Aris Thessaloniki F.C. facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Aris

Full name	Aris Thessaloniki Football Club
Nickname(s)	Theós tou polémou (God of War) Kitrinomavroi (The Yellow-Blacks)
Founded	25 March 1914; 111 years ago (1914-03-25)
Stadium	Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium
Stadium capacity	22,800
Owner	Theodoros Karipidis
Chairman	Irini Karipidou
Manager	Marinos Ouzounidis
League	Super League Greece
2024–25	Super League Greece, 5th of 14
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Aris FC (which means "Aris Football Club") is a professional football team from Thessaloniki, Greece. It is the most famous and successful club in the city. The team plays in the top Greek league, called Super League Greece, and their home stadium is the Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium.

The club was started in 1914. It was one of the first teams to join the Macedonian Football Clubs Association and the Hellenic Football Federation. Aris's colors are golden/yellow and black. Yellow represents the history of Macedonia and the city of Thessaloniki. The club is named after Ares, the ancient Greek "God of War," who was known for courage. His image is on the club's logo, based on a famous sculpture called Ludovisi Ares. Aris is considered one of the biggest teams in Greece and is part of a larger sports club called Aris Thessaloniki.

Aris was a very strong and popular team in Greece between the two World Wars. They have won the Greek championship three times (in 1928, 1932, and 1946). They also won the Greek Cup once in 1970. Aris had an amazing record in European games, staying undefeated at home for 28 matches from 1968 until 2020. That year, they lost to Kolos Kovalivka, but there were no fans in the stadium due to the COVID pandemic.

Club History: Key Moments

Early Days and First Wins (1920s-1940s)

Nikiphoros, Kostas and Kleanthis Vikelidis (1930)

The champion team of 1928

Aris, the champion of 1928

The champion team of 1932

Aris Football Club was founded on March 25, 1914, by 22 young friends in Thessaloniki. They named the club Aris after the Greek god of war. This name was chosen because of the recent Balkan Wars (1912–1913), when Greece fought for its freedom. Aris has a big rivalry with another team called PAOK.

At first, there was no professional football league in Greece. Instead, three smaller leagues existed in Macedonia, Athens, and Piraeus. The champions of these leagues would play in a mini-tournament to decide the national champion. Aris won its first regional championship in Macedonia in 1923.

In 1926, the club changed its name to "Athletic Club Aris Thessaloniki" to include other sports besides football.

Aris won its first Greek Championship in 1928. They beat Atromitos and Ethnikos Piraeus in the final matches. The coach was Thomas Kessler from Germany. Key players included Kostas Vikelidis and Nikos Aggelakis.

The second championship came in 1932. Aris played against strong teams like Olympiacos and Panathinaikos. They won with 22 points, four more than Panathinaikos. They had big wins, like 7–0 against Panathinaikos. New star players like Kitsios and Bogdanos joined the team.

In the same year, the Greek Cup competition started. Aris reached the final but lost 5–3 to AEK Athens.

Aris won their third championship in 1946. They played against AEK from Athens and Olympiacos from Piraeus. Aris beat Olympiacos twice and defeated AEK 4–1 in Thessaloniki. Since the main First Division started in 1959, Aris has not won another championship. Before 1959, Aris won the Macedonian division 14 times.

Modern Era and European Games (1950s-1980s)

Alketas Panagoulias

During this time, Aris built its own home stadium, the Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium. It was named after the famous player Kleanthis Vikelidis. The stadium was built in the Charilaou area of Thessaloniki, starting in 1951.

In 1959, the new, unified Greek Championship was created. Aris was one of the first Greek teams to play in European tournaments. They had strong teams with players like Alexandros Alexiades, Giorgos Pantziaras, and Takis Loukanidis.

Winning the 1970 Greek Cup

Aris played very well in the 1960s and 1970s. Their biggest success was winning the Greek Cup in 1970. They beat their big rival, PAOK, in the final match at Kaftanzoglio Stadium.

In the 1970s, Aris brought in many talented young players from Thessaloniki. These included Kouis, Foiros, and Zindros. A major achievement was their successful UEFA Cup campaign in 1980. Aris beat famous teams like Benfica and Perugia. They were the first Greek club to win a game in both Italy and Portugal. In Greece, Aris finished tied for first place with Olympiacos in the 1980 league season. However, they lost the championship title in a special tie-breaker game.

