SYDNEY, October 2026 — The Hellenic Club centenary gala at the Hyatt Regency Sydney on Saturday drew Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Greek Ambassador Stavros Venizelos and NSW ministers to mark 100 years of the club.
Albanese spoke at the black-tie ball marking the Hellenic Club centenary, which the club had said was sold out. He thanked club president Nikolas Hatzistergos for inviting him to the milestone event.
Since the 1920s the club has served Sydney’s Greek community, and it says it is the last multicultural institution in the city centre.
Albanese also praised the contribution of Greek Australians to the nation. “Australia without Greek Australians is simply beyond imagining,” he said.
Albanese then traced the club’s origins to a small group of Greek shopkeepers in 1926:
“What is most telling is that when we turn the clock back to 1926, there weren’t all that many Greeks in Sydney – at least not yet. Somewhere between 1000 and 1500 in a city of a million. But for a bunch of Greek shopkeepers who put their heads together, that was more than enough – and out of their vision, the Hellenic Club was born.”
Anthony Albanese, Prime Minister of Australia
He said the club later helped new arrivals settle and became “the heartbeat of Sydney’s Greek community”.
The Prime Minister also linked the night to OXI Day on 28 October, which marks Greece’s refusal of an ultimatum from invading fascist powers in 1940. He said Australians joined the fight in Greece’s “most desperate hour of need”.
Finally, Albanese closed his speech with a toast to the next century. “Happy anniversary. Here’s to your next hundred years,” he said.
Hellenic Club centenary guests
Ambassador Venizelos and the club’s patron, Nick Politis AM, also attended the Hellenic Club centenary. The club’s board appointed Politis as patron in June, and the club said at the time that his appointment would be formally acknowledged at the centenary ball. Politis has chaired the Sydney Roosters since 1993 and was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 2014 for significant service to rugby league football as an administrator.
NSW Ministers Stephen Kamper, Courtney Houssos and Sophie Cotsis attended, as well as Consul General of Greece in Sydney Georgios Skemperis.
Father Stavros Ivanos represented Archbishop Makarios of Australia. Andrew Liveris AO, president of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Games Organising Committee, also joined the guests.
Former Australian officials Arthur Sinodinos AO and Arthur Spyrou, the former Australian Ambassador to Greece, attended too. In addition, past presidents and current board members of the Hellenic Club joined the Hellenic Club centenary celebrations.
During the evening, Nick Politis was made an honorary patron of the club.
Greek singer Eleftheria Eleftheriou performed at the gala as a special guest. The club had announced her, together with Trio Mousikanti from Greece, as the headline entertainment.
Early years and premises
According to the club’s official history page, a group of Greek shopkeepers in inner-city Sydney began meeting in 1924. The club incorporated on 4 December 1926.
Its first rooms stood at the corner of Castlereagh and Park streets. The club also helped raise funds for the Greek Orthodox church of St Sophia, which opened in September 1927.
For many years the club limited membership to 60 people. During World War II, however, it made all Greeks serving in the armed forces honorary members.
In the 1940s the club bought 195–197 Elizabeth Street under president Peter Soulos. Later, in 1954, it bought 251–253 Elizabeth Street, where Hellenic House opened on 19 October 1959 in the presence of NSW Premier JJ Cahill.
In the late 1960s, club donations helped fund chairs in archaeology and modern Greek studies at the University of Sydney. The club bought 238–240 Castlereagh Street in 1979.
In 2013 the club converted the historic Australian Workers Union building there into Alpha Dining. Past presidents include John Comino and Jim Kospetas, who led the board in the 2000s.
The Hellenic Club centenary gala formed part of the club’s program for the Hellenic Presidential Guard (Evzones), whose Sydney visit the club hosts with support from the NSW Government.
The Evzones attend the OXI Day ANZAC Memorial ceremony in Hyde Park on Sunday 25 October. They then travel to Canberra on 28 October.
Read more: Evzones Arrive in Sydney for OXI Day Celebrations and Canberra Visit
Photo gallery of the Hellenic Club centenary gala
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All photos are copyrighted by Nick Bourdaniotis for Greek City Times