Evangelos Marinakis
Evangelos Marinakis is an international businessman, investor and philanthropist. He first made his name in the shipping industry, but has since invested in sports, media, consumer services, green energy and real estate.
Besides his business and sporting interests, Evangelos also actively supports UNICEF, the 'Miltiadis Marinakis Professorship for Modern Greek Language and Culture' at the Ohio State University, the 'Kazantzakis Museum' in Crete and a number of other charitable causes both in Greece and around the world.
Evangelos is the Founder and Chairman of Capital Maritime Trading Corp. He is one of the leading shipowners in the maritime industry.
Capital Maritime and its affiliated companies operate a total fleet of 146 ships with an overall tonnage of approximately 14 million tonnes (dwt), across the tanker, container, LNG, LPG/Ammonia, LCO2, PSV and dry bulk segments. The fleet under management includes the vessels of Nasdaq-listed Capital Clean Energy Carriers Corp. (‘CCEC’).
Since 2010 he has been included annually in the shipping industry British publication Lloyd's List "One Hundred Most Influential People in the Shipping Industry" list, ranking 22nd in 2023, 41st in 2022, 47th in 2021, 59th in 2020, 2019 and 2018, 66th in 2017, 61st in 2016, 65th in 2015, 67th in 2014, 73rd in 2013, 84th in 2012, 84th in 2011, 88th in 2010. In 2023 Evangelos received the "Deal of the Decade Award" at the Lloyd's List Greek Awards, while in 2022 he was elected member of the Board of Directors of the Union of Greek Shipowners.
Since the summer of 2010, Evangelos Marinakis has been the leader and main shareholder of the greatest and most popular football club in Greece, Olympiacos. Under his leadership, Olympiacos achieved the conquest of the UEFA Europa Conference League and became the first Greek team with a European title in its trophy cabinet. It is also the only Greek club that has won the European Championship at the Youth level, the UEFA Youth League and the first ever club in UEFA’s history to win two European titles in the same season.
In 2017, Evangelos broadened his sporting activities further when he became the majority owner of the most historic English football club, Nottingham Forest FC. Under his leadership, the Club returned to the top tier of English football, the Premier League, in May 2022 following 23 years in the English Football League.
Evangelos Marinakis is also an active investor in the mass media sector. Today, Alter Ego Media is the largest Greek media group with a presence in broadcasting, publishing and content creation. The Group’s portfolio includes Mega, the largest TV channel in Greece, the radio station My Radio and the historical media outlets TO VIMA, TA NEA and OIKONOMIKOS TAXYDROMOS. In addition, Alter Ego Media owns in.gr, the largest Greek digital portal and a wide range of entertainment and special interest digital and print publications. It also owns the largest TV library in Greece boasting over 230 series and 132,000 production hours, while its 100% subsidiary, Alter Ego Studios, continues to elevate Greece’s audiovisual landscape.
Ιn 2014, his passion for his home city of Piraeus led him to get involved in local civic life. Together with the current Mayor of Piraeus, Yiannis Moralis, they founded the independent electoral alliance called "Piraeus Winner", which contested and won the consecutive municipal elections of 2014, 2019 and 2023. Evangelos participated in 2014 and 2019 and was voted first member of the City Council with 14,010 and 15,816 votes respectively - record votes in the history of local council elections.
Evangelos Marinakis was born in 1967 in the Greek port city of Piraeus. He is the son of Miltiadis Marinakis, a shipowner and politician from Crete. His mother is Irene Karakatsani, whose family hail from the Pontus region and descend from the prominent Ypsilantis family. Throughout his life, he has been a strong supporter of actions to commemorate the victims of the genocide of the Greeks of Pontus, a lesser known tragedy in which around 350,000 Greeks perished.
Evangelos is married to Athanasia Kassioti and they have four children.