Tough Times and Comebacks (1980s-2014)

Angelos Charisteas

After the mid-1980s, many of Aris's older, respected players retired. The club then faced a difficult period. They often struggled to qualify for European leagues or finish high in the Greek League. They also had serious money problems, which almost led to bankruptcy. Aris was relegated to the Second Division in 1997 and 2005. But both times, they managed to quickly return to the top division.

Around 2006, a group called the "Aris Members' Society" was formed to help manage the club. After this, Aris qualified for the UEFA Europa League several times. They finished fourth in the Super League three times. They also reached the Greek Cup Final four times, losing in 2003, 2005, 2008, and 2010. In 2010, an amazing 25,000 Aris fans traveled to Athens for the final. This was one of the biggest movements of fans in Greece ever.

In the 2010–11 UEFA Europa League, Aris made history by playing in Europe after Christmas for the first time. They had a great performance in the group stage, beating the defending champions Atlético Madrid both at home and away. The club also started its own radio station, Aris FM 92.8, in December 2009. This helped fans connect and stay updated on club news. In 2014, due to more financial issues, Aris was relegated to the third tier of Greek football.

Recent Years: Rebuilding and Return (2014-Present)

Héctor Cúper, manager of the club (2009–2011).

After being relegated in 2014, many wondered who would lead the team. American businessman Alex Kalas took charge for the first season, but the team did not get promoted. In summer 2015, Kalas promised more money and signed several new players. These included Honduran legend Carlos Costly and Spanish defender Raul Bravo. However, Aris still did not get promoted, and Kalas was replaced.

Fans were very upset when the Greek Football Federation did not allow Aris to be promoted to a higher league. Thousands of fans protested in Thessaloniki in August 2015. These protests sometimes led to clashes with the police.

After new elections, Theodoros Karipidis became the head of the football department. He quickly signed many new players, including former Aris player Andreas Tatos and club legend Sergio Koke. Nikos Anastopoulos was appointed as the manager. In the 2015–16 season, Aris finally won promotion to the second division of Greece, finishing 21 points ahead of the second-place team. Later, Irini Karipidou became the main owner of the club.

Aris Supporters

Aris has a large fan base across all parts of Thessaloniki and Greece. Their biggest rivalry is with PAOK. Matches against PAOK are known as the "Derby of Thessaloniki" and divide the city. Aris also has rivalries with major Athens clubs like Panathinaikos, AEK Athens, and Olympiakos Piraeus.

Aris's main fan club is called Super 3. It was started in 1988 and has a bulldog as its symbol. There are over 50 Super 3 clubs across Greece and Europe, with between 12,000 and 20,000 members. Some polls suggest Aris is the 5th most popular team in Greece, with about 500,000 fans. This is a large number, especially since the club has not won many titles in recent decades.

In the 2010 Greek Cup final against Panathinaikos, 27,000 Aris fans traveled to Athens. This was described as the largest movement of away supporters in Greek history.

The club's official song, Aris Victorious, was written in 1926.

Club Identity: Crest and Colors

Crest Evolution

The name of the club, Aris, was inspired by Ares, the ancient Greek "God of War." This choice came after Greece's military successes in the Balkan Wars and the liberation of Thessaloniki in 1912. The team's emblem shows a resting Ares, just like in the famous Ludovisi Ares sculpture. This emblem was chosen in the late 1970s, replacing an older, simpler logo used since 1914. In the 2000s, a Greek pattern called a meander was added to the crest.

The team's main colors are yellow or gold, which represent glory and are important in the history of Macedonia. Black is also a key color. Sometimes, white or dark red uniforms are used as alternative colors. In the 2000s, the club also introduced a shade of lime green.

Kit Evolution

First Kits

1917–23

1927–28

1928–29

1937–38

1956–57

1982–83

2003–04

2004–05 A

2004–05 B

2006–07

2007–08

2008–09

2009–10

2010–11

2014–15

2017–18

Alternative Kits

1927–28

1982–83

2006–08

2007–08

2010–11

2015

2015–16

2017–18

Old poster with older crest and the champion team of Aris Thessaloniki (1931–32 season)

Shirt Sponsors and Manufacturers

This table shows the companies that made Aris's kits and sponsored their shirts over the years:

Club Facilities

Home Stadium: Kleanthis Vikelides

A view inside the Kleanthis Vikelides Stadium

Kleanthis Vikelides Stadium during a UEFA Europa League match

Aris Thessaloniki's stadium is called Kleanthis Vikelides. It is named after the club's famous player. The stadium is located in Thessaloniki and was built in 1951. It received a new roof in 1972 and a new stand in 1975. In 2004, it was fully renovated. The stadium can hold 22,800 fans.

