Olympiacos FC launched an innovative idea in collaboration with the Municipality of Piraeus, the Piraeus Municipal Library and the US Embassy in Athens and inaugurated a new hall in the G. Karaiskakis stadium in the context of the “American Space Piraeus Pop-Up in G. Karaiskakis Stadium” program.
In our team’s home matchdays, the fans of Olympiacos will be able to find books, magazines, free Wi-Fi, access to PCs and also watch various matches played in the US and Greece until kick-off of the Olympiacos fixtures. Moreover, in this brand-new space in G. Karaiskakis, fans will also be able to browse information on US educational opportunities in a place promoting education, culture and sports diplomacy.
The launching was attended by the President of Olympiacos FC, Mr Evangelos Marinakis, who stressed in his remarks: “We are particularly happy that we are here today, in the G. Karaiskakis stadium and its American Corner that we are building and will soon be launched. I believe this to be the right thing to do for kids of Piraeus and Greece, who will be able to visit the place and use the equipment to help their training in sports and fair play. We will be by their side to support this endeavor, to support what the US Embassy wants to build here in the G. Karaiskakis Stadium with us and the Municipality of Piraeus; the latter launched the same initiative 2 days ago at the premised of its Municipal Library. So, we are here to offer our support and we will soon see the results of this effort will be particularly encouraging so as to keep on doing more in the future. I wish you the best; thank you very much”.
The ribbon of this new space in G. Karaiskakis was also cut by the US Ambassador in Greece J. Tsunis who said the following:
The President of Olympiacos, Mr. Evangelos Marinakis, presented the Ambassador with a club jersey with his name and number 7 on it.
From his part, Mayor of Piraeus and Olympiacos FC Vice President, Giannis Moralis, said: “This is a great collaboration between the US Embassy in Athens, Olympiacos FC and the Municipality of Piraeus, as said also during the inauguration of the American Corner of the Municipal Library of Piraeus; it’s truly innovative. Our Municipality becomes member of a network of cities hosting American Corners. I would say this is a window to knowledge at the service of young people to acquire skills and work on subjects they haven’t been able to so far. This action shall bring both peoples closer and underpin their mutual understanding. This was the goal and the proposal by the Embassy. We immediately jumped on the occasion along with Olympiacos, an organization that steadily supports the Municipality’s initiatives throughout all these years. This is the first time an American Corner is established in a football stadium or facility, we want to utilize sports, amongst others, as a window to knowledge and a tool; we truly believe in that’s since sports also means culture. I would like to thank all those who contributed to this action. The Ambassador, the President of Olympiacos who consistently supports us, and our people in the Municipality. I am sure that, as the President said, both these Corners, in the Municipal Library and in the G. Karaiskakis, will deliver to the benefit of children in Piraeus».
The event was also attended by the Deputy Head of the Region of Piraeus, Mrs Stavroula Antonakou.
A friendly match for the Legends of Olympiacos
Shortly after the opening of this new space in the G. Karaiskakis, the pitch hosted a friendly between Olympiacos veterans and Celebrities, including US football players Carli Lloyd and Cobi Jones, who were also presented with their red-and-white jerseys having their names on the back.
Both legends of US soccer, since Carli Lloyd has won 2 Olympic medals and 2 World Cups, and she has also been a two-time FIFA World Player of the Year, in 2016 and 2017. She has also made history in sports by becoming the second soccer player ever to score a hat-trick in a World Cup final. Cobi Jones has had her own history in the US National Team, with more than 160 caps in his 14-year spell and he is also a UCLA Hall of Famer.
The team of Celebrities included George J. Tsunis, Roberts, Surendra, Jones, Lloyd, Tsene, Nafpliotis, Moralis, Melios, Chatzialexis, Gemelos, Reppas, Kapsokolis, Golfis, Blake, Holmgren, Kerstanski, Long, Mann, Nievesosorio, Patrick, Zoakos, Fragkolias, Gerontidakis, Giannikou, Kalatzis, Kaloplastou, Karagiannis.
The Legends of Olympiacos featured Gkaitatzis, Kelesidis, Glikas, Aggelis, Kaltsas, Vamvakoulas, Kottakis, Mariolis, Vaitsis, Kokolakis, Stavropoulos, Arvanitisi, Kostoulas, Arzenis, Zaradoukas, Kalivas, Pachatouridis, Bonovas, Kasdovassilis, Karassavidis, Kalamaras, Tsiantakis, Luciano, Kotitsas, Kalikas, Lygkos, Sirigos, Vassiliadis, Mantasis, Georgoudakis, Asprogerakas, Dimitropoulos, Κ. Kaltsas, Rigoutsos, Karavitis, Benetatos, Katsikogiannis, Venakis, Barbaris.
