APOEL FC ( el, ΑΠΟΕΛ; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, ''Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', literally "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") is a Cypriot professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly ...

club based in

Nicosia Nicosia ( ; el, Λευκωσία, Lefkosía ; tr, Lefkoşa ; hy, Նիկոսիա, romanized: ''Nikosia''; Cypriot Arabic: Nikusiya) is the largest city, capital, and seat of government of Cyprus. It is located near the centre of the Mesaori ...

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ...

. APOEL is the most successful football team in Cyprus with an overall tally of 28 national championships, 21

cups CUPS (formerly an acronym for Common UNIX Printing System) is a modular printing system for Unix-like computer operating systems which allows a computer to act as a print server. A computer running CUPS is a host that can accept print job ...

, and 13 super cups. APOEL's greatest moment in European competition occurred in the 2011–12 season, when they advanced out of the

group stage A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

of the UEFA Champions League (winning a group that included

FC Porto Futebol Clube do Porto, MHIH, OM (), commonly known as FC Porto or simply Porto, is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Porto. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Port ...

, Shakhtar Donetsk, and Zenit St. Petersburg), then eliminated

Olympique Lyonnais Olympique Lyonnais (), commonly referred to as simply Lyon () or OL, is a men and women's French professional football club based in Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The men play in France's highest football division, Ligue 1. Founded in 1950, th ...

in the last 16, to become the first Cypriot team to reach the quarter-finals of the Champions League. APOEL's European competitions highlights also include appearances in the group stages of the 2009–10 and 2014–15

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...

and the group stages of the 2013–14, 2015–16, and 2016–17

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...

. They marked their most successful UEFA Europa League campaign during the 2016–17 season, when they managed to top their group (along with

Olympiacos Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a numbe ...

, Young Boys, and

Astana Astana, previously known as Akmolinsk, Tselinograd, Akmola, and most recently Nur-Sultan, is the capital city of Kazakhstan. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim River in the north-central part of Kazakhstan, within the Akmola Region, tho ...

) and eliminated

Athletic Bilbao Athletic Club ( eu, Bilboko Athletic Kluba; es, Athletic Club de Bilbao), commonly known as Athletic Bilbao or just Athletic, is a professional football club based in the city of Bilbao in the Basque Country of Spain. They are known as ''Los L ...

in the

round of 32 A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

, to reach the last 16 of the competition for the first time in their history. APOEL is the only Cypriot club who have reached the group stages (and the knockout stages) of both major UEFA competitions (UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League). In the 2016–17 season, APOEL drew an average home league attendance of 7,126 and their highest league attendance was 15,462. Both were the highest in the league. APOEL FC is part of the

APOEL APOEL FC ( el, ΑΠΟΕΛ; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, ''Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', literally "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") ...

multi-sport club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...

, which was founded in 1926 and maintains departments for several sports including football,

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Sum ...

futsal Futsal is a football-based game played on a hard court smaller than a football pitch, and mainly indoors. It has similarities to five-a-side football and indoor football. Futsal is played between two teams of five players each, one of whom is ...

, table tennis, bowling, cycling, archery, swimming and water polo. APOEL is one of the founding members of the

Cyprus Football Association The Cyprus Football Association (CFA; el, Κυπριακή Ομοσπονδία Ποδοσφαίρου (ΚΟΠ), Kypriakí Omospondía Podosfaírou (KOP)) is the governing body of football (soccer), football in Cyprus and is based in Nicosia. It ...

and also an ordinary member of the

European Club Association The European Club Association (ECA) is a body representing the interests of professional association football clubs in UEFA. It is the sole such body recognised by the confederation, and has member clubs in each UEFA member association. It was fo ...

, an organization that replaced the previous G-14 which consists of major football clubs in Europe.

History

1926–1929 : The early years

The club was formed as POEL ( el, ΠΟΕΛ; Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, links=no, ''Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia) on 8 November 1926. The club's formation came about when a group of forty people, with a common vision, met and set the foundations for creating a football club that would represent the

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

residents of the

capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used fo ...

and express their deep desire for Cyprus' incorporation (

enosis ''Enosis'' ( el, Ένωσις, , "union") is the movement of various Greek communities that live outside Greece for incorporation of the regions that they inhabit into the Greek state. The idea is related to the Megali Idea, an irredentist conc ...

) into Greece. The meeting took place at a traditional confectionery, owned by Charalambos Hadjioannou, downtown in Ledra Street and the first president of the club was Giorgos Poulias. The first clubhouse was the "Athenians Club" () at the end of Ledra Street. After a journey to the football club in

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandri ...

, Egypt in 1927 the General Assembly of 1928 decided the players showed that they were not just good footballers but also excellent track and field athletes. Hence it was decided to create a track and field team in addition to the football team. The name APOEL was adopted to reflect this, with the 'A' standing for 'Athletic'. Soon after a volleyball team and a table tennis team were established.

The 1930s : The first league titles

Cyprus did not have any country-wide league until 1932. Football clubs of the time played friendly matches only. In 1932, Pezoporikos Larnaca organised an unofficial league, the first island-wide league, and it was won by APOEL after defeating

AEL Limassol Athlitiki Enosi Lemesou ( el, Αθλητική Ένωση Λεμεσού, translation=Athletic Union of Limassol) commonly known as AEL, is a Cypriot sports club based in the city of Limassol, most famous for its football team. AEL also maintai ...

in the final by 4–0. In 1934, there was a disagreement between Trust and Anorthosis Famagusta on the organisation of the fourth unofficial league. APOEL and

organised a meeting for the foundation of a country-wide governing body and an official country-wide league. The meeting took place in APOEL's clubhouse on 23 September and the establishment of the

was agreed. Two years later the APOEL football team celebrated its first

championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

title of the official Cyprus football league. APOEL also won the championship for the following four years, making this a very successful period for the club with 5 consecutive

championships In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

(1936–1940).

