Evangelos Marinakis, the Greek businessman and investor, is also the owner of the football clubs Nottingham Forest, Olympiacos and Rio Ave.
Marinakis is no stranger to headlines, being a powerful, visible and often controversial presence whose influence stretches across countries, competitions and club cultures.
At Nottingham Forest, Marinakis has transformed the club from an underperforming Championship side into an ambitious Premier League project. Since his 2017 takeover, he has invested heavily, including converting more than £73 million of club debt into equity to strengthen financial stability. Backing major transfer spending, he oversaw the huge squad rebuild that followed promotion in 2022. He also modernised parts of the infrastructure, supporting improvements to the City Ground and the Nigel Doughty Academy.
Unlike most owners, Marinakis prefers to be more hands-on, as seen during the Morgan Gibbs-White saga. Forest threatened legal action against Tottenham Hotspur and the player’s agent over an alleged unlawful approach and breach of confidentiality, leading to Gibbs-White eventually staying and signing a new deal.
Marinakis also walked onto the pitch after Forest’s draw with Leicester to confront Nuno Espirito Santo, the Forest manager at that time. An incident that many believed to be bold and outrageous.
Gary Neville made his thoughts perfectly clear on Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis confronting Nuno Espirito Santo at full-time! 👀
— Sports Illustrated FC (@SI_FootballClub) May 11, 2025
Do you agree with his stance? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/D9ZuXCgiRG
Marinakis’ ‘hands-on’ style had to come to a stop, though, as he was forced to step back from formal daily control of Nottingham Forest after UEFA’s multi-club ownership rules became an issue. Owning Olympiacos, with the possibility of both clubs qualifying for European competitions, created a potential conflict. This led him to place his Forest shares into a blind trust to comply with the regulations.
Controversies surrounding Marinakis have not just been limited to England. In Greece, he has been drawn into a sports-violence case linked to the death of riot police officer Giorgos Lyngeridis, who was fatally injured by a flare during clashes outside a volleyball match between Olympiacos and Panathinaikos in December 2023. Marinakis, along with four Olympiacos board members, were reportedly ordered to stand trial on misdemeanour charges connected to sports violence. However, Marinakis and the other officials deny the allegations.
Evangelos Marinakis’s name carries a lot of pull; stories involving him tend to attract attention quickly. That same public weight was witnessed recently, when a photo was posted on social media. It appeared to show Marinakis and another guest seated in a VIP area during Nottingham Forest’s 3-1 win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on May 4, 2026.
It was made to look like both men seemed to be receiving massages from full-figured women wearing revealing black dresses while watching the match. It created a scene that looked unusually private, indulgent and out of place for such a public, high-profile football setting. This image fits the persona that the controversies around Marinakis have created, making it look believable and real.
However, the image did not hold up to scrutiny for long. After it began circulating, X users pointed out that the version being shared had been altered, and the correction was later reflected through the platform’s Community Notes feature. The note directed viewers to the original image, which showed that the viral version had been edited to make the scene appear more unusual than it actually was.
In the genuine photo, the scene was far more ordinary. It did not show the exaggerated situation suggested by the edited version that spread online. The altered image added a more ‘viral moment’ instead of what was just a normal moment in the director’s box.
This distinction matters. Marinakis has been involved in various controversies all around the world, so anything attached to his name is likely to travel quickly.
In an environment like this, a manipulated image does not need much context to gain attention. It only needs to appear believable enough to fit into the wider public conversation around him.
Things like this have become a recurring problem, with it being easier than ever to spread misinformation. AI tools and editing software have become more accessible, allowing a normal photo to be changed, reposted and accepted by viewers before even checking it’s authenticity.
REFERENCES:
(1) Sports Illustrated FC on X: “Gary Neville made his thoughts perfectly clear on Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis confronting Nuno Espirito Santo at full-time! 👀 Do you agree with his stance? 🤔 https://t.co/D9ZuXCgiRG” / X. (n.d.). X (Formerly Twitter). https://x.com/SI_FootballClub/status/1921684007365808421?lang=en
Casswell, H. (2025, June 26). Nottingham Forest stadium expansion given green light. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c2k1gwq2x12o
Dorsett, R. (2025, July 16). Morgan Gibbs-White transfer news: Nottingham Forest threaten Tottenham Hotspur and player’s agent with legal action. Sky Sports. https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11727/13397092/morgan-gibbs-white-transfer-news-nottingham-forest-threaten-tottenham-hotspur-and-players-agent-with-legal-action?utm_source=chatgpt.com
https://preview.redd.it/what-does-this-sub-think-of-the-owner-of-the-forest-v0-1q6isz7m4dzg1.png?width=1633&format=png&auto=webp&s=ff2ed3f39293d56ad785898a2635458030f5f66f. (n.d.). Reddit. https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fwhat-does-this-sub-think-of-the-owner-of-the-forest-v0-1q6isz7m4dzg1.png%3Fwidth%3D1633%26format%3Dpng%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3Dff2ed3f39293d56ad785898a2635458030f5f66f
Koukoumakas, K. (2025, November 5). Evangelos Marinakis: Olympiacos owner on trial in Athens accused of instigating football violence. BBC Sport. https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/cge58yq9515o
Reuters. (2024, October 22). Forest Owner Marinakis banned for spitting towards match officials. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/forest-owner-marinakis-banned-spitting-towards-match-officials-2024-10-22/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Reuters. (2025, April 3). Olympiakos chairman Marinakis to stand trial over sports violence case. Reuters. https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/olympiakos-chairman-marinakis-stand-trial-over-sports-violence-case-2025-04-03/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Sport, B. (2025, May 12). Nottingham Forest news: Fan views on Marinakis outburst. BBC Sport. https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/articles/cqj70w9pw1po
Wikipedia contributors. (2026, March 25). Evangelos Marinakis. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evangelos_Marinakis
