The Three Tiers of Greek International Referees

The landscape of Greek international referees in Europe presents a varied picture, with the Hellenic Football Federation (EPO) overseeing three tiers of referees, endorsing the recommendations of each chief referee. International referees are not changed every year, but rather additions and subtractions are made.

Fotis Polychronis (Pierias) is the latest to join the FIFA/UEFA list, nominated by Stéphane Lannoy. Greek international referees are distinguished into three tiers. First is Fotias (Pella), one step away from the elite category. On the other hand, the cycle of Sidiropoulos (Dodecanese), Papapetrou (Athens), Papadopoulos (Macedonia) has closed.

Sidiropoulos was demoted from the elite to the first category of UEFA. Papapetrou could have been promoted to the elite category, but he turns 41 in January. Papadopoulos did not move from the second category of UEFA. In the second category are also Vergetis, Tsakalidis, who seem to be promoted.