The 1948 conflicts

Politics, however, would soon spark conflict within the team. On 23 May 1948 the board of the club send a telegram to the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics ( el, Σ.Ε.Γ.Α.Σ.), with the opportunity of the annual Panhellenic Track and Field Competition, which included wishes that "the rebellion" is finished. Several leftist club members perceived the telegram as a political comment on the

Greek Civil War The Greek Civil War ( el, ο Eμφύλιος �όλεμος}, ''o Emfýlios'' 'Pólemos'' "the Civil War") took place from 1946 to 1949. It was mainly fought against the established Kingdom of Greece, which was supported by the United Kingdom and ...

and they distanced themselves from the club. A few days later, on 4 June 1948, they founded

AC Omonia Athletic Club Omonia Nicosia ( el, Αθλητικός Σύλλογος Oμόνοιας Λευκωσίας, ΑΣΟΛ; ''Athlitikos Sillogos Omonias Lefkosias'', ''ASOL''), commonly known as Omonia Nicosia, or simply Omonia ("Harmony"; also tran ...

, which until today is the archrival of APOEL and there has been a traditional animosity between the fans of the two teams.

1955–59 period

More conflicts led to further struggles for APOEL. Athletes belonging to the club frequently participated in national clashes. During the 1955–59 national uprising against the British, many of APOEL's athletes and members of the club were active members of

EOKA The Ethniki Organosis Kyprion Agoniston (EOKA; ; el, Εθνική Οργάνωσις Κυπρίων Αγωνιστών, lit=National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters) was a Greek Cypriot nationalist paramilitary organisation that fought a cam ...

(the National Organisation of Cypriot Fighters), the most outstanding example being the club's track and field athlete Michalakis Karaolis who was hanged by the British colonial authorities. During this period the football team had their closest brush with relegation as most football players were actively taking part in the national struggle.

Triumph in the 1963–64 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup

The football team were quickly back to full strength and made their debut in European Competitions (the first not only for APOEL but for any Cypriot team) in 1963, when they faced the Norwegian team SK Gjøvik-Lyn in the

UEFA Cup Winners' Cup The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tourn ...

. Two victories for APOEL over both legs (6–0, 1–0) marked APOEL's successful European debut, as they became the first Hellenic team to progress in a European Competition. The next round against the tournament winners

Sporting Clube de Portugal Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional f ...

met APOEL with their heaviest defeat ever (16–1) and put an end to APOEL's European debut.

The successful participation in pan-Hellenic Greek Championship

Other triumphs followed in the early 1970s. In 1973 the domestic double was achieved with coach Panos Markovic. The following year APOEL became the only Cypriot team to avoid relegation from the pan-Hellenic Greek Championship. That was also the last season that the Cypriot champion played in the Greek Football League the following year due to the volatile situation in Cyprus during 1974.

The 1980s: European Cup 1986–87 withdrawal

The 1980s were a relatively fruitless period for APOEL. They have only won two

(1980,1986), one

cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, cl ...

(1984) and two super cups (1984, 1986). In 1986 APOEL was drawn against

Beşiktaş J.K. Beşiktaş Jimnastik Kulübü (), also known simply as Beşiktaş (), is a Turkish sports club founded in 1903 that is based in the Beşiktaş district of Istanbul. The club's football team is one of the Big Three in Turkey and one of the most ...

for the second round of the

European Cup The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

. This was the first time that a Cypriot team faced a Turkish team in a European football competition. The Cypriot government prohibited APOEL from playing against the Turkish team, so APOEL was punished with two years disqualification from any

UEFA Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs fo ...

competition. This penalty was later reduced to one-year.

The 1990s : The unbeaten "double" in 1995–96

The 1990s were a successful decade for APOEL with 3

(1990, 1992, 1996), 5

(1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999) and 4 super cups (1992, 1993, 1996, 1999). The most successful season in the 1990s was 1995–96 in which APOEL achieved a celebratory double while remaining undefeated in the league. The

basketball team Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's ...

won a double on the same season, making this the ideal season for a 70th anniversary celebration.

The formation of APOEL FC Company

APOEL Football (Public) Ltd was established in May 1997, after the decision of APOEL committee. This had a significant effect on the club because it separated the activities of the football team from those of the

sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...

. The formation of the company was necessitated by the financial difficulties the team faced at the time. The company began its operations with a capital of CY £600,000.

2000s–2010s: Domestic domination

APOEL is the most successful football team in Cyprus since the 2000s. In seventeen years, the club won twelve

(2002, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019), four

(2006, 2008, 2014, 2015) and seven super cups (2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2019). In the 2013–14 season, APOEL achieved a historical domestic treble by winning all the Cypriot competitions trophies, the league, the cup, and the super cup. The next season (2014–15), the club won their second consecutive

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * ...

. In the 2016–17 season, APOEL managed to win their fifth consecutive

league League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

title and equalled the club's record which was set 77 years before (1936–1940). The 2020–21 season marked the end of APOEL's dominance in Cyprus, as they failed to make the championship playoffs for the first time in the club's history. The following season, APOEL finished third, missing out on Champions League qualification in the last matchday, and instead qualifying for the Europa Conference League.

European ambitions

APOEL's first great run in European competitions came in 2002, when the team was knocked out on the third qualifying round of the

, entered the

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

and reached the second round of the competition. The following years, APOEL qualified four times for the

group stages ( 2009–10, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2017–18), and managed to reach the quarter-finals in the 2011–12 season. The team also participated in the group stages of the 2013–14, 2015–16 & 2016–17

, managing to reach the last 16 of the competition in the 2016-17 season.

APOEL FC as a company

The football department of APOEL is legally owned by APOEL Football (Public) Ltd ( el, ΑΠΟΕΛ Ποδόσφαιρο (Δημόσια) Λτδ), a

public limited company A public limited company (legally abbreviated to PLC or plc) is a type of public company under United Kingdom company law, some Commonwealth jurisdictions, and the Republic of Ireland. It is a limited liability company whose shares may be fr ...

, since 1997. The company's main activity is the management, operation and commercial exploitation of APOEL Football club. The company owns all the rights for the football department under an agreement with APOEL sports club and pays the club CY£100,000 annually for the privilege. The agreement between the company and the club is renewed every five years. The company has 1745 shareholders and besides the football club, also maintains a team boutique (Orange Shop), the APOELFC ( el, ΑΠΟΕΛFC) magazine and th
apoelfc.com.cy
website among others.

