The establishment of Hellenic Football Federation
The idea of forming a central football authority that would be responsible for the organisation and development of the sport in our country, was born several years before the establishment of Hellenic Football Federation (HFF). The first coordinated effort was in 1919, when representatives of clubs from Athens and Piraeus met and discussed about the sport at a large meeting, during which they decided the establishment of the Regional Amateur Football Association of Athens and Piraeus that would handle the staging of the matches between the most important clubs of the two cities.
Two years later the Athens-Piraeus Association was renamed to Regional Amateur Association of Greece. In fact, there were at the time aspirations for the cultivation and spreading of football beyond the narrow boundaries of the two major cities, in order to establish several local Association. A refereeing school was created for the first time, with the participation of twenty players. Despite the fact that its original goals were not finally achieved, the association was the precursor of the Federation.
The foundations for the establishment of HFF were laid in January 1925, when the issue was discussed during a Congress of the Athens Associations. All attendees agreed, but with a basic remark: that vast financial resources were required and therefore the establishment of the Federation should be delayed. Finally, the body gave the Board of the Athens Association a carte blanche on the matter and the contacts were initiated. A two-member committee was set up, while the appointment of respective committees by the Piraeus and Macedonia-Thrace associations was also decided. It should be noted at this point that before the meetings, during which the name "HFF" was decided, were really long.
Overcoming all kinds of difficulties, the committee for drafting the statutes and regulations of the Football Federation of Greece speeded up the processes and in the summer of 1926 it asked all football clubs that were recognised by the Court of First Instance, to dispatch as soon as possible (1) their name, (2) the address of their headquarters and (3) the recommendation of their Board, so that the Hellenic Federation could be readily established. The files were to be sent to the Athenian Association's offices. The summons to the clubs, with the exception of the clubs of the three Associations, read:"To all football clubs of Greece (or all sports club having a football division) with the exception of the clubs belonging to the Associations of Athens, Piraeus and Macedonia-Thrace.Towards the ready establishment in Athens of Hellenic Football Federation, you are hereby summoned to notify to the competent Committee, 63 Sokratous Str., Athens, the headquarters, the name and members of the Board as well as the year of establishment thereof.We shall not bear any responsibility for any delay or negligence whatsoever."
In the meantime, Apostolos Nikolaidis translated into Greek the regulations of the French Football Federation, which constituted the compass for HFF, in order to draft its own regulations. On September 15th, the competent committee comprising A. Nikolaidis, E. Stamatis (Athens), P. Kamberos, D. Avdis (Piraeus), A. Kambouropoulos (Thessaloniki) proceeded to the drafting and typing of the statutes and regulations. On October 2nd, following another meeting of the committee, there was an initial agreement on all the articles and immediately a series of copies was sent to the three Associations (Athens, Piraeus and Macedonia-Thrace) "... in order for them, following their perusal, to appoint 4 representatives each that shall convene within the month, approve them and proceed to the official establishment of HFF, submit them for approval, proceed to the election of a provisional Executive Committee, up to the final registration of Associations and Amateur Clubs, in order to call the 1st Ordinary Congress for the election of a Board and the initiation of the works of HFF."
In the first week of November, the Association of Athens authorized Apostolos Nikolaidis and Evangelos Stamatis to call the 1st Congress for the establishment of the HFF. A similar document was sent to the Associations of Piraeus and Macedonia-Thrace.
Thus, on the morning of November 14th, 1926, at the offices of the Regional Amateur Association of Athens, the representatives of the three founding associations, Athens, Piraeus and Macedonia-Thrace, met. "Present" said: on behalf of Athens, Evangelos Stamatis, Apostolos Nikolaidis, Nikolaos Lorentis and Periklis Petrakos. From Piraeus, Panagiotis Camperos, Dimitrios Avdis, Nikola Kaloudis and Stefanos Kourkoulakos. From Thessaloniki, Anastasios Kambouropoulos and Konstantinos Chalkias. The meeting lasted three hours. The foundation of Hellenic Football Federation, with the signature of the minutes ratifying the establishment, was a fact!