PAOK Salonika president Ivan Savvidis invades pitch to confront referee with gun

While English football fans are still talking about the pitch invasions at West Ham – yer da standing proudly in the centre circle at the London Stadium, raising the corner flag aloft in a revolutionary call to arms against Gold, Sullivan and Brady – Greek football has made the goings-on in Stratford seem tame by comparison.

Towards the end of the Greek league match between PAOK Salonika and AEK Athens on Sunday, PAOK president Ivan Savvidis twice entered the field of play to remonstrate with the referee. On the second occasion, he did so with a holstered pistol visible by his side.

READ MORE: Sullivan ‘hit by coin’ in West Ham unrest – Brooking

With the score at 0-0, PAOK had a goal ruled out for offside in the 89th minute. This prompted Savvidis to attempt to confront the ref with his gun at the ready, accompanied by bodyguards who at various points tried to hold him back.

According to the BBC, Savvidis asked his team to leave the pitch following the offside decision before marching towards the ref. After his holstered gun was revealed, AEK’s players left the pitch concerned for their safety and did not return to finish the match.

Match abandoned

The match was abandoned two hours later and the remainder of the crowd asked to leave PAOK’s Toumba Stadium. In the general chaos, there were rumours that the ref, Giorgos Kominis, had reversed his original decision and allowed the goal.

READ MORE: Brooking tells ‘aggressive’ West Ham fans to stay away

PAOK are currently third in the Greek Superleague, five points behind league leaders AEK, with the match officially declared a 0-0 draw. It is unclear what the repercussions will be for PAOK, though Greece’s deputy culture and sports minister Georgios Vassiliadis said the situation required “bold decisions” to be made.

READ MORE: West Ham launch investigation into crowd trouble

Meanwhile, reports in Greece suggest an arrest warrant has been issued for Savvidis, though only for invading the pitch and not for a firearms-related charge.