Youth Academy

APOEL's youth academy is a separate legal entity from the football club. They are responsible for the under 21 teams for football, basketball and volleyball and they have their own board of directors and budget. The football academy has produced many quality Cypriot players over the years. Players started from the academy and had great contribution APOEL are: Marinos Satsias, Constantinos Charalambides,

Nektarios Alexandrou Nektarios Alexandrou ( el, Νεκτάριος Αλεξάνδρου; born December 19, 1983 in Nicosia, Cyprus) is a Greek Cypriot former professional footballer. He was a left flank specialist, but he primarily played as the left winger. Care ...

, Michalis Morfis and Marios Antoniades. All of them have also competed at international level with the

Cyprus national football team The Cyprus national football team ( el, Εθνική ομάδα ποδοσφαίρου της Κύπρου) represents Cyprus in international football and is controlled by the Cyprus Football Association, the governing body for football in Cyp ...

while Charalambides and Alexandrou have played for teams in the

Greek Super League The Super League Greece 1 ( el, Ελληνική Σούπερ Λιγκ 1), or Super League 1, is the highest professional association football league in Greece. The league was formed on 16 July 2006 and replaced ''Alpha Ethniki'' at the top of ...

in the past.

UEFA Youth League participations

APOEL's U19 team participated for the first time in the

UEFA Youth League The UEFA Youth League is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) since 2013. In its current format, it is contested by the youth teams of the clubs competing in the UEFA Champions League ...

group stage during 2014–15 season, drawn in Group F alongside

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

Paris Saint-Germain Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...

and

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...

. APOEL managed to collect only one point after drawing 0–0 with

at home and lost their other five Group F matches. They lost twice to

(2–3 at home, 0–3 away), lost twice to

(0–3 at home, 0–6 away) and also lost to

1–4 away, finishing fourth in their group. The next two seasons, APOEL's U19 team participated again in the

. The 2015–16 season they competed in the

first round First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

of the

Domestic Champions Path Domestic may refer to: In the home * Anything relating to the human home or family ** A domestic animal, one that has undergone domestication ** A domestic appliance, or home appliance ** A domestic partnership ** Domestic science, sometimes cal ...

, being drawn to face Puskás Akadémia from Hungary. After a dramatic 3–3 draw in the first leg in

, APOEL U19 suffered a heavy 6–1 loss in Felcsút and were eventually eliminated. The 2016–17 season they competed in the

of the

, being eliminated by Italian side A.S. Roma after losing 0–3 at home and 1–6 in Italy.

Colours and badge

APOEL's colours are blue and yellow. Blue symbolizes

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

and yellow symbolizes

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion ( grc, Βυζάντιον) was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium' ...

. The logo is a blue and yellow shield with the name of the club written diagonally in blue. After the club won their 20th championship ( 2008–09 season), two stars were added above the logo to symbolize the 20 championship titles (one star for every ten championships won). Other than that, the badge has remained the same since the establishment of the club.

Stadium

APOEL's home ground since 23 October 1999, is the 22,859 seater GSP Stadium. It is the largest stadium in Cyprus and they share it with local rivals Omonia and Olympiakos Nicosia. Before moving to GSP Stadium, APOEL used as home grounds the Makario Stadium (from 1978 until 1999) and the old GSP Stadium (prior to 1978).

Supporters

APOEL is one of the most popular teams in Cyprus. APOEL fans are right-wing in their majority but there are no strong ties between the organised fans and any political party. That wasn't always the case but during the past years they have actively avoided association with any political party. The main supporter group is PAN.SY.FI ( el, ΠΑΝ.ΣΥ.ΦΙ). PAN.SY.FI was founded in 1979 and has branches in all major cities in

and also in other countries. The PAN.SY.FI (and most ultras) wear orange jackets (or T-shirts). The first game they sported the orange jackets was during the first-round game of the 1992–93 championship against

in Makario Stadium. APOEL have reserved the shirt number 79 in honour of PAN.SY.FI. (APOEL Ultras), to denote the year the group was founded, 1979. The club record for ticket sales in a single season is 141,268 (15 matches, home league games only) during the 2010–11 season. The club record for average league games attendance in a single season is 9,582 (13 matches, home league games only) during the 2012–13 season. The club's season tickets sales record was set on season 2014–15, in which more than 8,000 season tickets were sold. APOEL holds the record of the highest home attendance for Cyprus First Division in the game against Omonia with 23,043 tickets for 2002–03 season. The match was held at GSP Stadium on 7 December 2002 and ended in a goalless draw. The club holds also the record of the highest attendance of a Cypriot team for a

European Competition The European Competition is a student competition in which students of all ages submit creative, artistic, or written pieces of work on the activities of the European Union. Tendered by European Movement Germany, it is the oldest student competition ...

game with 22,701 tickets in the match against

for the return leg of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League last 16. The match which was held on 7 March 2012 at GSP Stadium of

ended with a 1–0 win for APOEL after extra time and 4–3 win on penalties. On 8 December 2009, APOEL fans created another impressive record. More than 6,000 fans of the team travelled to London at Stamford Bridge for the last match of the 2009–10 Champions League group D against Chelsea F.C. which ended in a 2–2 draw. This is the biggest number of fans of any Cypriot team that had ever travelled away from

. A similar record created on 14 February 2012, in APOEL's participation to the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League last 16, when more than 5,000 APOEL fans travelled in France to support their team against

. The match was held at

Stade de Gerland The Stade de Gerland (known for sponsorship reasons as Matmut Stadium de Gerland and otherwise known as Municipal de Gerland or Stade Gerland ) is a stadium in the city of Lyon, France, which serves as home to Top 14 rugby club Lyon OU. It has a ...

and

took a slender advantage into the second leg by winning 1–0. Also, on 4 April 2012, about 4,000 APOEL fans travelled to Santiago Bernabéu in Madrid, to support APOEL against

Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...

for the return leg of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, in a match which Real Madrid won by 5–2. During 2009–10 season APOEL sold in total 244,977 tickets for its home matches in all competitions (

Championship In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion. Championship systems Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship. Title match system In this system ...

Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, cl ...

, Champions League), which is the biggest number of tickets sold by a Cypriot club in a single season.

