# 2025–26 Greek Football Cup

The 2025–26 [Greek Football Cup](https://www.edgepedia.org/greek-football-cup), known as the Betsson Greek Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 84th edition of Greece's knockout cup competition and the first played under a UEFA-style league-phase format. It ran from 18 August 2025 to the final on 25 April 2026, when OFI (ΟΦΗ) beat PAOK (ΠΑΟΚ) 3–2 after extra time at [Panthessaliko Stadium](https://www.edgepedia.org/panthessaliko-stadium) in Volos to win the cup for the second time in the club's 101-year history.<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup> The victory ended a 39-year wait for a trophy, the club's previous Cup win coming in 1987 against Iraklis F.C., after final defeats in 1990 and 2025.<sup>[2](https://www.betssonab.com/newsroom/ofi-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners-historic-final)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.ekathimerini.com/sports/1302024/ofis-extra-time-win-over-paok-gives-it-its-second-greek-cup/)</sup>

| Key facts | |
|---|---|
| Format | Qualifying round, 20-team league phase, play-offs, quarter-finals, two-legged semi-finals, final<sup>[4](https://footballty.com/tournament/greece-cup/)</sup> |
| Champions | OFI (second title)<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup> |
| Runners-up | PAOK (lost 2–3 after extra time)<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup> |
| Matches and goals | 64 matches, 172 goals (2.69 per match)<sup>[5](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)</sup> |
| Top scorer | Said Hamulić, 4 goals<sup>[5](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)</sup> |

## Format and eligibility: the 2025 reform

The League Phase copied the single unified table of UEFA's club competitions, and a new Play-Offs round consisted of single matches played without extra time, going straight to penalties if level.<sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup> In total the model included 32 clubs from [Super League](https://www.edgepedia.org/super-league) 1 and Super League 2.<sup>[4](https://footballty.com/tournament/greece-cup/)</sup> Clubs of the two professional leagues were obliged to enter by 25 July 2025.<sup>[7](https://starsports.gr/2025/07/11/i-prokiryxi-tou-kypellou-elladas-betsson-2025-2026/)</sup>

**Two on-field rules.** First, every team had to include at least one young Greek player born on or after 1 January 2004 in its matches, a measure the EPO framed as developing talent for the national teams.<sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup> Second, extra time was abolished in the single-match rounds: a draw after 90 minutes went straight to penalties.<sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup> The semi-finals remained two-legged, and if the aggregate score was level the second leg went to extra time, with the away-goals rule not used.<sup>[4](https://footballty.com/tournament/greece-cup/)</sup>

**Tie-breakers.** League-phase standings were separated, where necessary, by goal difference, goals scored, away goals, wins, away wins, and final 2024–25 league position, criteria that rewarded attacking play.<sup>[8](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup>

## Qualifying round and league phase

The round featured 23 teams, the six Super League 1 entrants plus 17 Super League 2 sides, producing 11 ties and one team, Ilioupoli, qualifying without a match from the draw.<sup>[8](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[12](https://www.hellenic.news/en/article/sports/football-europe/kupello-elladas-i-klirwsi-tis-protis-fasis)</sup> The published calendar then set play-offs on 6–8 January 2026 and quarter-finals on 13–15 January 2026.<sup>[7](https://starsports.gr/2025/07/11/i-prokiryxi-tou-kypellou-elladas-betsson-2025-2026/)</sup>

The League Phase added the top eight finishers of the 2024–25 Super League 1 to the qualifiers, forming five seeding pots of four. Each club played four matches, two home and two away, for 40 matches in the single table; teams placed 1st to 4th advanced directly to the quarter-finals, and positions 5 to 12 entered the single-match play-offs hosted by the higher-ranked club.<sup>[8](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)</sup>

## Play-offs, quarter-finals and semi-finals

The knockout rounds from the play-offs onward were decided without extra time, under the rule sending level single matches straight to penalties.<sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup> PAOK reached the final by beating Panathinaikos 1–0 in Athens in the first leg of their semi-final tie, a performance its club described as one of passion, mettle, and intelligence.<sup>[9](https://www.paokfc.gr/en/news/20260204-provadisma-prokrisis/)</sup> OFI's route to the final included a win over AEK.<sup>[3](https://www.ekathimerini.com/sports/1302024/ofis-extra-time-win-over-paok-gives-it-its-second-greek-cup/)</sup>

## Final: OFI 3–2 PAOK (after extra time)

Olympiacos entered as defending champions, having won the 2024–25 final 2–0 against OFI, but OFI reached the 2025–26 final while Olympiacos did not.<sup>[10](https://rsssf.org/tablesg/grkcuphist.html)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[13](https://www.epo.gr/el/node/33082)</sup> At Panthessaliko Stadium in Volos, PAOK took the lead in the 15th minute through a header by G. Michailidis, assisted by T. Kedziora, before Fountas equalised with a composed finish in the 28th minute for 1–1 at half-time.<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[11](https://www.foxsports.com/soccer/greek-cup-paok-vs-ofi-crete-apr-25-2026-game-boxscore-706602)</sup> Nuss put OFI 2–1 ahead in the 51st minute, and as the match headed for its conclusion Jeremejeff equalised in the seventh minute of stoppage time, finishing a move by Kamara, for 2–2 at the end of regulation.<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup>

