Football fans in Iraklio

Football is obviously a big thing in Iraklio. On the Thursday night we were there several Greek teams were playing in the UEFA cup, and a lot of the cafes in the four lions square had set up big screens for the occasion.

This year Iraklio has two teams in the Greek top division - OFI Crete, and Ergotelis. Both teams share the new stadium that was built for some of the football games in the Athens Olympics. I didn't see much evidence of graffiti in support of Ergotelis, but OFI was scrawled on the walls everywhere. We soon learnt that their fans call themselves the snakes.

Still, the clubs from Athens hold popular sway everywhere. Rather like Hania having an Olympiakos fan's headquarters, Iraklio has a Panathinaikos shop called "Green Corner".