Rivalries

Nicosia derby

The Nicosia derby (or the Derby of the eternal enemies) refers to the

local derby Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

matches played between APOEL and Omonia. It is the classic rivalry of the Cypriot football, as the two teams are the most successful and most popular football clubs of the island. The rivalry is also indicative of social, cultural and political differences and originates from 1948 when the board of APOEL sent a telegram to the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics (Greek: Σ.Ε.Γ.Α.Σ.), with the opportunity of the annual Panhellenic Track and Field Competition stating its wish for the "communist mutiny" to be ended. Club's players considering this action as a political comment on the

distanced themselves or were expelled from APOEL and a month later they formed Omonia. The first derby was played on 12 December 1953 and ended in a goalless draw.

Current squad

Out on loan

Club officials

Board of directors

Source
apoelfc.com.cy
/small>

Personnel

Source
apoelfc.com.cy
/small>

Technical staff

Source
apoelfc.com.cy
/small>

Medical staff

Source
apoelfc.com.cy
/small>

Sponsorship

Main sponsors

* Official shirt sponsor – Pari-Match * Official sport clothing provider – Macron * Official host broadcaster – Cytavision * Official back of shirt sponsor – 3CX * Official shorts sponsor – DIMCO LTD Source
apoelfc.com.cy
/small>

Managerial history

Last Update: 7 October 2022 * 1931–1933 Antone Jean * 1933–1951

József Künsztler József Künsztler (1897 in Budapest – 1977 in Nicosia) was a Hungarian footballer and manager. He won one Greek championship as manager with Panathinaikos F.C. in 1930 and 8 Cypriot championships with APOEL FC APOEL FC ( el, ΑΠ� ...

* 1951–1952 Pambos Avraamides * 1952–1953

Béla Guttmann Béla Guttmann (; 27 January 1899 – 28 August 1981) was a Hungarian footballer and coach. He was born in Budapest, Austria-Hungary, and was Jewish. He was deported by the Nazis to a Nazi slave labor camp where he was tortured; he survived the ...

* 1953–1954 Pambos Avraamidis * 1954–1955 Schwartz * 1955–1956 Hanz * 1956–1958 Kostas Talianos * 1958–1959 Takis Tsigkis * 1959–1961 Vaggelis Choumis * 1961–1962 Andreas Lazarides * 1962–1963

Jesse Carver Jesse Carver (7 July 1911 – 29 November 2003) was an English footballer, best remembered for his enlightened management of some of Europe's finest clubs. Club career Carver started out in football as a player, joining Blackburn Rovers as an ...

* 1963–1964

Neil Franklin Cornelius "Neil" Franklin (24 January 1922 – 9 February 1996) was an English footballer who played for Crewe Alexandra, Hull City, Stockport County and Stoke City as well as the England national team. Career Stoke City Franklin was b ...

* 1964–1965 Kostas Talianos * 1965–1966 Gyula Zsengellér * 1966–1967 Lajos Szendrödi * 1967 Lykourgos Archontidis * 1967–1969 Pambos Avraamides * 1969–1970

* 1970–1971 Andreas Lazarides * 1971–1972 Ray Wood * 1972–1974 Panos Markovic * 1974–1975 Andreas Lazarides * 1975 Panos Markovic * 1975–1976 Andreas Lazarides * 1976–1977 Savvas Partakis * 1977–1978

Keith Spurgeon Keith Matthew Spurgeon (29 August 1932 – December 1984) was an English football player and manager. Playing career Spurgeon played for Tottenham Hotspur, Margate, Leytonstone, Folkestone Town, Herne Bay and Snowdown Colliery Welfare. In Octo ...

* 1978–1981 Andreas Lazarides * 1981–1983 Mike Ferguson * 1983–1985 Panos Markovic * 1985–1989 Tommy Cassidy * 1989–1990 Giannis Matzourakis * 1990–1991 Stanko Poklepović * 1991–1993

Jacek Gmoch Jacek Wojciech Gmoch (born 13 January 1939 in Pruszków) is a former Polish footballer, who later became a trainer and manager of the Poland National Team. While having a successful football career he graduated in communication from the Wars ...

* 1993–1994 Takis Antoniou * 1994–1995 Giannis Matzourakis * 1995–1996 Hristo Bonev * 1996

Svetozar Šapurić Svetozar Šapurić (; born 28 August 1960) is a Serbian football manager and former player. He is the current manager of Chinese club Cangzhou Mighty Lions. Career Šapurić started out at his hometown club Vrbas, spending eight seasons in th ...

* 1996–1997

* 1997

Nikos Alefantos Nikos Alefantos ( el, Νίκος Αλέφαντος, 3 January 1939 – 23 June 2020) was a Greek professional footballer and football coach. Career Alefantos managed several clubs in the Greek Super League, including Olympiacos during 2004. H ...

* 1997–1998

Kurt Jara Kurt Jara (born 14 October 1950) is an Austrian football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. Playing career Club career Born in Innsbruck, Jara started his professional career with local side FC Wacker Innsbruck before moving ...

* 1998 Andreas Mouskallis * 1998

Costas Georgiou Costas Georgiou (; 1951 – 10 July 1976), also known by his alias Colonel Callan, was a Cypriot-born British mercenary executed in Angola following the Luanda Trial for activities during the civil war phase of the Angolan War of Independence ...

* 1998–1999 Georgios Paraschos * 1999 Slobodan Vučeković * 1999–2000

Andreas Michaelides Andreas Michaelides ( gr, Ανδρέας Μιχαηλίδης; born in Limassol, December 29, 1952) is a Cypriot manager, the president of Cypriot Managers Federation, and member of the House of Representatives of Cyprus. He started his coaching ...

* 2000

* 2000 Markos Markou * 2000–2001 Mike Walker * 2001–2002

Eugène Gerards Eugène 'Gène' Gerards (7 May 1940 − 2 January 2018) was a Dutch football player, manager and scout. As a player, Gerards played for Limburgian clubs SV Limburgia and Fortuna '54. As a manager, he spent the majority of his career in Greece, ...

* 2002–2003 Takis Lemonis * 2003 Dušan Uhrin * 2003–2005 Ivan Jovanović * 2005 Werner Lorant * 2005

Marios Constantinou Marios Constantinou ( el, Μάριος Κωνσταντίνου; born on 14 July 1967) is a former international Cypriot football midfielder and current manager. He is a holder of the UEFA Pro Licence. In the past he was footballer of Pezopo ...

