Panagiotis and Giorgos Angelopoulos, the owners of Olympiakos basketball club, suddenly announced on Monday their departure, citing what they called as backstage machinations in the Greek game as their reason.
The Angelopoulos brothers, who began their involvement in 2004 and obtained a controlling stake in the club in July 2009, stated that in their time Olympiakos regained their credibility within as well as outside Greece (a parting shot at previous owner, the Kokkalis family) and paid $50 million in taxes.
"It was our conscious decision not to get involved in any way with backstage dealings that influence teams and championships. For us the kind of success that comes through machinations and referee favours does not constitute success," their statement read.
"It is also our conscious decision that our relationship with all Olympiakos fans remains healthy and in the context of mutual respect," it added.
Immediately after Olympiakos's loss to Panathinaikos in the league final series this season a section of the press and of the Olympiakos hardcore fans had asked for the Angelopoulos brothers to go.
Reports over the the weekend suggested that the players have not been paid for the last three to four months, while the last nail on the coffin must have been the revelation that Olympiakos forward Yiannis Bourousis allegedly discussed on the telephone with Kavala football club owner Makis Psomiadis taking performance-enhancing drugs.
This leaves both main Greek clubs, Olympiakos and Panathinaikos, with their owners discussing how to leave their clubs, after the Giannakopoulos family have also put up a "for sale" note on the European champions.
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