[Extra time](https://www.edgepedia.org/overtime-sports) decided the cup in the final minute of its first half: a penalty was awarded for a handball by Dimitris Hatsidis, and Aaron Leya Iseka converted to seal a 3–2 win.<sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[3](https://www.ekathimerini.com/sports/1302024/ofis-extra-time-win-over-paok-gives-it-its-second-greek-cup/)</sup> It was OFI's first trophy since the 1987 Greek Cup, a second title in the club's 101-year presence, and a second Cup winner's medal in three years at the same stadium for manager Christos Kontis, who had been on the winning side in the 2024 Panathinaikos–Aris final.<sup>[3](https://www.ekathimerini.com/sports/1302024/ofis-extra-time-win-over-paok-gives-it-its-second-greek-cup/)</sup>

## By the numbers

The edition produced 64 matches with 172 goals, an average of 2.69 per game, and 289 cards, 4.52 per match.<sup>[5](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)</sup> Said Hamulić finished as top goalscorer with 4 goals; A. Brignoli was listed as the best goalkeeper (0.40), and T. Nuss led both yellow cards (5) and red cards (2).<sup>[5](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)</sup> Olympiacos remain the most successful club in the competition's history, with 43 finals and 29 trophies.<sup>[10](https://rsssf.org/tablesg/grkcuphist.html)</sup>

## What changed, and what it meant

The decisive contrast with 2024–25 lay in structure and outcome. The previous edition ended with Olympiacos beating OFI 2–0 in the final; a year later, the league phase gave every club in the single table four competitive matches, two home and two away, alongside the top eight of the 2024–25 Super League 1.<sup>[10](https://rsssf.org/tablesg/grkcuphist.html)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[8](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)</sup> The win brought the trophy back to Crete for the second time.<sup>[2](https://www.betssonab.com/newsroom/ofi-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners-historic-final)</sup>

As winners, OFI qualified for the play-off round of the 2026–27 [UEFA Europa League](https://www.edgepedia.org/uefa-europa-league) and the next season's Greek Super Cup; the sponsor's records additionally note confirmed participation in the League Phase of the UEFA Conference League.<sup>[2](https://www.betssonab.com/newsroom/ofi-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners-historic-final)</sup> The competition ran as a partnership between Betsson and the EPO, marked by a Trophy Tour beginning on 24 April 2026 that toured Larissa, Agrinio, Syros, Karditsa, Thessaloniki, Crete, and finally the Volos seafront.<sup>[2](https://www.betssonab.com/newsroom/ofi-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners-historic-final)</sup> Reporting on the final also noted that violence marred the occasion.<sup>[5](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)</sup>

The exact size of the qualifying field differs between available accounts: format coverage describes 24 teams, while reference works record 17 Super League 2 entrants, implying 23.<sup>[8](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)</sup> The final had been scheduled for OAKA in the EPO's original announcement, but was played at Panthessaliko Stadium in Volos.<sup>[6](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)</sup><sup> • </sup><sup>[1](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)</sup>

## References

1. [OFI Crete F.C. Crowned Betsson Greek Cup Winners | ΕΠΟ](https://www.epo.gr/en/articles/ofi-crete-fc-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners)
2. [OFI crowned Betsson Greek Cup winners in a historic final! | Betsson AB](https://www.betssonab.com/newsroom/ofi-crowned-betsson-greek-cup-winners-historic-final)
3. [OFI's extra-time win over PAOK gives it its second Greek Cup | eKathimerini.com](https://www.ekathimerini.com/sports/1302024/ofis-extra-time-win-over-paok-gives-it-its-second-greek-cup/)
4. [Cup (Greece) 25/26: Fixtures, Results & Stats - Footballty](https://footballty.com/tournament/greece-cup/)
5. [Greek Cup 2025/26 | All the info, stats, teams and players - BeSoccer](https://www.besoccer.com/competition/info/cup_greece/2026)
6. [Προκήρυξη Κυπέλλου Ελλάδας Betsson 2025-26 | ΕΠΟ](https://www.epo.gr/el/arthra/prokiryxi-kypelloy-elladas-betsson-2025-26)
7. [Η προκήρυξη του Κυπέλλου Ελλάδας Betsson 2025-2026 - STARSPORTS.GR](https://starsports.gr/2025/07/11/i-prokiryxi-tou-kypellou-elladas-betsson-2025-2026/)
8. [Format coverage - Thermis News](https://www.thermisnews.gr/2025/07/format.html)
9. [Advantage PAOK - PAOKFC](https://www.paokfc.gr/en/news/20260204-provadisma-prokrisis/)
10. [Greece - List of Cup Winners (RSSSF)](https://rsssf.org/tablesg/grkcuphist.html)
11. [PAOK vs. OFI Crete - Final Score - April 25, 2026 | FOX Sports](https://www.foxsports.com/soccer/greek-cup-paok-vs-ofi-crete-apr-25-2026-game-boxscore-706602)
12. [Kupello elladas i klirwsi tis protis fasis (hellenic.news)](https://www.hellenic.news/en/article/sports/football-europe/kupello-elladas-i-klirwsi-tis-protis-fasis)
13. [OFI Crete F.C. Crowned Betsson Greek Cup Winners](https://www.epo.gr/el/node/33082)

---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football competitions and records › Seasons and editions › Domestic cup editions*

*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Sep 30, 2026*

*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*

License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license