Charles Antetokounmpo: Ex-Nigerian footballer who paved way for his superstar NBA son

Charles Antetokounmpo is the father of NBA stars, including Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Milwaukee Bucks power forward. Antetokounmpo was an athlete himself, having played football in Nigeria.

However, he had to give up his dream as a footballer to move his family to Europe, where he toiled to get his children to become the success that they are today.

Table of Content hide 1 Charles Antetokounmpo biography 2 Charles Antetokounmpo career 3 Charles Antetokounmpo’s net worth 4 Charles Antetokounmpo family 5 Charles Antetokounmpo children 5.1 Francis Antetokounmpo 5.2 Thanasis Antetokounmpo 5.3 Giannis Antetokounmpo 5.4 Kostas Antetokounmpo 5.5 Alex Antetokounmpo 6 Charles Antetokounmpo age 7 Charles Antetokounmpo death

Charles Antetokounmpo biography

Charles Antetokounmpo was born on August 3, 1963, in Lagos, Nigeria. His original surname is Adetokunbo. Information about his childhood and education is limited in the public domain.

Charles Antetokounmpo career

Antetokounmpo was a football player in Nigeria before he retired and moved to Greece with his family. Although information about his career in Greece is scarce, it is understood that he struggled a lot because his family were illegal immigrants in that country.

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Charles Antetokounmpo’s net worth

Information about Antetokounmpo’s net worth is scarce at the moment.

Charles Antetokounmpo family

Antetokounmpo married Veronica Antetokounmpo, a former Nigerian high jumper. Their wedding was an intimate ceremony attended only by their family and close relatives and friends.

Their marriage was blessed with five children, all boys.

Charles Antetokounmpo children

Antetokounmpo’s eldest son, Francis, was born in 1988 in Nigeria. However, Francis was left behind in Nigeria as his parents embarked on an illegal relocation to Greece. In Greece, Antetokounmpo and his wife had four boys named Thanasis (born in 1992), Giannis (born in 1994), Kostas (born in 1997) and Alex (born in 2001).

Four of the children- Thanasis, Giannis and Kostas and Alex – currently play in the prestigious National Basketball Association (NBA) league. Three of the brothers have claimed NBA Championship titles and made history as well (Kostas with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2020 and Thanasis and Giannis with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2021). Francis, however, followed his father’s path by playing professional football.

Francis Antetokounmpo

Francis Antetokounmpo was born in Lagos on October 20, 1988. However, he was raised by his grandparents as his parents went on an illegal journey to Greece. After reuniting with his family, Francis played professional football in Nigeria and Greece before he retired. After retirement, Francis started a music career and released his debut single, “Shekosi”, alongside the music video, in 2020.

Thanasis Antetokounmpo

Thanasis is the second of the Antetokounmpo brothers. He was born on July 18, 1992, and currently plays professional basketball in the NBA. He began his basketball career in 2008 when he played for the junior teams of the Greek basketball club, Filathlitikos before transitioning to the senior men’s teams at a semi-professional level.

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He played four games in the Greek third division before being selected by the Delaware 87ers as the ninth overall pick in the 2013 NBA Development League Draft. In 2014, he joined Westchester Knicks. He later signed a two-year deal with EuroLeague’s prominent Panathinaikos before he joined Giannis in the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks in 2019. Thanasis was part of the team that defeated the Phoenix Suns to win the NBA Finals — making history as the first trio of brothers to become NBA champions in league history, along with Giannis and Kostas.

Apart from basketball, Thanasis’s other interests include fashion, golf and his podcast, Thanalysis.

Giannis Antetokounmpo

Giannis is, perhaps, the most popular of the Antetokounmpo brothers. He was born on December 6, 1994. Giannis is a superstar basketball player in the NBA. Fondly called the “Greek Freak” by fans, he began his career when he was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks as the 15th pick in the 2013 NBA Draft.

Before he began his basketball career, Giannis “was selling stuff in the street” in Greece.

He said: “My mom was in the market. I used to go help her. People don’t know about this, but I did it.”

Having joined NBA, Giannis went ahead to cement his name in history as he was named the “Most Improved Player” in 2017, named the “Defensive Player of the Year” in 2020, named MVP twice in 2019 and 2020 and won the NBA Championship in 2021.

Giannis is in a romantic relationship with Mariah Riddlesprigger, with whom he shares two kids – Liam Charles (born on February 11, 2020) and Maverick Shai (born in September 2021).

Kostas Antetokounmpo

Kostas is the fourth of the Antetokounmpo brothers, born on November 20, 1997, in Athens. Like his brothers, his basketball career began in Greece, where he played for two years in high school before playing for Dominican High School in Wisconsin. He also played at a collegiate level for the University of Dayton.

Kostas was picked by the Philadelphia 76ers at the 2018 NBA Draft, but he was immediately traded to the Dallas Mavericks. In 2019, he moved to the Los Angeles Lakers and made NBA history with the team. He became the first Greek-born player to win an NBA championship, a trend that his brothers followed in 2021.

Kostas briefly played for the French basketball team, LDLC ASVEL, and the Chicago Bulls. He currently plays for the Turkish team, Fenerbahçe Beko.

Alex Antetokounmpo

Alex is the youngest of the Antetokounmpo brothers. He was born on August 27, 2001, in Athens. He graduated from Dominican High School in Wisconsin but decided to play basketball in Europe instead of playing for a college team.

“I am sure that my decision to play in Europe is the best choice,” Bleacher Report quoted Alex as saying. “It will help me in my plan to prepare myself in the best possible way. So, when I feel ready to take the next step, I will be prepared for the NBA.”

After playing for Spain’s UCAM Murcia, Alex joined the Sacramento Kings for the 2021 NBA Summer League. In October 2021, he signed with the Raptors 905, which is the NBA G League affiliate of the Toronto Raptors. He later played alongside Giannis and Thanasis in the 2022 NBA All-Star Skills Challenge. Alex joined the Wisconsin Herd, the Bucks G League affiliate and currently plays in the NBA with his brothers.

Meanwhile, the Antetokounmpo brothers launched the AntetokounBros Academy, which is a “springboard for underprivileged youth so that their dreams come true”. The academy aims to provide access to sports, inspiration through education and scholarships to open pathways in life.

Charles Antetokounmpo age

Antetokounmpo was 54 years old when he passed away in 2017.

Charles Antetokounmpo death

On September 29, 2017, Charles Antetokounmpo died of a heart attack in Milwaukee, United States of America.

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