The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Greece

This page contains a list of the greatest Greek Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 112 of which were born in Greece. This makes Greece the birth place of the 41st most number of Soccer Players behind Côte d'Ivoire, and Ghana.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Greek Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Greek Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Greek Soccer Players.

1. Mimis Domazos (1942 - 2025)

With an HPI of 60.90, Mimis Domazos is the most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 20 different languages on wikipedia.

Dimitris "Mimis" Domazos (Greek: Δημήτρης "Μίμης" Δομάζος; 22 January 1942 – 24 January 2025) was a Greek professional football player who played as an attacking midfielder. His nickname was "The General" (Greek: "Ο Στρατηγός"). He served as Panathinaikos' captain for over 15 years. In 2021, the IFFHS included him in the all-time Best XI of Greek football.

2. Theodoros Zagorakis (b. 1971)

With an HPI of 59.03, Theodoros Zagorakis is the 2nd most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 40 different languages.

Theodoros Zagorakis (Greek: Θεόδωρος Ζαγοράκης [θeˈoðoɾos zaɣoˈɾacis]; born 27 October 1971) is a Greek politician and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was the captain of the Greece team that won UEFA Euro 2004, and was also captain and later president of PAOK. He was named the Greek Male Athlete of the Year in 2004. He was elected as a Greek MEP at the May 2014 and May 2019 European Parliament Elections. He was also the president of the Hellenic Football Federation from March to September 2021.

3. Angelos Charisteas (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 58.36, Angelos Charisteas is the 3rd most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 48 different languages.

Angelos Charisteas (Greek: Άγγελος Χαριστέας, pronounced [ˈaɲɟelos xariˈste.as]; born 9 February 1980) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a forward. Since 2019, he works as sporting director for Aris. At club level he played for Aris Thessaloniki, Werder Bremen, Ajax, Feyenoord, Bayer Leverkusen, Schalke 04, Arles-Avignon, and Al-Nassr. In 2004, he won the double with Werder Bremen, earning Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal medals and was also the club's Sportsman of the Year. With Ajax, Charisteas also won the Dutch Cup and the Dutch Super Cup. Internationally, he was capped 88 times by Greece, scoring 25 goals. He was a member of the UEFA Euro 2004 winning team, scoring three goals, including the winning goal in the final against the hosts Portugal, which was considered as the greatest triumph of the nation. He also represented Greece at UEFA Euro 2008 and the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In 2019, Charisteas was also a political deputy in the region of Central Macedonia

4. Antonios Nikopolidis (b. 1971)

With an HPI of 57.93, Antonios Nikopolidis is the 4th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 40 different languages.

Antonis Nikopolidis (Greek: Αντώνης Νικοπολίδης; born 14 January 1971) is a Greek professional football manager and former player. He is regarded among the best Greek goalkeepers of all time having been awarded the most goalkeeper caps in the Greece national team and playing an integral part in the UEFA Euro 2004 triumph.

5. Giorgos Karagounis (b. 1977)

With an HPI of 57.22, Giorgos Karagounis is the 5th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.

Georgios Karagkounis (Greek: Γεώργιος Καραγκούνης; born 6 March 1977), known as Giorgos Karagounis (Greek: Γιώργος Καραγκούνης), is a former Greek professional footballer who played as a midfielder. In his club career, Karagounis played for Panathinaikos, Apollon Smyrnis, Inter Milan, Benfica and Fulham. At international level, Karagounis represented Greece between 1999 and 2014. He was a member of the UEFA Euro 2004 winning squad, and also represented Greece at UEFA Euro 2008, the 2010 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012 and the 2014 FIFA World Cup. With 139 appearances, he is the most capped player in the history of the Greece national team.

6. Nikos Anastopoulos (b. 1958)

With an HPI of 56.73, Nikos Anastopoulos is the 6th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 24 different languages.