Training Grounds: Dasygenio Sports Center

Since the late 1970s, Aris Thessaloniki has had its own training grounds. These are located in Neo Rysio, just outside Thessaloniki, near the International Airport. The area covers three hectares (about 7.4 acres). It includes football fields, a gym, a pool, a sauna, a press room, offices, a restaurant, and locker rooms. The facilities were rebuilt in September 2010 and renovated again in 2018. The grass on the fields was changed in 2019.

Team Players

Current Squad

No. Position Player 1 GK Lovro Majkić 3 DF Fabiano (third-captain) 7 FW Carles Pérez (on loan from Celta Vigo) 8 MF Monchu 9 MF Álvaro Zamora 10 MF Uroš Račić 11 FW Anastasios Donis 14 DF Jakub Brabec (vice-captain) 15 DF Álvaro Tejero 17 DF Martin Frýdek 19 FW Robin Quaison 20 GK Filip Sidklev 23 GK Julián Cuesta (captain) 24 DF Pedro Álvaro

No. Position Player 25 MF Mamadou Gning 27 DF Noah Fadiga 28 FW Dudu 30 MF Jean Jules 33 GK Georgios Athanasiadis 37 DF Hamza Mendyl 70 MF Giannis Gianniotas 77 FW Michalis Panagidis 80 FW Loren Morón 92 DF Lindsay Rose 97 MF Fredrik Jensen 99 MF Clayton Diandy MF Domagoj Pavičić FW Pione Sisto

Players on Loan

No. Position Player FW Georgios Pamlidis (at Kalamata until 30 June 2026)

Club Achievements

Domestic Titles

• Super League Greece
  • Winners (3): 1927–28, 1931–32, 1945–46
  • Runners-up (3): 1929–30, 1932–33, 1979–80
• Second Division Greece
  • Winners (1): 1997–98
  • Runners-up (1): 2017–18
• Third Division Greece
  • Winners (1): 2015–16
  • Runners-up (1): 2014–15
• Greek Football Cup
  • Winners (1): 1969–70
  • Runners-up (9): 1931–32, 1932–33, 1939–40, 1949–50, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2007–08, 2009–10, 2023–24
• Greater Greece Cup
  • Winners (1): 1970–71
• Macedonia Championship
  • Winners (13): 1922–23, 1923–24, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1933–34, 1937–38, 1945–46, 1948–49, 1952–53, 1958–59

Aris's Performance in the 21st Century

Best position in bold.

Key: 3R = Third Round, 4R = Fourth Round, 5R = Fifth Round, GS = Group Stage, QF = Quarter-finals, SF = Semi-finals, RU = Runner-up.

Aris Thessaloniki in European Competitions

Year	Competition	Round	Opponent	Home	Away	Qual.
1964–65	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	First round	Roma	0–0	0–3
1965–66	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	Second round	1. FC Köln	2–1	0–2
1966–67	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	First round	Juventus	0–2	0–5
1968–69	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	First round	Hibernians	1–0	6–0
		Second round	Újpest	1–2	1–9
1969–70	Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	First round	Cagliari	1–1	0–3
1970–71	European Cup Winners' Cup	First round	Chelsea	1–1	1–5
1974–75	UEFA Cup	First round	Rapid Wien	1–0	1–3
1979–80	UEFA Cup	First round	Benfica	3–1	1–2
		Second round	Perugia	1–1	3–0
		Round of 16	AS Saint-Étienne	3–3	1–4
1980–81	UEFA Cup	First round	Ipswich Town	3–1	1–5
1981–82	UEFA Cup	First round	Sliema Wanderers	4–0	4–2
		Second round	K.S.C. Lokeren	1–1	0–4
1994–95	UEFA Cup	Preliminary round	Hapoel Be'er Sheva	3–1	2–1
		First round	GKS Katowice	1–0 (3–4 p.)	0–1
1999–00	UEFA Cup	First round	Servette	1–1	2–1 (a.e.t)
		Second round	Celta de Vigo	2–2	0–2
2003–04	UEFA Cup	First round	Zimbru Chișinău	2–1	1–1
		Second round	Perugia	1–1	0–2
2005–06	UEFA Cup	First round	Roma	0–0	1–5
2007–08	UEFA Cup	First round	Real Zaragoza	1–0	1–2
		Group stage (Group 6)	Red Star Belgrade	3–0
			Bolton Wanderers		1–1
			Braga	1–1
			Bayern Munich		0–6
2008–09	UEFA Cup	Second qualifying round	Slaven Belupo	1–0	0–2
2010–11	Europa League	Third qualifying round	Jagiellonia Białystok	2–2	2–1
		Play-off	Austria Wien	1–0	1–1
		Group stage (Group 2)	Atlético Madrid	1–0	3–2
			Rosenborg	2–0	1–2
			Bayer 04 Leverkusen	0–0	0–1
		Round of 32	Manchester City	0–0	0–3
2019–20	Europa League	Second qualifying round	AEL Limassol	0–0	1–0
		Third qualifying round	Molde	3–1 (a.e.t.)	0–3
2020–21	Europa League	Second qualifying round	Kolos Kovalivka	1–2	N/A
2021–22	Europa Conference League	Second qualifying round	Astana	2–1 (a.e.t.)	0–2
2022–23	Europa Conference League	Second qualifying round	Gomel	5–1	2–1
		Third qualifying round	Maccabi Tel Aviv	2–1	0–2
2023–24	Europa Conference League	Second qualifying round	Ararat-Armenia	1–0	1–1
		Third qualifying round	Dynamo Kyiv	1–0	1–2 (5–6 p.)
2025–26	Conference League	Second qualifying round	Araz-Naxçıvan

