The
Athletic Union of Constantinople (), more commonly referred to as
AEK or in European competitions as
AEK Athens, is a
sports club based in the city of
Athens,
Greece.
The club was founded on 13 April 1924 in
Athens by
Greek refugees from
Constantinople (now
Istanbul) in the wake of the
Greco-Turkish War and subsequent
population exchange.The large Greek population of
Constantinople, not unlike those of the other Ottoman urbancentres, continued its athletic traditions in the form of numerous athletic clubs. Clubs suchas
Enosi Tataoulon () from the
Tatavladistrict,
Megas Alexandros () of Vathyriakos,and
Hermes ( –
Ermis) of
Galata existed to promote
Hellenic athletic and cultural ideals; Hermes, one of the more popular clubs, wasformed in 1875 by the Greek community of Pera (Galata). Forced by the
Kemalist regime tochange its name to
Pera Club in 1921, many of its athletes fled during the populationexchanges at the end of the
Greco-Turkish War, and settled inAthens and
Thessaloniki.
The founders of AEK established the club with the intention of providing athletic and cultural diversions for the thousands of predominantly Constantinopolitan and Anatolian refugees who had settled in the new suburbs of Athens (
Nea Filadelfeia,
Nea Ionia,
Nea Chalkidona,
Nea Smyrni, e.t.c.).
Crest and Colours
Since the club's foundation, AEK have had three main crests, though all underwent minor variations. In 1924, AEK adopted as their first crest the image of a
double-headed eagle ( –......
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