Six months after the start of the war, football kicked off again for the first time in the Ukrainian league at the national stadium in Kiev. Shakhtar Donetsk and Metalist Kharkiv played football for points
Six months ago, the league in Ukraine was initially interrupted and, in the aftermath, officially declared over. The Russian war of aggression had also brought sport in the country to a standstill.
On Tuesday, footballers from the “VBet Liha” faced each other again for the first time. In the national stadium of the capital Kiev, top club Shakhtar Donetsk and Metalist Kharkiv fought a duel (0:0). So in the middle of the war, games are being played again. One reason is that the clubs urgently need revenue. A TV contract with an Irish pay-TV broadcaster allows at least a small increase in their bank account.
The current plan is for all league matches to be played in Kiev or in the west of the country. Before the start of the season, only the venues for the first matchday were known. FK Hirnyk Krywyi Rih, currently only about 100 kilometres away from the front line, has, as the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” writes, so far been one of two clubs still refusing to leave home.
Bunkers nearby demanded
In addition, all stadiums must be located near an air raid shelter. In the event of a bomb scare, matches will be suspended for a maximum of one hour, and if no further play is then possible, they will not be scored or will be rescheduled
The local security authorities will decide individually before each match whether it can be played at all. The fact that the game will be played again at all should be a sign of normality – to their own population, to the world, but also to the warmongers in Moscow.
