The basketball final in Greece is suspended, the government's decision following incidents between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos fans

The Greek government has ordered the temporary suspension of the Greek basketball league finals between Panathinaikos and Olympiakos, following incidents that occurred at the sports palace in Piraeus, before and after the final game.

This time, the incidents are centered on the owners of the two leading teams in the league. The so-called play-off series is currently tied at 1-1 and the third game, scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed.

The presidents, who are also owners of two well-known clubs, have been summoned to meet with the country's Minister of Sports by Wednesday at 3:00 PM.

In online posts, they initially ruled out the possibility of participating in this meeting, casting doubt on the fate of the government ultimatum, while today the Panathinaikos president has positioned himself positively.

"They are calling for a meeting with the Deputy Minister of Sports, Giannis Vroutsis, the owners of the two basketball clubs at the Ministry of Education, Religion and Sports, in order to provide clear guarantees that this situation will end."

"Otherwise, this year's championship will be definitively canceled ," said government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis.

Panathinaikos team president and owner, Dhimmitrios Gianakoulos, was seen forcibly entering the sports palace premises with his bodyguards before the start of the second match and then onto the sports field, threatening the referees to stop the match because Olympiakos fans were hurling insults and threats at his family.

Many videos on social media reflect these moments, but also his insults towards opposing fans and threats towards the two brothers who are presidents of the opposing team, Olympiakos.

The two Athens clubs have a long and often violent rivalry, which extends to basketball, football and other sports.

The recent unrest occurred despite government efforts to curb sports-related violence, which has often resulted in casualties – including surveillance systems in stadiums and mandatory ticketing linked to ID cards.

Olympiakos and Panathinaikos participated in the EuroLeague Final Four in Abu Dhabi last month, finishing third and fourth respectively, while they have been at the top of European basketball for years.

Greek authorities fear that the tension created between team presidents could cause violent incidents among fanatic fans.

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