Team Statistics in Europe

Updated as of August 17, 2023

Managerial History

• 

  Wilf McGuinness

• 

  Dettmar Cramer

• 

  Dušan Bajević

• 

  Héctor Cúper

• 

  Nikos Anastopoulos

• 

  Michał Probierz

Name	Nationality	Year	Name	Nationality	Year	Name	Nationality	Year	Name	Nationality	Year
Grigoris Vlachopoulos		1914–22	Alketas Panagoulias		1975	Henri Michel		2001	Siniša Dobrašinović		2015
Kostas Vikelidis		1922–27	Dobromir Zhechev		1975–76	Richard Tardy		2001–02	Dimitris Kalaitzidis		2015
Thomas Kössler		1927–29	Alketas Panagoulias		1976–77	Giannis Tzifopoulos		2001	Nikos Anastopoulos		2015–17
Valère de Besveconny [fr] (″De Valer″)		1929–32	Panagiotis Patsidis		1977	Bernd Krauss		2002	Nikos Kostenoglou		2017
Kostas Vikelidis		1932	Carl-Heinz Rühl		1977	Giorgos Foiros		2002–03	Dimitrios Spanos		2017–18
Gyula Antal		1932–34	Panagiotis Patsidis		1977–78	Giannis Michalitsos		2003	Paco Herrera		2018
Kostas Vikelidis		1934–40	Milovan Ćirić		1978	Giorgos Pantziaras		2003	Savvas Pantelidis		2018–19
World War II			Apostol Čačevski [bg]		1978–79	Ole Skouboe		2003	Apostolos Terzis		2019
Dionysis Kaltekis		1945–49	José Sasía		1979–80	Makis Katsavakis		2003–04	Michael Oenning		2019–20
Iakovos Yakumis		1949–50	Frank Blunstone		1980	Giorgos Chatzaras		2004–05	Akis Mantzios		2020–22
Nikolaos Aggelakis		1950–53	Michal Vičan		1980–81	Martti Kuusela		2005	Germán Burgos		2022
Kleanthis Vikelidis		1953–55	Giannis Nalbantis		1981	Nikos Anastopoulos		2005–06	Apostolos Terzis		2022
Kiril Simonovski		1955	Dettmar Cramer		1981–82	Guillermo Ángel Hoyos		2006–07	Alan Pardew		2022–2023
Ernst Netuka		1955	Antonis Georgiadis		1982–84	Nikos Passialis		2006	Apostolos Terzis		2023
Aleksandar Petrović		1955–56	Kostas Chatzikostas		1984	Quique Hernández		2006–07	Akis Mantzios		2023–2024
Mladen Kašanin		1956	Thijs Libregts		1984–86	Juan Oliva		2007	Marinos Ouzounidis		2024-
Ivan Stevović		1956–57	Giannis Venos		1986	Dušan Bajević		2007–08
Kleanthis Vikelidis		1957	Gojko Zec		1986–87	Quique Hernández		2008–09
Ivan Stevović		1957–58	Klimis Gounaris		1987	Mazinho		2009
Dionysis Kaltekis		1958	Gerd Prokop		1987–88	Dimitris Bugiuklis		2009
Carl Panagl		1958	Alketas Panagoulias		1988–90	Héctor Cúper		2009–11
Kleanthis Vikelidis		1958–59	Kostas Tsilios		1990	Giannis Michalitsos		2011
Svetislav Glišović		1959–61	Jacek Gmoch		1990–91	Sakis Tsiolis		2011
Kleanthis Vikelidis		1961	Kostas Tsilios		1991	Michał Probierz		2011–12
Kostas Velliadis		1961	Ivan Vutsov		1991–92	Giorgos Semertzidis Giannis Michalitsos		2012
Ljubiša Spajić		1961–62	Giorgos Foiros		1992–96
Vasilis Grigoriadis		1962	Giannis Tzifopoulos		1996	Manuel Machado		2012
Ettore Trevisan		1962	Jozef Jarabinský		1996	Makis Katsavakis		2012
Bela Palfi		1962–66	Stavros Diamantopoulos		1996–97	Nikos Passialis Dimitris Bugiuklis		2012
Svetislav Glišović		1966–67	Giorgos Semertzidis Giorgos Pantziaras		1997
Severiano Correia		1967–69				Lucas Alcaraz		2012–13
Nikolaos Aggelakis		1969	Juan Ramón Rocha		1997	Giannis Michalitsos		2013
Milovan Ćirić		1969–70	Giorgos Foiros		1997–98	Soulis Papadopoulos		2013
Michalis Baltatzis		1970	Georgios Paraschos		1998	Giannis Chatzinikolaou		2013
Milovan Ćirić		1970–71	Alketas Panagoulias		1998–99	Zoran Milinković		2013
Michalis Baltatzis		1971	Ilija Petković		1999–00	Soulis Papadopoulos		2013–14
Les Allen		1971	Giorgos Semertzidis Giannis Michalitsos		2000	Giorgos Foiros		2014
Wilf McGuinness		1971–73				Dimitris Kalaitzidis		2014
Branko Stanković		1973–75	Babis Tennes		2000–01	Paulo Campos		2014–15
Sources:

