 On 10 June 2009 Karabelas signed a four-year deal with AEK Athens.After struggling to find his form in his debut season under Dušan Bajević, he appeared consistently in his second season, under Manolo Jiménez, and was deemed "irreplaceable" by the latter.On 26 July 2012 Karabelas moved abroad for the first time in his career, by agreeing to a two-year deal with La Liga side Levante UD.