The Memorandum of Cooperation between Greece and China in the field of sports.

The following parties voted in favor of ratification: New Democracy, PASOK, SYRIZA, and “Niki,” while the KKE, Greek Solution, and Freedom Course declared “present.”

“The result of the vote confirms everyone’s firm stance that we must stand united in sports, where there is no room for electoral or partisan affiliations,” stressed Deputy Minister of Education and Sports, Yiannis Vroutsis.

At the same time, he emphasized measures to combat sports-related violence in stadiums, noting in particular that “with Law 5085, which we all passed together, the comparative data from the second year—spanning two seasons—show complete compliance with measures against disruptive behavior in the stadium stands.”

According to the data presented by Mr. Vroutsis:

– Out of 47 matches played behind closed doors across all sports and divisions, compared to 80 last year, there has been a 41.25% decrease in stadium closures.

– There were 17 matches played behind closed doors in professional sports—soccer and basketball—compared to 34 last year, representing a 50% decrease.

–Fines totaling 360,000 euros were imposed on teams, compared to 430,500 euros last year, a 16.4% decrease, as well as €560,500 in fines imposed on individuals, compared to €378,000 last year, a 48.3% increase.

15-year record in ticket sales growth

“Another striking fact,” as Mr. Vroutsis described it, “which confirms that fans are returning to the stadiums, is that we have a 15-year record in ticket sales growth”. As he said, “Ticket sales increased by 15.9% compared to last year. Specifically, 1,753,400 tickets were sold for this year’s Super League matches”

“In short, this proves that with the law we passed together, we now have measurable data showing that fans are behaving positively inside the stadiums and that we are reducing theviolence,” he emphasized.

Furthermore, the Deputy Minister of Education and Sports pointed out that “the Kouros Awards this year, which was announced in Thessaloniki, shows that we have 452,961 athletes in amateur sports, 6,451 clubs, 151 sports, 66 federations, and 20,654 coaches who, for the first time, have gained professional status under our law.”

Mr. Vroutsis also emphasized the issue of transparency and good governance in the allocation of resources, noting that “their increased allocation is now based on objective and measurable criteria.”