Marinakis does whatever he wants,” says Mifas, a taxi driver who has spent the past 29 years ferrying tourists between the Greek capital of Athens and Piraeus, 14 kilometres south, the home of Olympiacos.
“He even goes against the prime minister. They have issues. He owns a television station and knows a lot of stuff. He has a lot of power. When you can talk and say whatever you want, you can do big things.”
When The Athletic arrives in Athens and is picked up by Mifas at the airport, Evangelos Marinakis, the owner of Forest, Olympiacos, a television channel and some of Greece’s biggest-selling newspapers, has been in the news in Britain, having expressed his desire to move Nottingham Forest from The City Ground. Nothing unusual there. Making headlines is par for the course with Marinakis, who is among the most talked-about and wealthy individuals in his homeland of Greece.
In March, two Greek ministers were forced to resign after a newspaper report published their meeting with Marinakis at his house the evening before. According to Greek news outlet iEidiseis, “whiskey flowed abundantly and was interrupted only for smoking the luxurious cigars”.
According to local reports, the Greek government decided that meeting the Forest owner sent the wrong message. It serves as an example of how divisive the Marinakis name is, the power he is perceived to wield and why opinions can be polarised into two factions.
“Olympiacos fans love him,” Mifas, the taxi driver, says. “He’s got his channel and he goes on it all the time, talking about going against the prime minister.”