* 2005–2006

Jerzy Engel Władysław Jerzy Engel (; born 6 October 1952 in Włocławek, Poland) is a Polish former footballer and coach. Biography Playing career Engel began his career in football at an early age playing at local youth club Junak Wloclawek, before be ...

* 2006–2008

Marinos Ouzounidis Marinos Ouzounidis ( el, Μαρίνος Ουζουνίδης, born 10 October 1968) is a Greek football manager and former professional player. Playing career Ouzounidis started his professional career playing for Greek club Skoda Xanthi as a ...

* 2008–2013 Ivan Jovanović * 2013 Paulo Sérgio * 2013–2015

Giorgos Donis Georgios Donis ( el, Γεώργιος Δώνης; born 22 October 1969) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder and currently a manager. He is the current manager of Saudi Arabian club Al-Fateh. He was the first eve ...

* 2015

Thorsten Fink Thorsten Fink (born 29 October 1967) is a German football coach and a former footballer, currently works as manager of Riga FC. Career Fink began his career with Borussia Dortmund's reserve squad before moving to SG Wattenscheid 09, where he he ...

* 2015 Domingos Paciência * 2015–2016 Temur Ketsbaia * 2016–2017 Thomas Christiansen * 2017 Mario Been * 2017–2018

* 2018

Bruno Baltazar Bruno Miguel Nunes Baltazar (born 6 July 1977) is a Portuguese retired footballer who played as a central defender, currently manager of Rochester New York FC in MLS Next Pro. Playing career Born in Lisbon, Baltazar started his career with lo ...

* 2018–2019

Paolo Tramezzani Paolo Tramezzani (born 30 July 1970) is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a defender. He was most recently the manager of FC Sion. Playing career Tramezzani was born at Castelnovo ne' Monti in Emilia. At the age of n ...

* 2019 Thomas Doll * 2019 Loukas Hadjiloukas (interim) * 2019–2020 Kåre Ingebrigtsen * 2020

* 2020–2021 Mick McCarthy * 2021

Savvas Poursaitidis Savvas Poursaitidis ( el, Σάββας Πουρσαϊτίδης, born 23 June 1976) is a former professional footballer who most recently was the manager of Cypriot First Division club APOEL. Poursaitidis played football, mainly as a right back ...

* 2021–2022 Sofronis Avgousti * 2022–

Vladan Milojević Vladan Milojević (; born 9 March 1970) is a Serbian professional football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Cypriot First Division club APOEL. Playing career Born in Aranđelovac, Milojević joined the youth system of R ...

Presidential history

APOEL has had numerous presidents over the course of their history. Since the establishment of APOEL Football Ltd, the presidents of the board of directors of the company (chairmen) have assumed all presidential duties for the football club. Here are complete lists of both: Presidents: * 1926–1958 – Georgios Poulias * 1958–1967 – Εfthyvoulos Αnthoullis * 1967–1968 – Michalakis Triantafyllides * 1968–1969 – Takis Skarparis * 1969–1971 – Constantinos Loukos * 1971–1974 – Michalakis Zivanaris * 1974–1975 – Kikis Lazarides * 1975–1983 – Iakovos Filippou * 1983–1988 – Michalakis Zivanaris * 1988–1991 – Andreas Papaellinas * 1991–1992 – Kykkos Fotiades * 1992–1994 – Mike Ioannides * 1994–1996 – Christos Triantafyllides * 1996–1999 – Ouranios Ioannides * 1999–2000 – Dinos Palmas * 2002–2004 – Dinos Fisentzides * 2004–2007 – Yiannos Ioannou * 2007–2008 – Costas Schizas * 2008–2009 – Christodoulos Ellinas * 2009–2011 – Prodromos Petrides * 2011–2012 – Aris Vasilopoulos * 2012–2014 – Christoforos Potamitis * 2014–2016 – Marios Charalambous * 2016–present – Christoforos Potamitis Chairmen: * 1997–1998 – Mike Ioannides * 1998–2000 – Christos Triantafyllides * 2000–2001 – Harris Papanastasiou * 2001–2006 – Prodromos Petrides * 2006–2008 – Kyriakos Zivanaris * 2008–2013 – Phivos Erotokritou * 2013–present – Prodromos Petrides

Former players

List of former players with national team appearances or having won multiple titles with the club: ; Cyprus *

Marios Agathokleous Marios Agathokleous (born September 8, 1974 in Limassol, Cyprus) is a retired Cypriot football striker. Club career Agathokleous last played for Thermaikos in the Greek Gamma Ethniki. His former teams are AEL Limassol, Athinaikos, Aris Thessa ...

(2001–2003) * Takis Antoniou (1972–1986) * Aristos Aristokleous (1990–2001) * Constantinos Charalambides (1997–2004, 2008–2016) * Zacharias Charalambous (2001–2005) * Andreas Christodoulou (1966–1970) * Georgios Christodoulou (1995–2002) * Costas Costa (1989–1999) * Costas Fasouliotis (1990–2000) * Demetris Daskalakis (2000–2008) * Marios Elia (1998–2014) * Stavros Georgiou (2002–2007) * Loukas Hadjiloukas (1987–2000) *

Yiannos Ioannou Yiannos Ioannou ( el, Γιάννος Ιωάννου) (born January 25, 1966) is a former Cypriot football player. Club career He was one of the most successful strikers in Cyprus ever and because of that he was given the nickname "Mr Goal". Pl ...

(1981–2000) * Nikakis Kantzilieris (1961–1972) *

Constantinos Makrides Constantinos Makrides ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Μακρίδης; born 13 January 1982) is a Cypriot international footballer who plays for Apollon Limassol as a central midfielder. Club career Apollon Makrides started playing football a ...

(2004–2008, 2015) *

Costas Malekkos Costas Malekkos ( el, Κώστας Μαλέκκος, born 9 April 1971) is a Cypriot former footballer who played as a midfielder for the Cyprus national team. He was the manager of Olympiakos Nicosia. He is considered one of the best Cypriot pla ...

