Olympiacos and Panathinaikos got their own arenas, but still need to face the enemy within / News - Basketnews.com

Starting next season, PAO and Olympiacos will have full control over the OAKA and the Peace and Friendship Stadium. Despite the obvious financial benefits, there's still a lot of work to be done if both clubs wish to appeal to a wider audience.

Credit: Vangelis Stolis; Rodolfo Molina/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images Credit Vangelis Stolis; Rodolfo Molina/Euroleague Basketball via Getty Images

Nearly 10,000Olympiacos Piraeusfans gathered at the Peace and Friendship Stadium last Saturday night. The Reds were hosting a special event to give their crowd the opportunity to celebrate the 14th Greek championship title in the club's history.

3-pointers this season

36%9,0Points made:9,0Accuracy:36,3%Place in standings:11Record max:13Record min:4Most made 3FGs:Paris LeeTeamEuroLeagueStatisticsSchedule

In the podium set up in the middle of the arena stood all the players, the members of the coaching staff, the administrative employees, and the two presidents, Panagiotis and Giorgos Angelopoulos.

And while everyone was waiting for the trophy to be handed over by the league president Vangelis Galatsopoulos to Olympiacos' captain, Kostas Papanikolaou, Panagiotis Angelopoulos took the microphone.

"Thank you for all of you being here today. You've been supporting us all year. You fill the stadium, so we want it full next year as well. Let's break the record for sold-outs next year! We're making history together," Olympiacos' co-president and owner said, addressing the team's fans.

And then he uttered a phrase that gave the evening an entirely different vibe.

"I think the time has come for Olympiacos to have its own stadium, which is the Peace and Friendship Stadium," the Greek businessman said amid raving applause.

According to all indications, the agreement between the Greek state and Olympiacos will be identical to the one signed withPanathinaikos Athens.

Unlike Olympiacos, the Greens moved to OAKA in 1995, immediately after the conclusion of the Athens EuroBasket.

Having paid very high rental prices (which exceeded 700,000 euros on some occasions), it was evident that the stadium's capacity was more than enough to accommodate the club's needs. The main problem was that it didn't provide any additional source of revenue.

One can safely assume that Panathinaikos will also proceed to similar moves in order to reap the corresponding economic benefits. This means that possibly starting with the next Pavlos Giannakopoulos tournament at the end of September, accessing the OAKA might become a difficult, expensive, and time-consuming venture.

However, for the clubs that share nine EuroLeague trophies, the big question is two-fold:

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