), and Asteras Tripolis (72.3%) followed, all with extremely high percentages. Aris and Panetolikos had the 12th and 13th highest percentages of expatriate minutes in European football with PAOK also in the top 30 at 26th.
The team with the least amount of expatriate players with actual playing time was Panionios, the Nea Smyrni team having only 33.8% of actual playing minutes contributed to foreign-born players. Atromitos had the second lowest total with 37.3% and next were Panathinaikos (43.4%), OFI (44.3%), and Lamia (46.4%).
SUBSTITUTES
Measuring the % of domestic league minutes played by subs
There was not much discrepancy with these numbers as most teams fell into the norm of 5-6%. Perhaps notable is that OFI had the lowest percentage with 4.3%, while Xanthi (7.3%) and Atromitos (7.0%) came out with the highest percentages.
HEIGHT
Average height per player in centimeters
Panionios had the tallest team in the league with an average of 183.5 cm per player. Olympiacos were next, one centimeter below, while Larissa registered the third highest total with an average of 182.4 per player. The league’s shortest squad was Volos at 177.9cm.
STABILITY
Measuring average months in the employer’s club’s first team squad for the line-ups fielded
Stability was an interested statistic and there was some range in this data for Greek clubs. Based on the criteria measured, AEK were the most stable side in Greece with an average of 28 months in the employer’s first team squad for a player. PAOK were next with an average of 22.6 months and Panathinaikos just behind at 20.7 months.
The teams with the fewest average months of time for a player in the squad were Panetolikos (8.9), Volos (9.1), and OFI (11.2).
CHART
Below is a chart with the data collected on the Greek teams for each of the criteria
All values collected from data between 7/1/19-3/18/20
Age: Average Age on pitch
Club trained: % of minutes by players who have been in the employer club for at least three seasons between the ages of 15-21
Expatriates: % of minutes by footballers playing in a different association from that where they grew up.
Substitutes: % of domestic league minutes played by subs
Height: Average Height per player
Stability: Avg months in the employer’s club’s first team squad for the line-ups fielded
| Team | Age | Club trained | Expatriates | Substitutes | Height(cm) | Stability |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AEL | 29.1 | 12.6 | 61.7 | 6.2 | 182.4 | 12.4 |
| AEK | 27.5 | 7.2 | 59.9 | 6.1 | 181.9 | 28.0 |
| Aris | 29.3 | 0.3 | 85.0 | 5.5 | 179.3 | 12.5 |
| Asteras Tripolis | 27.8 | 5.6 | 72.3 | 6.7 | 182.3 | 16.6 |
| Atromitos | 27.2 | 13.3 | 37.3 | 7.0 | 181.8 | 18.0 |
| OFI | 27.5 | 0.1 | 44.3 | 4.3 | 179.6 | 11.2 |
| Olympiacos | 27.3 | 0.0 | 74.5 | 6.6 | 182.5 | 13.9 |
| PAOK | 27.5 | 3.0 | 77.0 | 6.5 | 181.8 | 22.6 |
| PAS Lamia | 29.8 | 0.0 | 46.4 | 5.6 | 181.3 | 13.0 |
| Panathinaikos | 25.4 | 23.5 | 43.4 | 6.6 | 181.3 | 20.7 |
| Panetolikos | 27.3 | 10.4 | 84.7 | 6.5 | 179.2 | 8.9 |
| Panionios | 26.1 | 15.3 | 33.8 | 6.2 | 183.5 | 19.4 |
| Volos | 26.5 | 0.0 | 48.9 | 6.1 | 177.9 | 9.1 |
| Xanthi | 28.4 | 6.5 | 75.4 | 7.3 | 181.9 | 17.3 |
SUMMARY
While it is difficult to draw too many comparisons based purely on some factors and ruling out such variables as finances, team size, history, and other external considerations we can summarize and make some determinations based on this data, specifically in the area of club-trained players and expatriate players.
Simply put, Greek clubs continue to prioritize signings from abroad rather than focusing on youth development. The numbers do not lie. Only six of the fourteen Super League clubs have less than 50% of the number of minutes played given to non-expatriate players. A more damning indictment of teams in Greek football is the failure of providing a suitable pathway for young players. This is a judgement based on the fact that only five of the fourteen top division sides have more than 10% of their minutes played this season contributed to by club-trained players (to reiterate, ones who have been with the club for at least three seasons between the ages of 15-21). In fact, Greece’s highest ranked club in this aspect, Panathinaikos, only figured in 82nd place compared to the rest of the European clubs. As a country, Greece actually was recently ranked 75th out of 93 countries studied in the number of minutes played this season by players under the age 22. The Super League rate of just 7.7% of minutes played by young players is an incredibly low number when compared to leagues around the world.
This is not to suggest that signing foreign-based players is not a good thing, the opposite is in fact true. Players from abroad have contributed so much to Greek football and have lit up the pitches in Greece since the 1960s. The problem remains Greek football’s lax attitude to proper investment in youth academies and development of young players. There are many talented Greek players who come through the ranks year after year, but clubs do not work in a way where they can maximize that potential and increase those numbers. There may be reasons why this is not being done ranging from inadequate investment in academies, specifically infrastructure and coaching, to widespread economic depression in Greece over the last decade to a lack of organization and historical precedence.
This article is merely intended to lay out the data in the CIES report. The reasons why Greek football does not put more money into development is a topic for another discussion.