Nikos Anastopoulos (Greek: Νίκος Αναστόπουλος; born 22 January 1958) is a Greek former footballer and manager. He was one the most prolific strikers in the Greek league during the 1980s and is widely regarded as one of the best players in the history of Greek football. Anastopoulos began his career at Panionios in 1976, where he quickly became a high-profile player, winning the cup in 1979. After impressive performances in the following season's Cup Winners' Cup campaign, he was reached out by a number of European clubs, eventually signing with Olympiacos. He quickly became a fan favourite with Olympiacos fans and, despite a slow start, became a prolific goal scorer for the club and won the Bronze Boot as the third scorer in Europe in the 1982–83 season. He became central to the club's success in the 1980s, winning four league championships before departing for Serie A side Avellino in 1987. An ambitious signing, his tenure at the Italian club was ultimately unsuccessful, with him returning to Panionios in 1988. After a moderately successful year with Panionios, he returned to Olympiacos in 1989. With the club in dire financial situation, he became a vital part of the club, despite falling out with manager Oleg Blokhin, winning two Greek Football Cups before leaving for Ionikos in 1992. After a successful season with the Athenian side, Anastopoulos returned to Olympiacos, retiring from professional football in 1993 to become assistant manager of returning manager Nikos Alefantos. Anastopoulos earned his first cap with Greece in 1977, amassing a record (at the time) of 74 caps until 1988. With 29 goals, he is the all-time top scorer for the Greek national team. He also scored Greece's first goal at a major international tournament, scoring against Czechoslovakia at the 1980 European Championship. His style of play was highly regarded and commonly noted for his acrobatic goals and headers, positioning, and sense of goal. He is considered one of the greatest players in Olympiacos history, where he scored 159 goals in 291 official games for the club. Since retiring as a player he has become a football manager, achieving notable success at PAS Giannina, Panachaiki, Aris, OFI and Kalamata, becoming a fan favourite in these clubs. He became known for his outspoken attitude, tactical flexibility, and success under pressure, having achieved promotions with Aris and avoiding relegation on numerous occasions.

7. Sokratis Papastathopoulos (b. 1988)

With an HPI of 56.13, Sokratis Papastathopoulos is the 7th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 54 different languages.

Sokratis Papastathopoulos (Greek: Σωκράτης Παπασταθόπουλος; born 9 June 1988), also known mononymously as Sokratis, is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.

8. Antonis Antoniadis (b. 1946)

With an HPI of 55.44, Antonis Antoniadis is the 8th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Antonis Antoniadis (Greek: Αντώνης Αντωνιάδης, born 25 May 1946) is a Greek former professional footballer who played as a striker. He scored 243 goals during his 22-year-long career. He started his career in 1964 playing for Aspida Xanthi before moving to Panathinaikos on 31 July 1968. Antoniadis scored his first official goal for Panathinaikos on 27 October 1968 in a 1–0 victory over Apollon Athens. During his time at Xanthi, he was sometimes used as a goalkeeper because of his height. His nickname was "the Tall" (Greek: "Ο Ψηλός).

9. Alketas Panagoulias (1934 - 2012)

With an HPI of 55.41, Alketas Panagoulias is the 9th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.

Alketas 'Alkis' Panagoulias (Greek: Αλκέτας 'Άλκης' Παναγούλιας; 30 May 1934 – 18 June 2012) was a Greek association football player and manager. He managed the national teams of both Greece and the United States. He also managed several clubs, including Aris, his birthplace team, and Olympiakos with whom he won three Alpha Ethniki championships.

10. Theofanis Gekas (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 55.37, Theofanis Gekas is the 10th most famous Greek Soccer Player. His biography has been translated into 46 different languages.

Theofanis "Fanis" Gekas (Greek: Θεοφάνης "Φάνης" Γκέκας; born 23 May 1980) is a Greek professional football official, coach and former player who played as a striker. He has been the top goalscorer of Superleague Greece and the Bundesliga in previous seasons. Most of his career has been spent in those two countries and Turkey, but he has also played top-flight football in England and Spain. At international level, Gekas represented Greece at two European Championships and as many World Cups, earning 78 caps between 2005 and 2014. He was the top goalscorer of the European section of 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification with 10 goals. With 24 goals for his national football team, he is Greece's third highest all-time goalscorer.

People

Pantheon has 114 people classified as Greek soccer players born between 1934 and 2002. Of these 114, 111 (97.37%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Greek soccer players include Theodoros Zagorakis, Angelos Charisteas, and Antonios Nikopolidis. The most famous deceased Greek soccer players include Mimis Domazos, Alketas Panagoulias, and Oganes Zanazanyan. As of April 2024, 6 new Greek soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Fotis Ioannidis, Konstantinos Tzolakis, and Pantelis Chatzidiakos.