(2001–2005) * Markos Markou (1973–1978) * Costas Miamiliotis (1977–1989, 1992–1994) * Chrysis Michael (2003–2011) * Michalis Morfis (1999–2010) * Marios Neophytou (2004–2007) * Stelios Okkarides (1997–1998, 2001–2007) *

Nikodimos Papavasiliou Nikodimos "Nikki" Papavasiliou ( el, Νικόδημος Παπαβασιλείου; born 31 August 1970) is a Cypriot football manager and former international midfielder. He is currently the manager of National Bank of Egypt in the Egyptian ...

(2002–2003) * Giorgos Pantziaras (1971–1978, 1985–1987) * Nicos Pantziaras (1972–1987) * Koullis Pantziaras (1976–1992) * Andros Petrides (1984–2000) * Marinos Satsias (1995–2014) * Georgios Savva (1949–1955, 1956–1961) * Athos Solomou (2009–2014) * Andreas Sotiriou (1986–1998, 2001) * Andreas Stylianou (1963–1978) * Pieros Sotiriou (2013–2017) *

Diomidis Symeonidis Diomidis Symeonidis (1908 – 24 April 1981) was a Cypriot footballer, one of the founders of APOEL. Symeonidis was born in 1908 and was, along with his brother Christos, a footballer of Aetos - a local Nicosia club - until 1926 when he met G ...

(1926–1929, 1934–1935) * Nicos Timotheou (1992–1993, 1994–2001) * Yiasoumis Yiasoumi (1998–2001) ; Albania *

Altin Haxhi Altin Haxhi (born 17 June 1975) is an Albanian retired footballer who played as a defender. Club career Haxhi's former clubs include Shqiponja Gjirokastër, Panachaiki, Litex Lovech, Iraklis Thessaloniki, CSKA Sofia, Apollon Kalamarias, Ano ...

(2008–2010) ; Algeria * Rafik Djebbour (2014–2015) ; Argentina * Fernando Cavenaghi (2015–2016) *

Esteban Solari Esteban Andrés Solari Poggio (; born 2 June 1980) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a striker, currently manager of Malaysia Super League club Johor Darul Ta'zim. Playing career Solari was born in Rosario, Santa ...

(2005–2007, 2010–2012) * Tomás De Vincenti (2014–2016) ; Armenia * Romik Khachatryan (2002–2003) ; Australia * Paul Okon (2005–2006) ; Austria *

Alfred Hörtnagl Alfred Hörtnagl (born 24 September 1966 in Matrei am Brenner) is a retired Austrian football player. Club career Born in Tyrol, the defensive midfielder played mostly for Tirol Innsbruck. Also he played for Austrian big clubs Rapid Wien and ...

(1997) *

Christoph Westerthaler Christoph Westerthaler (11 January 1965 – 20 July 2018) was an Austrian football coach and player. Club career Nicknamed ''Gischi'', Westerthaler was a small-built striker who started his professional career at FC Wacker Innsbruck and stayed ...

(1997) ; Belarus * Renan Bressan (2016–2017) ; Bosnia and Herzegovina *

Sanel Jahić Sanel Jahić (born 10 December 1981) is a Bosnian football coach and former player who currently works as a coach in the youth team of Bosnian Premier League club Željezničar. Throughout his playing career, he was best known for being a uti ...

; Brazil * Aílton Almeida (2010–2012) * William Boaventura (2010–2012) * Carlão (2014–2017) * Zé Carlos (2007–2008) * João Guilherme (2013–2016) *

Kaká Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (; born 22 April 1982), commonly known as Kaká () or Ricardo Kaká, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. In his prime as a playmaker at AC Milan, a period marke ...

(2011–2012, 2014–2015) * Gustavo Manduca (2010–2015) * Veridiano Marcelo (1998–2000) * Marcinho (2010–2012) * Emerson Moisés Costa (2007) * Marcelo Oliveira (2011–2014) * Jean Paulista (2008–2010) *

César Santin César Santin (; born 24 February 1981) is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is currently working as an academy coach at Hillerød Fodbold. He is a versatile player, being able to play most of the attackin ...

(2014) * Marcos Tavares (2007) ; Colombia * Hamilton Ricard (2004–2005) ; Costa Rica *

Rónald Gómez Rónald Gómez Gómez (born 24 January 1975 in Puntarenas) is a retired Costa Rican football forward and manager. He is the current manager for Liga Nacional club Santa Lucía. An important player on the Costa Rica national football team d ...

(2006–2007) ; Croatia *

Ardian Kozniku Ardian Kozniku (born 27 October 1967) is a Kosovan-Croatian professional football coach and former player who most recently was the assistant manager of Al Faisaly. Playing career Club He started his career at Vëllaznimi from Gjakova and was ...

(1997) ; Czech Republic * Tomáš Votava (2003–2004) ; Denmark *

Mikkel Beckmann Mikkel Beckmann (born 24 October 1983) is a Danish retired professional Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. He is the assistant coach of Lyngby Boldklub, Lyngby BK. Club career Beckmann start ...

(2013) ; England * Chris Bart-Williams (2004–2005) * Dave Esser (1982–1983) *

Terry McDermott Terence McDermott (born 8 December 1951) is an English former football midfielder who was a member of the Liverpool team of the 1970s and early 1980s, in which he won three European Cups and five First Division titles. He was capped 25 times ...

(1985–1987) *

Ian Moores Ian Richard Moores (5 October 1954 – 12 January 1998) was an English footballer who played in the Football League for Barnsley, Bolton Wanderers, Orient, Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur. Playing career Moores was born in Chesterton, Staffo ...

(1983–1988) * Gary Owen (1988–1989) ; France * Bark Seghiri (2006–2009) ; Germany * Martin Lanig (2015) ; Ghana * Ebenezer Hagan (2005) ; Greece *

Georgios Amanatidis Georgios Amanatidis ( el, Γεώργιος Αμανατίδης; born 4 April 1970) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a defender. Playing career Amanatidis was captain of the Greek side Olympiacos F.C., and a member of th ...

(2003–2004) * Dionisis Chiotis (2008–2015) *

Giannis Gianniotas Giannis Gianniotas ( gr, Γιάννης Γιαννιώτας; born 29 April 1993) is a Greek professional footballer who plays as a winger for Super League club Levadiakos. Club career Aris 2011–12 season Born in Neochori, Greece, Gianniotas ...

