Dimitris Giannakopoulos has stated that he will not sit at the same table again with fellow EuroLeague team owners following a meeting of league proprietors in Como, Italy.
In a comment published on social media beneath one of his own posts, the Panathinaikos owner referred to certain executives as misanthropes who fail to respect the institution of the family.
Giannakopoulos wrote that he had previously expressed these views regarding other executives. He stated that when one attendee arrived at the meeting, he simply told them to get up and leave. He added that another individual did not attend the gathering, noting that incidents would have occurred had that person been present, and emphasized that certain principles in life remain non-negotiable.
Giannakopoulos is a prominent Greek businessman and the longtime owner of Panathinaikos BC, a leading professional basketball club based in the capital city of Athens. Panathinaikos competes in both the domestic Greek Basketball League and the EuroLeague, which operates as the top-tier club basketball competition across Europe. The meeting of executive team owners took place in Como, a city situated on Lake Como in the northern Lombardy region of Italy.
Public Commitment to PAOK EuroLeague Bid
During the same social media interaction, Giannakopoulos publicly declared his support for Greek basketball club PAOK to join the EuroLeague following a question submitted by an Instagram user.
When asked by the user whether he would support the club, Giannakopoulos questioned if anyone could believe he would vote against PAOK entering the competition. He stated that his response represented a public commitment to vote in favor of their inclusion in the league.
PAOK BC is a historic basketball club based in Thessaloniki, the second-largest city in Greece, and competes in the country's top domestic division. Decisions regarding potential expansion or the entry of new clubs into the EuroLeague are determined by votes held among the league's shareholder team owners. Instagram is an online photo and video sharing platform owned by Meta Platforms.
