Con Constantine

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Con Constantine (born 1 July 1945) is a Cypriot‑Australian businessman who became well known as the owner of Newcastle United Jets, an Australian soccer club.

Early life and business
- Constantine moved to Australia from Maroni near Larnaka, Cyprus, at age 10.
- He started by working in a takeaway shop and later sold houseplants.
- In 1985 he built Parklea Markets in Parklea, New South Wales. It began as a plant nursery and grew into a major shopping destination in Western Sydney.
- He later expanded to Newcastle, where he owns The Store. He bought two Newcastle community papers, the Newcastle & Lake Macquarie Post and the Hunter Post, from Fairfax Media.
- Constantine supports his local Blacktown Greek Orthodox parish and many charities.

Newcastle United Jets
- He was the owner and chairman of Newcastle United Jets, a professional soccer club based in Newcastle that plays in the A‑League.
- The Jets won the A‑League title in the 2007–08 season, defeating the Central Coast Mariners 1–0 in the Grand Final. The club began in 2000 when it joined the National Soccer League as Newcastle United.
- In 2006/07 he replaced manager Richard Money with Nick Theodorakopoulos, but Theodorakopoulos was later sacked. Gary van Egmond became head coach with assistant Mark Jones. For the 2009–10 season, Branko Culina was appointed after van Egmond left.
- Constantine also brought in Mario Jardel, a famous Brazilian striker, though Jardel was out of shape when he joined Jets. Constantine invested more than $15 million in the club.
- After a disappointing 2008/09 season, some Newcastle supporters protested by displaying banners upside down. Constantine reportedly invited the protest leaders to his box and allegedly threatened them; the Football Federation Australia investigated the incident.
- On 22 September 2010, Constantine was stripped of his Jets license, and local businessman Nathan Tinkler took over the team for a period. Constantine gave a tearful farewell press conference and accused the FFA of backstabbing him.