(2016–2017) *

Alexandros Kaklamanos Alexandros Kaklamanos ( gr, Αλέξανδρος Κακλαμάνος; born 20 May 1974) is a Greek footballer who currently plays for Kleovoulos Lindou as a striker. Career He played in many teams such as Ialysos, Olympiacos, Athinaikos, ...

(2005–2006) *

Michalis Kapsis Michalis Kapsis ( el, Μιχάλης Καψής, born 18 October 1973) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. He was an integral part of Greece's UEFA Euro 2004 winning squad. Club career Aris Nikeas Kapsis sta ...

(2007–2008) * Christos Karipidis (2012–2013) *

Christos Kontis Christos Kontis ( el, Χρήστος Κόντης, born 13 May 1975) is a Greek professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former player. Club career Kontis started his career at Ethnikos Piraeus F.C ...

(2006–2011) *

Nikos Machlas Nikos Machlas ( el, Νίκος Μαχλάς, born 16 June 1973) is a retired Greek former professional footballer who played as a striker. Club career OFI Crete Machlas began his career with OFI Crete, where he made his debut in February 1991 a ...

(2006–2008) *

Spiros Marangos Spyros Marangos ( el, Σπύρος Μαραγκός, born 20 February 1967) is a former Greek football player. He played for Panionios, Panathinaikos, PAOK, Omonia and APOEL at the club level. He also made 26 appearances for the Greece natio ...

(2000–2002) *

(2001–2003) * Anastasios Papazoglou (2014–2015) * Savvas Poursaitides (2008–2012) *

Miltiadis Sapanis Miltiadis Sapanis ( el, Μιλτιάδης Σαπάνης; born 28 January 1976) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Sapanis previously played for Paniliakos, Panathinaikos FC and AEK Athens in the ...

(2007–2008) *

Ilias Solakis Ilias Solakis ( el, Ηλίας Σολάκης; born 15 December 1974) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. Career Born in Florina, Solakis began his professional career with Veria and played for the club in the Al ...

(2001–2002) * Alexandros Tziolis (2012–2013) * Georgios Vakouftsis (2002–2005) ; Hungary *

József Kiprich József Kiprich (born 6 September 1963) is a retired Hungary, Hungarian soccer, football forward and currently a coach (sport), football manager and Scout (sport), scout. He made his debut for the Hungary national football team, Hungarian natio ...

(1995–1997) * Kálmán Kovács (1995–1996) * István Kozma (1995–1997) *

Barnabás Sztipánovics Barnabás Sztipánovics (born 2 July 1974) is a Hungarian retired football player. Career In the 1998–99 season, he shared the place of the scorer leader of the Croatian First Football League with his teammate from Rijeka, Igor Musa, both ...

(2002–2003) *

Roland Sallai Roland Sallai (born 22 May 1997) is a Hungarian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Bundesliga club SC Freiburg and the Hungary national team. Club career Puskás Akadémia Sallai started his professional career at Puskás A ...

(2017–2018) *

Norbert Balogh Norbert Sándor Balogh (born 21 February 1996) is a Hungarian footballer who plays as a forward for DAC Dunajská Streda and the Hungarian national team. Club career Balogh grew up in very poor circumstances in Hajdúböszörmény, Hajdú C ...

(2018–2019) ; Ireland * Cillian Sheridan (2013–2015) ; Israel *

Dudu Biton Dudu Biton ( he, דודו ביטון; born 1 March 1988) is an Israeli footballer who plays as a striker for Maccabi Jaffa. Career Club Biton played in the youth clubs of Beitar Nes Tubruk and Maccabi Haifa. He made his debut for Maccabi Haif ...

(2013) ; Jordan * Musa Al-Taamari (2018–2020) ; North Macedonia * Boban Grnčarov (2009–2011) * Goran Lazarevski (2000–2001) * Jane Nikolovski (2007–2008) * Milan Stojanovski (2004–2005) * Ivan Tričkovski (2010–2012) ; Morocco *

Mohammed Chaouch Mohamed Chaouch ( ar, محمد شاوش; born December 12, 1966 in Aklim) is a former Moroccan footballer. Club career He played a season for FC Metz and for OGC Nice from 1993 to 1997. International career Chaouch played several games for Mor ...

(1999–2000) ; Netherlands * Joost Broerse (2008–2011) *

John van Loen Johannes ("John") Maria van Loen (born 4 February 1965 in Utrecht) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as a striker. he earned seven caps for the Netherlands national football team, with which he scored one goal. He played in ...

(1998) ; Nigeria * Michael Obiku (2000) * Benjamin Onwuachi (2008–2009) ; Northern Ireland * Tommy Cassidy (1983–1985) ; Norway *

John Arne Riise John Arne Semundseth Riise (born 24 September 1980) is a Norwegian professional football manager and former player who played as a left back and a left midfielder. He is currently the manager of Toppserien club Avaldsnes. With 110 caps, Riise i ...

(2014–2015) ; Paraguay *

Aldo Adorno Aldo Osmar Adorno Moreira (born 8 April 1982) is a Paraguayan footballer who plays as a forward for P.O. Xylotymbou in the Cypriot Third Division. Career Paraguay – Israel – Spain Adorno started his career from Sportivo Luqueño of Par ...

(2011–2014) ; Peru *

Alfonso Dulanto Alfonso Antonio Dulanto Corzo (born 22 July 1969) is a retired Peruvian footballer who played as a central defender. Club career During his 16-year professional career, Dulanto rarely settled with a team. In his country, he played professionally ...

(1997–1998) ; Poland *

Kamil Kosowski Kamil Kosowski (; born 30 August 1977) is a Polish former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Born in Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski, Kosowski started out playing for his home town club KSZO Ostrowiec Świętokrzyski. W ...

(2008–2010) *

Wojciech Kowalczyk Wojciech Kowalczyk (born 14 April 1972) is a Polish retired footballer who played as a striker, currently working as a football expert. The bulk of his professional career was spent with Legia Warsaw and in Spain. Early into his international ...

(2003–2004) * Marcin Żewłakow (2008–2010) ; Portugal *

Paulo Costa Paulo Henrique Costa (born 21 April 1991) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Middleweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of August 1, 2022, he is #6 in the UFC middleweight ...

