On 25 November 1925 a group of athletes in Heraklion laid the foundations of a club that would become the footballing symbol of Crete. Omilos Filathlon Irakliou, better known as OFI, now enters its second century: it celebrates 101 years, just a few months after a Greek Cup it had waited almost four decades for. Here is its story, told through the black and white shirt.

A multi-sport "Omilos"

OFI did not start out as a football team only. In its early years it had athletics, wrestling and weightlifting sections, but football quickly became the best-loved part of the club. Its name also gave the nickname its fans still use today: O Omilos, "the Club". For decades its home was the Theodoros Vardinogiannis stadium, built in 1951 and known to everyone as Yedi Kule. Today the team plays at the Pankritio Stadium.

Why black and white

OFI's colours have deep roots on the island. According to club tradition, black was chosen because it was the colour traditionally worn by Cretan men, a piece of local identity. In the 1920s no other Cretan club had the same combination, so the black and white was instantly recognisable. A century later, the shirt has never changed its colours.

From a shield to the Phaistos Disc

From 1925 to 2016 the crest was a white shield with a black outline and a diagonal black band carrying the letters ΟΦΗ. In 2016 the founding year was added. The big change came on 7 August 2020, when the club unveiled a new, circular emblem built from the three letters of its name. It kept the black and white, but drew on Minoan culture, the Phaistos Disc and Yedi Kule. Alongside it a griffin, a mythical creature linked to Heraklion, appeared as a secondary symbol.

The Gerards era and the 1987 Cup

On 23 June 1985 the Dutchman Eugène Gerards took charge, and he stayed until November 2000, the longest coaching tenure in the history of the Greek league. In his very first season OFI finished second, five points off the top. On 21 June 1987, at the Olympic Stadium, the club won its first Greek Cup, beating Iraklis on penalties. The Balkans Cup followed in 1989, and in 1993 the team knocked Atlético Madrid out of the UEFA Cup. The same era produced Nikos Machlas, who made his debut in February 1991 and later, with Vitesse, won the European Golden Boot.

Falls and comebacks

In 1996 the club suddenly lost Theodoros Vardinogiannis, the man who had inspired its great run. The years that followed were not easy: relegation in 2008-09 and, in March 2015, withdrawal from professional football over financial obligations, after 47 consecutive years. But the Omilos found its way back, and in November 2025 it celebrated its centenary at the Heraklion Cultural Centre, honouring among others Machlas, Gerards and Ronald Gómez, the foreign player with the most goals in the club's history.

Volos, 25 April 2026

The first year of the second century brought the best possible gift. In the 2025-26 Greek Cup final at the Panthessaliko, Christos Kontis's OFI beat PAOK 3-2 after extra time and lifted the second Cup in its history, 39 years after the first. That night is remembered by the 2026 Cup winners "Anapsame fotia" t-shirt.

Happy birthday, Omilos. A century and a year on, the black and white of Crete keeps writing history.

See OFI shirts and merchandise at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Theodoros Vardinogiannis Stadium – Panagiotis Zaimakis, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.