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A 13-point lead, a late turnaround, and 52 free throws awarded to one team. A school basketball game played in Paphos is now reportedly being examined as part of a match-fixing investigation reaching into the leadership of Greek basketball.
The game took place in March 2026 between school teams from the Peloponnese and Thessaloniki. According to MEGA journalist Vasilis Lambropoulos, authorities are scrutinizing the semifinal alongside dozens of other matches suspected of manipulation. Kathimerini Cyprus carried his account on Wednesday.
For parents used to driving children to training and cheering from the sidelines, the school connection brings the allegations uncomfortably close to home. These are competitions where young players expect effort, teamwork, and the decisions on the court to determine who wins.
At the center of the Paphos report is a striking change in the score.
With 12 minutes remaining, the Thessaloniki team was reportedly leading 58–45. It eventually lost 64–60—meaning its opponents scored 19 points in that final stretch while it managed just two.
Lambropoulos also reported that the Peloponnese team was awarded 52 free throws, the unopposed shots given after certain fouls. That figure forms a central part of the account of the match. The reported scoreline and free-throw total do not, by themselves, establish that the result was manipulated.
The report also identified connections between the school team and Promitheas, the Greek basketball club linked to Greek Basketball Federation President Vangelis Liolios. It said Promitheas players featured on the school side and that a close relative of Liolios was on its bench. Those reported connections are not, on their own, evidence of wrongdoing.
The wider investigation has moved beyond allegations aired on television. Greek newspaper To Vima reported that all six arrest warrants in the case had been executed by Wednesday evening, including the warrant for Liolios.
According to the newspaper, authorities are examining approximately 50 matches across different levels of Greek basketball. Investigators also reportedly found €820,000 in cash at a referee’s home. The discovery is part of the investigation; it does not establish where the money came from or whether it was connected to any particular game.
The Cyprus connection concerns a match hosted in Paphos between two Greek school teams. The reporting cited does not establish wrongdoing by Cypriot organizers or by the young players who took part.
What makes this aspect of the case particularly troubling is the setting: a school competition. For the families watching, the result should have been something to celebrate or a disappointment to move past. Now, months after the final whistle, the adults responsible for protecting fair competition face scrutiny over what happened on court.
*Source: To Bima, 24 Sports