Player Statistics

Top League Scorers

Sergio Koke

Player	Goals
Dinos Kouis	141
Alekos Alexiadis	127
Kostas Papaioannou	65
Konstantinos Drampis	48
Georgios Zindros	46
Vasilis Dimitriadis	46

Most League Appearances

Player	Matches
Dinos Kouis	473
Theodoros Pallas	368
Christos Nalbantis	303
Georgios Firos	303
Giannis Venos	303

Most Goals in a Single League Match

Nikolaos Angelakis

Super League Top Scorers for Aris

Rank.	Nationality	Player	Times	Seasons
1		Nikos Kitsos	3	1931, 1932, 1934
2		Dinos Kouis	1	1981
3		Nikolaos Angelakis	1	1928
4		Kleanthis Vikelidis	1	1946
5		Vasilis Grigoriadis	1	1949
6		Loren Morón	1	2024

Club Personnel

Ownership and Board Members

Position	Staff
Owner	Amani Swiss
President & CEO	Irini Karipidou
Vice President	Panagiotis Biliris
Board member	Panagiotis Pissanidis

Coaching Staff

Position	Staff
Manager	Marinos Ouzounidis
Assistant manager	Bledar Kola
Fitness coach	Stavros Pantelidis
Goalkeeper coach	Giannis Plavoukos
Analysts	Kleanthis Efstathiadis Dimitris Mouras

Aris Thessaloniki Presidents

Years	Name
1979–80	Menelaos Chatzigeorgiou
1980–82	Christos Kallen
1982–84/1992–93/1997–00	Vangelis Ioannides
1984–85	Kyriakos Maravellias
1985–90	Dimos Dasigenis
1991–92	Dimitris Iliades
1993–94/2000–02	Nikos Tsarouchas
1994–97	Lambros Grantas
2000–01	Panagiotis Spyrou
2001–02	Giannis Zachoudanis
2002–03	Alketas Panagoulias
2003–04	Sotiris Karaberis
2004–05	Nikitas Matthaiou
2005–09	Lambros Skordas
2009–12	Thanasis Athanasiadis
2012–13	Giannis Psifidis
2013	Dimitris Iliadis
2014	Giorgos Galanos
2015–22	Theodoros Karipidis
2022–	Irini Karipidou

More About Aris

• Aris Thessaloniki
• Aris BC (Basketball Club)
• Aris Volleyball Club