The Half-Century Secret to NY Pancyprian Freedoms’ Success

On October 19, 1959, the Olympia ocean liner pulled into New York City harbor with an anxious bunch of immigrants after a 17-day journey from the Mediterranean Sea.

Their voyage started in Cyprus, with stops in Alexandria, Egypt; Piraeus, Greece; Naples, Italy, and Marseille, France – before sailing across the Atlantic Ocean.

Among those eager to disembark was a 10-year-old soccer player named Philip Christopher.

"My father was here [in the U.S.] and myself, my sisters and my mother came to meet him. It was great. I stepped out and there was snow and freezing cold. I was wearing shorts and soccer shoes. So, you know where my mind was," he said with a chuckle.

At the time, little did Philip Christopher know what American soccer had in store for him.

Then again, this country’s soccer didn't realize what sort of an impact he would have on the beautiful game here either. Even at that young age, Christopher had a unique passion for the game, which he has translated into a lifetime of success on and off the field, as a player and team owner.

He’s been the driving force behind the legendary N.Y. Pancyprian Freedoms for the past five decades.
That's right – five decades.

On and off the Pitch

Christopher’s influence has gone beyond soccer, as he’s also the founder of the Pancyprian Association of America.

"He's the reason the Pancyprians are in existence," team general manager George Halkides said. "He does everything. He's a great motivator, great worker. He's there leading everything. People look up to him. People respect him, not only for his effort with the Pancyprians, but in the whole Greek American community. “

He's a well-known personality, as well as in Cyprus and even in Greece,” Halkides said of Christopher. “Whenever he goes to Greece or Cyprus, he always meets heads of state. They know him and recognize him as a great ambassador."

Christopher has poured countless dollars into the operation of the club.

"Without him, none of this happens," said head coach and former player Andreas Chronis. "The team doesn't happen at all. All the players that have passed through here, all the coaches that have passed through here, that have advanced in their careers, or maybe it was just a place where they could call home for a couple years. Everything is owed to him.”

After emigrating to the USA, Christopher settled in Astoria, Queens. No doubt soccer was in his blood. He earned All-New York State honors when Bryant High School won the New York City championship. He attended New York University on a scholarship and captained the team. After graduation, he taught for a while and coached soccer before becoming a successful businessman.

His life changed on July 20, 1974, when Cyprus was invaded by Turkish troops, who still control the northern part of the island to this day.
Christopher was so incensed about what transpired that he founded the Pancyprian Association of America, which focused on protecting and assisting the struggle of the Cypriot people. The organization started in New York and added branches in Florida and Washington D.C.

"The objective was to promote and protect Cyprus," Christopher said. "The Pancyprian Association is the biggest Greek American organization in the United States. Soccer is a way of promoting Cyprus. We have our other divisions that are very active, including our political division."

The organization has helped hundreds of Cyprus students attend college in the U.S. on scholarships. Some of them played for the Pancyprian Freedoms. "It's always a great motivation for him to bring this in the forefront, the struggle of the Cypriots," Halkides said.

Christopher has been honored countless times. He’s been the grand marshal of the Greek Independence Day Parade, the winner of the Hellenic Heritage Achievement and National Public Service Award. One of his most recent honors came in November 2024, when he was bestowed with the Cyprus-U.S. Chamber of Commerce 27th Annual Distinguished Merit Award.

He also was an executive board member of the White House Economic Council.

When Christopher became a successful businessman and entrepreneur, he was able to finance both his passions. Christopher, who has been a leader in the wireless industry for more than four decades, is president and CEO of American Network Solutions in Hauppauge, N.Y.,

While creating the Pancyprian Association of America in 1974, he also established the N.Y. Pancyprian Freedoms soccer team to help publicize his homeland's plight. Little did he realize that the team would become one of the most celebrated amateur and semi-pro soccer clubs in the USA.

"We never thought that we would reach a great history after 50 years," Christopher said.

The Pancyprian Freedoms won Open Cup titles in 1980, 1982 and 1983 and national amateur Open Cup titles in 2008, 2010 and 2011.

The teams also have won a myriad of league championships and cup titles at the local, regional and national level. They have secured hardware in the German-American Soccer League, Cosmopolitan Soccer League, Hellenic American Soccer League, and American Premier Soccer League (formerly the Eastern Premier Soccer League) and in many cup competitions in the Eastern New York Adult Soccer Association.

On July 27, 2024, the Freedoms added yet another trophy to their collection, the National Amateur Cup, aka the Fritz Marth Cup. On the strength of five first-half goals, the team recorded a 6-0 triumph over the Milwaukee Torrent in DeKalb, Ill. That clinched a spot in this year's Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup.

"This one was sweet in particular because it was the 100th anniversary of the USASA," Christopher said of the U.S. Amateur Soccer Association. "This one was very, very special, because we never won the National Amateur Cup."

It was doubly sweet because the triumph clinched a spot in this year’s Open Cup.

If there is one thing that defines Christopher, it's his desire for success. He enjoys winning a championship, but he has realized teams are only as good as their last match, tournament or title. There always seems to be another cup competition just around the corner.

"He has never been fully happy," said Chronis, who retired last year to become head coach. "It's always been like, 'Okay, we won the EPSL or the Cosmopolitan League championship. But we lost in the state cup, and we're out of the national cup. He's never satisfied. He's always hungry."

The team is doing well this season. After defeating Doxa 7-1 on March 9, the Pancyprian Freedoms (11-1-1, 34 points) lead the APSL Metropolitan Conference by three points over their archrivals – the NY Greek Americans (10-1-2, 31).

Their next big challenge will be against FC Cincinnati 2, an MLS NEXT PRO team, at NKU Soccer Stadium in the Open Cup first round in Highland Heights, Ky. on March 20.

Pancyprians’ New Test in the U.S.’ Oldest Tournament

Chronis understands well the challenge that the team faces. FC Cincinnati 2 has young players who train five days a week, compared to the older and more experienced Freedoms – who practice two or three times a week around work commitments.

"They have players that are aspiring to be professional [in Major League Soccer],” The Pancyprians coach said. “We have to go in with a different mindset, because we're considered to be an amateur team, but we consider ourselves to be a semi-pro team. This is a place where they're playing just to finish their careers, whereas the players that we're playing against are playing to keep advancing in their careers.

"The second obstacle is that we don't train as much as they do. But what we do have is quality. We have a higher average age, which means that we have more experience,” Chronis added. “We need to use our experience. We're ready to play this game, and we're excited to play this game."

The Pancyprian Freedoms are composed of some of the leading semi-pro players in the New York-New Jersey metropolitan area. The players have day jobs across the spectrum of employment – including accounting, finance, the MLS office, schoolteachers, physical education teachers and construction workers.

"I consider our team to have professional caliber players that are looking for a balance between their work life and their playing life," Chronis said. "This is the best possible level in the country to be at where you can maintain the stability of a job but also play at a very competitive level."

If his team could pull off a Cupset, Chronis said: "that would be very gratifying."

"It would also show the quality that we have," he added. "I think player for player, we're better than them. Where we are not better is in fitness and training, because we're not a professional team. It'll just show that we are high quality even at the semi-pro level. It also will shed light that there's a lot of players out there that are not considered to be at the professional level that deserve to be there.

“I think it'll be an eye-opening experience for our opponents,” Chronis insisted.

If that comes to pass it would make Philip Christopher a proud man once again.

Michael Lewis can be reached at socwriter@aol.com and @Soccerwriter on X/Twitter. His book (ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers) isavailable for purchase.