Shakhtar Donetsk and Dynamo Kyiv to play European games at Schalke and Hamburg
Bundesliga 2 clubs Schalke and Hamburg will host UEFA competition this season with Shakhtar Donetsk and Dynamio Kyiv opting to play their league-phase games in Germany due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Shakhtar played their Champions League home matches during last season's group phase at HSV's Volksparkstadion, where they managed victories against FC Barcelona and Royal Antwerp. This time around, the reigning Ukrainian champions will team up with their namesakes, The Miners, at Schalke, with the Veltins-Arena set to host record German champions Bayern Munich, as well as Atalanta, Young Boys and Brest in a new league phase.
“We are very pleased about the cooperation and are proud that we can support Shakhtar Donetsk and make our stadium available as a venue for the matches in the Champions League," Schalke CEO Matthias Tillmann said. "In addition, the tenancy also offers added value for our club at an economic level. Overall, this is a win-win situation for both clubs – we are very much looking forward to the matches and the collaboration," he added.
Watch: The Schalke stadium experience
Shakhtar's general director, Serhii Palkin, added, "We are delighted to be able to play our UEFA Champions League matches in one of the best stadiums in Germany. Last season’s positive experience shows that Shakhtar has strong support from the fans in this country, both from the locals and the Ukrainian refugees. This factor is very important for our club. We are grateful to the management of Schalke 04 and the city of Gelsenkirchen for their solidarity and have no doubts about our mutually beneficial cooperation."
Hamburg's Volkstadion will once again feature European nights, with Dynamo Kyiv ready to play out their UEFA Europa League first-phase matches in the port city. Lazio, Ferencváros, Viktoria Plzeň and Rīgas Futbola Skola will all visit the home of the Red Shorts. Dynamo will also face Bundesliga side Hoffenheim in one of their away fixtures.
Watch: check out Hamburg's Volksparkstadion
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"We received a lot of encouragement for our support for Ukraine and are pleased to be able to continue showing our solidarity by hosting another club affected by the war," HSV board member Dr. Eric Huwer explained.
Hamburg's mayor, Dr. Peter Tschentscher, said, "As part of our city pact for solidarity and future, a number of new connections have been made between Kyiv and Hamburg with regard to politics, economics and civil society. I’m pleased that Dynamo Kyiv will now be playing their Europa League home games at the Volksparkstadion in Hamburg. I wish the team the best of luck."
Both the Volksparkstadion and the Veltins-Arena were used as host venues at last summer's UEFA Euro 2024 tournament held in Germany. The former has a capacity of 51,500 for games in European competition while Schalke's ground holds 54,740 when it comes to matches in international competition.
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