A.E. Karaiskakis F.C.


A.E. Karaiskakis Football Club is a Greek professional football club based in Arta, Greece. Founded in 2012, they compete in the Super League 2, the second division of Greek football. Their home ground is Municipal Agiοi Anargirοi Stadium.

History

Foundation and first years

The club was established in 2012, after the merger of AO Arta, Aetos Diasello and Omonoia Petra, and is currently competing in the 2nd tier of Greek football, the Super League Greece 2. In the 2014–15 Football League 2, despite leading the table for a big part of the season, and having the best attacking and defensive record of the group, scoring 60 and conceding just 14, Karaiskakis lost to AO Trikala on the last matchday with a score of 1–2, a result that led to the club missing out on promotion to Beta Ethniki.

2015–16 season

The 2015–16 season for Karaiskakis started with an away victory of 1–2 at Farkadona. The first home match was against nearby Ethnikos Filippiada, and ended in a goalless draw. Karaiskakis played their first match at their official home on 25/10/2015 against Niki Volos. The game ended 2–1 in favour of Karaiskakis, who came back to win after being 0–1 down at half-time. On November 5, 2015, after disagreements in a meeting session, former coach, Sakis Papavasileiou, terminated his contact with the club. Three days later, the club announced the hiring of the 54 year old coach from Arta, Giannis Taprantzis. Having been in charge for only 3 games, Taprantzis left the club for personal reasons. After a few days, Giorgos Giannos became the club's new manager. The very next day after the hiring of Giannos, Karaiskakis defeated Pyrasos 4–0 at home. The first defeat of the season came against Aiginiakos on the 13th matchday, with a score of 3–1. On the final day of the first round, Karaiskakis defeated Rigas Feraios 2–1, coming back after conceding in the 42nd minute. That same year, Karaiskakis won for the first time in his history the FCA Arta's Cup.

Recent years

In September 2016, a joint announcement was made with the administration of the Renaissance Arta on the cooperation and common course of the two groups. The co-operation eventually did not materialize. At the end of the 2016–17 season, the team finished second in the third consecutive year. After the end of the championship, the team managed to win the Gamma Ethniki Cup 2016–17. As Cupid, they claimed with Irodotos the Super Cup of Amateur Football of Greece where they were defeated by 1–0.

Promotion to the Football League

In the summer of 2017, HFF initially decided to fill the gap of a team in the 2nd national with the third rounds of the 2016–17 Gamma Ethniki, provided that they will deposit a €300,000 guarantee. The only groups that did it were Karaiskakis and Doxa Drama. The barrage was set to be in Katerini. Finally, with a new decision, EPO abolished the barrage of climb. Following the appeal of Doxa Dramas against the decision of the HFF, the HFF Arbitration Court decided to become the barrage. After the withdrawal of Iraklis from the Football League, the match was canceled and the two teams were promoted to the Football League.

Crest

The club's badge portrays the Greek Klepht/Armatolos from the Greek War of Independence, Georgios Karaiskakis.

Supporters

Though formed in 2012, not only do Karaiskakis have a decent number of supporters, they have also created a fanbase. Members of this unofficial fanbase call themselves "Eagles", and gather in Gate 3.

Rivalries

Few seasons after Karaiskakis' establishment, a rivalry against the older club from Arta, Anagennisi, was born. In 2015, rumours were spread that the two clubs were on the verge of being merged. However, no official proposal has been made yet.

Nicknames

A.E. Karaiskakis may sometimes be referred to as "Choriates". This nickname was first used from AO Trikala fans in the 2014–15 season, when they and Karaiskakis were the two favourites for promotion to the second tier, as a way of offending Karaiskakis fans for living in a small town like Arta. Supporters of Karaiskakis adopted this nickname, and used it in one of their banners for the match against Trikala. What was written on the banner was -, but didn't have any result as they lost 2–1.

Players

Current squad

Honours

Domestic

Cups

SeasonTierDivisionPlaceGreek Cup
2018–20192Football League10th
2017–20182Football League8th
2016–20173Gamma Ethniki2nd '
2015–20163Gamma Ethniki2nd
2014–20153Gamma Ethniki2nd
2013–20143Gamma Ethniki4th
2012–20134Delta Ethniki7th '

Sponsorship

League games only: