APOEL Volleyball Club is a Cypriot professional volleyball team based in the city of Nicosia. Since 1928, it has been part of the larger APOEL Nicosia multi-sport club. The team competes in Cyprus Volleyball Division 1, the top-level volleyball league in Cyprus, and plays their home games in the Lefkotheo Indoor Arena.
History
The APOEL Volleyball Club was formed in 1928, two years after the founding of its parent club. The team was one of the twenty founding members of the Cyprus Volleyball Federation.
APOEL V.C. has won a total of 11 First Division championships. Of those titles, seven were won under the aegis of the Cyprus Volleyball Federation (CVF); the remaining four were won under the Cypriot Local Committee for Sports, the predecessor to the CVF. In addition, APOEL has won the Cypriot Cup five times. The 1980s was the most successful decade for the team; between 1979 and 1985, APOEL won the Division 1 championship six times and the Cypriot Cup five times.
Following the turn of the 21st century, the team put together a string of good performances in the 2003–04 CEV Top Teams Cup and 2004–05 CEV Cup, but failed to win another title. After a poor performance in the 2008–09 season, APOEL was relegated to the Second Division and temporarily suspended its participation in the league due to financial difficulties. This was the first and only time a team from the APOEL Nicosia club has been relegated.
Prior to the 2012–13 season, APOEL V.C. was reactivated and participated in the Cypriot Second Division. That year, they won the Second Division championship with a perfect 15-0 record, and earned a promotion to the Cypriot First Division in the 2013–14 season.
In the 2018–19 season, APOEL qualified for the championship playoffs. After suffering a 4-3 loss to Pafiakos in the playoff semifinal series, the club finished in 3rd place. In the 2022-23 season, APOEL enjoyed their most successful campaign in 34 years, qualifying for the playoffs and reaching the championship finals before losing to Omonia.
Current squad As of 15 September 2022:
No. Player Position Age1 Toms VanagsOutside hitter322 Andrew ChristouLibero254 Konstantinos EfstathiouUniversal385 George ChrysostomouMiddle blocker346 Demetris Apostolou Outside hitter388 Constantinos Petrou Outside hitter329 Christos AntoniadesMiddle blocker3610 Markus UuskariOpposite2511 Dmytro ShlominSetter3315 Stylianos Vereis Setter1917 Pantelis PanteliLibero3718 Angelos GeorgiouOutside hitter1819 Jovan Melka Head Coach5620 Michael ZachariaAssistant Coach43
League positions SeasonDiv.Pos.1971–72Div.11st1972–73Div.14th1973–74Div.14th1974–75Div.13rd1975–76Div.14th1976–77Div.14th1977–78Div.14th SeasonDiv.Pos.1978–79Div.11st1979–80Div.11st1980–81Div.11st1981–82Div.12nd1982–83Div.11st1983–84Div.11st1984–85Div.11st SeasonDiv.Pos.1985–86Div.12nd1986–87Div.12nd1987–88Div.12nd1988–89Div.12nd1989–90Div.13rd1990–91Div.18th1991–92Div.14th SeasonDiv.Pos.1992–93Div.15th1993–94Div.15th1994–95Div.19th1995–96Div.14th1996–97Div.14th1997–98Div.16th1998–99Div.15th SeasonDiv.Pos.1999–00Div.13rd2000–01Div.17th2001–02Div.14th2002–03Div.15th2003–04Div.15th2004–05Div.16th2005–06Div.18th SeasonDiv.Pos.2006–07Div.17th2007–08Div.16th2008–09Div.18th2009–10Team wasinactive2010–112011–122012–13Div.21st SeasonDiv.Pos.2013–14Div.17th2014–15Div.16th2015–16Div.17th2016–17Div.14th2017–18Div.15th2018-19Div.13rd2019–20Div.1LNF2020-21Div.16th2021-22Div.16th2022-23Div.12nd
Honours Cypriot Championship Winners (11): 1953–54, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1971–72, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1983–84, 1984–85
Cypriot Cup Winners (5): 1978–79, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1983–84, 1984–85
Cypriot Second Division Winners (1): 2012–13
Youth trophies (16): U21: 3 Championships (1991–92, 1992–93, 1995–96) 2 Cups (1994–95, 1995–96) U18: 5 Championships (1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96, 1996–97) U16: 6 Championships (1988–89, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96)
Women's team
History The APOEL women's volleyball team was formed in 1974. They won their only title in 1977, when they defeated AEL Limassol 3–2 in the final of the women's Cypriot Cup. The team later suspended its operations in 1990 due to financial problems.
League positions SeasonDiv.Pos.1977–78Div.12nd1978–79Div.12nd1979–80Div.12nd SeasonDiv.Pos.1980–81Div.14th1981–82Div.14th1982–83Div.14th SeasonDiv.Pos.1983–84Div.12nd1984–85Div.12nd1985–86Div.12nd SeasonDiv.Pos.1986–87Div.12nd1987–88Div.12nd1988–89Div.13rd SeasonDiv.Pos.1989–90Div.16th
Honours Women's Cup Winners (1): 1976–77
References
External links APOEL Athletic Football Club – official website