Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis was involved in a heated courtside row during the Euroleague Basketball final in Athens on Sunday night. The 58-year-old, who also owns Greek side Olympiakos, was filmed seeming to quarrel with Grigoris Dimitriadis, nephew and former trusted advisor to Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, whilst being divided by a barrier and security staff. Footage posted on social media appeared to show Marinakis in a torn shirt during the altercation at the event, where Olympiakos achieved a 92-85 victory over Real Madrid. The incident comes amid ongoing tensions between the pair, with media outlets owned by Marinakis in Greece having reported extensively on a mobile phone spyware scandal that resulted in Dimitriadis’s resignation in 2022.
The Athens incident unfolds
The altercation between Marinakis and Dimitriadis broke out during what should have been a celebration night for the Olympiakos owner, whose basketball team claimed victory in one of the most esteemed sporting competitions. Witnesses at the Athens arena stated that tensions intensified quickly between the two men, with security personnel forced to intervene to stop things from getting worse. The incident was captured by multiple spectators and quickly circulated across social media platforms, drawing widespread attention to the mutual antagonism between the pair.
The beginnings of their dispute date from 2022, when Dimitriadis was compelled to step down from his post of general secretary in the Prime Minister’s office after a damaging phone spyware scandal. In the period following, Marinakis’s Greek media outlets have maintained sustained coverage of the affair, holding the controversy in the spotlight. This persistent reporting is believed to have intensified interpersonal friction between the two men, resulting in Sunday’s encounter at the basketball final.
- Marinakis controls both Nottingham Forest and Olympiakos basketball team
- Dimitriadis stepped down over phone spyware scandal in 2022
- Marinakis-owned news organisations gave substantial coverage to the scandal
- Olympiakos defeated Real Madrid 92-85 in the final
A chronicle of controversy
Marinakis’s actions at athletic competitions has attracted significant scrutiny over recent years, with the billionaire businessman becoming a divisive figure in football’s inner circles. His control of Nottingham Forest has been defined by volatile decision-making, such as the removal of three separate managers within a one season. Beyond the dugout, his conduct has continually faced criticism from governing bodies, creating a track record of disputed incidents that go well beyond the football pitch into his broader sporting ventures across multiple continents.
The Athens incident represents merely the most recent episode in a expanding record of conflicts with the Greek magnate. His tendency towards public confrontations, alongside his substantial media influence through his control of multiple platforms, has positioned him as a polarising presence in both Greek and British sporting establishments. The sideline confrontation underscores how personal grievances and professional rivalries can collide powerfully in high-profile sporting environments, notably when substantial monetary stakes and political ties are involved.
Earlier disciplinary issues
In 2024, Marinakis faced formal disciplinary action from English football authorities when he was found guilty of misconduct and given a five-game stadium ban. The incident took place following Nottingham Forest’s 1-0 Premier League defeat by Fulham, when he was seen spitting on the floor as match officials walked past. The punishment represented a major reprimand from the FA, showing their commitment to maintaining standards of behaviour amongst club officials at the top tier of domestic football.
Several months afterwards, Marinakis played a key role in what the Football Association described as “an attack on the integrity of a match official on an unparalleled scale.” A Forest online statement questioned video assistant referee Stuart Attwell’s integrity following contentious penalty calls in a defeat at Everton. The club was handed a significant £750,000 fine, with the FA criticising the post as “ill-chosen and irresponsible,” though Marinakis maintained he had “no regrets” discussing the official’s performance.
Forest’s chaotic period
Nottingham Forest’s 2025-26 season proved to be one of the most disruptive in recent memory, marked by managerial instability and inconsistent performances that caused supporters to question the club’s direction. Marinakis’s decision to appoint and subsequently dismiss three different managers over the course of one season demonstrated the chaos at the City Ground, with every exit marked by significant discussion and debate amongst the club’s supporters. The constant turnover at the top created an atmosphere of uncertainty that permeated throughout the club, damaging squad morale and team organisation at critical moments.
Despite the management turmoil, Forest managed to secure Premier League survival by finishing in 16th place, drawing 1-1 with Bournemouth on the closing day of the campaign. The point was enough to maintain the club’s position in the top flight, though the manner of their escape from the drop zone underscored the precarious nature of their campaign. Additionally, the club reached the semi-finals of the Europa League before enduring a 4-1 aggregate loss to eventual competition winners Aston Villa, a result that represented a major missed chance for European silverware.
| Manager | Tenure outcome |
|---|---|
| Nuno Espirito Santo | Sacked during season |
| Ange Postecoglou | Sacked during season |
| Sean Dyche | Sacked during season |
| Vitor Pereira | Secured Premier League safety |
- Forest ended 16th in the Premier League, just escaping relegation on final day
- Europa League competition ended in semi-final loss to Aston Villa with 4-1 on aggregate
- Three managerial changes created significant disruption across the whole season
Political conflict and press influence
The confrontation in Athens seems to be stemming from deep-seated tensions between Marinakis and Dimitriadis, originating in the latter’s connection to a spyware scandal involving phone surveillance that led to his resignation from his role as general secretary in the administration of Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis in 2022. The incident had major political repercussions in Greece, and Marinakis’s news organisations have maintained sustained coverage of the affair in the time that has followed. This persistent reporting has clearly maintained simmering tensions between the two men, with the courtside confrontation indicating that animosity remains unresolved despite the passage of time.
Marinakis’s ownership of Greek media organisations has previously attracted attention regarding his use of news outlets to advance personal and political grievances. The reporting on Dimitriadis’s scandal constitutes one significant instance of how his media influence overlaps with his personal conflicts. The tense confrontation at the Euroleague final, recorded on video and widely shared across social media channels, illustrates how these tensions can escalate into public clashes, further amplifying the prominence of their ongoing dispute and raising questions about the proper limits between media ownership and personal conflict.