(2009) * Ricardo Fernandes (2005–2008) * Tiago Gomes (2013–2015) * Paulo Jorge (2009–2012) *

Daniel Kenedy Daniel Kenedy Pimentel Mateus dos Santos (born 18 February 1974), known as Kenedy, is a Portuguese retired footballer. A midfielder or defender, he played on the left side of the pitch. He appeared in 198 Primeira Liga matches over 11 seasons ( ...

(2005) *

Hélio Pinto Hélio José Ribeiro Pinto (born 29 February 1984) is a Portuguese former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder. A youth product of Benfica, he spent most of his career with APOEL in Cyprus, appearing in 276 competitive ma ...

(2006–2013) * Mário Sérgio (2012–2016) ; Romania * Daniel Florea (2006–2009) ; Serbia *

Dragiša Binić Dragiša Binić (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгиша Бинић; born 20 October 1961) is a Serbian former footballer who played for Red Star and was part of their European Cup victory in 1991. He had three caps for the Yugoslavia national football t ...

(1993–1994) *

Siniša Gogić Siniša Gogić ( sr-Cyrl, Синиша Гогић, ; el, Σίνισα Γκόγκιτς; born 20 October 1963) is a football manager and former professional player who played as a striker. At club level he played for Yugoslav clubs Radnički ...

(1989–1993, 2000–2002) * Saša Jovanović (2005–2006) *

Vesko Mihajlović Vesko Mihajlović (Serbian Cyrillic: Веско Михајловић; born 17 March 1968) is a Serbian former football midfielder and manager. He is widely considered to be one of the best foreign players to have played in the Cypriot Championsh ...

(1993–1994) *

Nenad Mirosavljević Nenad Mirosavljević (; born 4 September 1977) is a Serbian former footballer who played as a striker. During his 20-year-long career, Mirosavljević scored over 100 goals in the national championship of Serbia (including its predecessors) wi ...

(2008–2011) *

(1989–1993, 1995–1996) ; Slovakia * Mário Breška (2009–2010) * Branislav Rzeszoto (2004–2005) ; Slovenia * Alfred Jermaniš (1996–1997) *

Miran Pavlin Miran Pavlin (born 8 October 1971) is a Slovenian former professional footballer who played as midfielder. He featured for clubs such as Olimpija, SC Freiburg, Olympiakos Nicosia, APOEL, FC Porto and Olimpija Ljubljana. Club career In 2009, ...

(2004–2005) ; Togo * Jean-Paul Abalo (2006) ; Tunisia * Tijani Belaid (2011–2012) *

Selim Benachour Selim Benachour ( ar, سليم بن عاشور, Salīm bin ʻĀshūr; born Slim Ben-Achour on 8 September 1981) is a football coach and former professional player who played as a attacking midfielder. Born in France, he represented Tunisia at ...

(2012–2014)

Honours

Cypriot Championship The Cypriot First Division ( el, Πρωτάθλημα Α΄ Κατηγορίας) is the top tier football league competition in Cyprus, run by the Cyprus Football Association. Since February 2016, it is sponsored by Cyta and is thus officially ...

: Winners (28) (record): 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1939–40, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1951–52, 1964–65, 1972–73, 1979–80, 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1995–96, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19 *

Cypriot Cup The Cypriot Cup () is the main cup competition in Cypriot football, run by the Cyprus Football Association (CFA). It began in 1934, the same season with the Cypriot Championship. It is the second most important competition for Cypriot club tea ...

: Winners (21) (record): 1936–37, 1940–41, 1946–47, 1950–51, 1962–63, 1967–68, 1968–69, 1972–73, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1983–84,

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...

, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2013–14, 2014–15 *

Cypriot Super Cup The Cypriot Super Cup is a Cypriot football trophy, contested in an annual match between the previous season's Cypriot First Division champions, and the Cypriot Cup winners. The match is contested at the beginning of the football season, and is u ...

: Winners (14): 1963, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2019

Records

''Last update: 16 March 2017'' * Record

League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

win: 17–1 vs

Aris Limassol Aris Limassol ( Greek: ''Άρης Λεμεσού'') is a Cypriot football club based in Limassol and one of the founder members of Cyprus Football Association. The club's colours are green, black and white, and their home is the Tsirion Stadi ...

(4 June 1967) — 1966–67 * Record

defeat: 6–1 vs Nea Salamina (2 May 1998) — 1997–98 * Record

European competition The European Competition is a student competition in which students of all ages submit creative, artistic, or written pieces of work on the activities of the European Union. Tendered by European Movement Germany, it is the oldest student competition ...

win: 6–0 vs SK Gjøvik-Lyn (8 September 1963) —

, Preliminary round 1st leg, 1963–64
6–0 vs

HB Tórshavn HB or Hb may refer to: Academia * H-b index, an extension of the h-index used in determining academic impact * H-B Woodlawn, a secondary education program in Arlington, Virginia, US * Hathaway Brown School, an all-girls private school in Shaker He ...

(28 August 1997) —

, Qualifying round 2nd leg, 1997–98 * Record

defeat: 16–1 vs

Sporting CP Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional foot ...

(13 November 1963) —

, 1st round 1st leg, 1963–64 * Most consecutive

games unbeaten: 34 — From 18 September 1946 to 23 November 1949 * Most consecutive

games won: 16 — From 21 December 2008 to 11 April 2009 * Most

points in a season: : 3 for win: 83, 2015–16 (full season) — 69, 2008–09 (regular season) : 2 for win: 51, 1976–77 * Most

goals in a season: 91, 2015–16 * Record average

home attendance: 9,582 — 2012–13 * Record

home attendance: 23,043 vs Omonia (7 December 2002) — 2002–03 * Record

home attendance: 22,701 vs

(7 March 2012) —

, Last-16 2nd leg, 2011–12 * Most

appearances for club: 371 —

* Most

goals for club : 191 —

* Most European competitions appearances for club: 91 — Nuno Morais * Most European competitions goals for club : 9 — Aílton José Almeida

League and Cup history

IFFHS Club World Ranking

Last update: 7 January 2015
Source
IFFHS

References

External links

Official website

APOEL Athletic Football Club official website

APOEL Ultras official website
{{Superleague Greece teamlist APOEL Nicosia Association football clubs established in 1926 1926 establishments in Cyprus Football clubs in Cyprus Multi-sport clubs in Cyprus Football clubs in Nicosia Unrelegated association football clubs